small town heralds

[STDDLY at TINY_TIM.SHSU.EDU]

reply to   litch at eden.com (R.Michael Litchfield)
on small town heralds
> 
> I do think however than heralds from smaller groups are loathe to ask for help
> because it might deminish their power in some regard. Heralds being the
> natural control freaks they are hate that, and in a small group a herald is
> someone with a fairly large degree of power.
> 
> -Michael

What power!!! As a former small town herald I had more problems 
trying to get people to participate in heraldic stuff and submitt and 
trying to prove to them that I would send in the appropriate 
information. 

I had to learn the office of Herald in my group (long ago and a 
incipient shire distant) while I was Seneschal because we needed to 
get a name and device passed so that we could get shire status (after 
8 years nothing from our group had been submitted to Kingdom). Our 
current herald(the only person who would accept the position) had no 
clue and I had to push him and teach myself SCA style heraldry. At 
the time there (as now) was no current kingdom book of the herald to 
teach aspects of heraldry. I had no clue on how to get the information 
and no idea that there were submission rules and other herald's 
handbooks from other kingdoms. 

I started by reading our Kindom's letters of intent (in the Kingdom 
heraldic newsletter) and tracing the progress of submissions through 
the system. I also sought the books listed in the heraldic newsletter 
and found some of them in the reference section of our library. Those 
the library I did not have I could request through inter-library 
loan. I later found out about the Free Trumpet Press where I could 
get SCA heraldic sources and that the Stock clerk had the rules for 
submission. At the Known World Heraldic Symposium (held in Tx) I 
finally got a copy of the preliminary kingdom herald's handbook. That 
gave me the information I needed to be able to actually run the 
office rather than just guess. I got deputies to help and involved as 
many people in the processes as I could.

The only power I held was that to keep back submissions (which I 
didn't cause that would dishonourable) and the information I had 
gained (which I gladly spread to all who would listen or who would 
accept photocopies). 

Anyone even halfway motivated could have done what I did and even 
just asked any regional herald (they were listed in the BlackStar).
The college of heralds was and is glad to teach and inform as many as 
they can. Just seek out a herald and if that one doesn't know or 
answer quite what you need ask another or attend a kingdom heralds 
meeting. Remember all office files are public and you may ask to see 
them.

I have heard of and experienced many people in many offices of the 
SCA who wish to hold power through the withholding of information to 
the populace. In my old group when I got in there were two households 
fighting and their version of the SCA was all I knew until I got out 
and found out information on my own. The seneschal tried to pull many 
power plays and did because the populace did not inquire of his 
superiors if he could do this. Their ignorance was his power.

People who wish to hold power in the SCA do so through the ignorance 
of others.  If you are informed they cannot mislead you! The office 
of the stock clerk in our kingdom is created for this reason. Anyone 
can (and always was able to) get the specific information on running 
each office. You can also get a lot of information by reading the 
Corporea and By-Laws available from the SCA Marketplace.  

If someone had power it is because you gave it to them by remaining 
ignorant. Yes the ideal is that people will be honourable and do what 
is right by informing others of things they need to know, but a lot 
of people do try to do that and are ignored, then are claimed to want 
power. It is as much the responsibility of the populace to learn as 
it is the officers to teach or inform.

A former small group herald

Lorraine DeerSlayer

Control Freaks are not always those in power they are also those who 
do not wish to learn or take responsibility and then are loudly 
disgruntled when they cannot control. They are also those who 
develope their own little powerbase and get upset when their toadies 
learn that there are other ways of doing and seeing things and then 
do not take their word as gospel any more.