During the last part of the last century [19^th] and the first third of this one [20^th], there occurred, both in this country and abroad, a great rash of books purporting to be communication, one way or another, with people from other stages of existence.

Many people investigated, tested, experimented. Not all of them were folk from the everyday walks of life. Many great scientists including Sir William Crookes, Sir Oliver Lodge, Camille Flammarion; writers such as Arthur Conan Doyle; and even our own President, Abraham Lincoln, tested and found true that life is continuous, communication possible; and that those in other stages, if they are sufficiently mature in the sense of character and mentality, do have a wider vision than we of this, the physical level.

Many books were written by highly competent and experienced people. Stewart Edward White was one who wrote, or more strictly speaking, gathered communications which were published. Some of his books, The Unobstructed Universe, Across the Unknown, The Betty Book, The Job of Living, and The Stars are Still There, are still available through the E.P.Dutton Co. Indeed, so popular has the first named one proved to be that it has for some years now, been in paperback. The books, other than the first named, "came through" chiefly as a result of White's wife, Betty, and a friend "Joan", both of whom had unusual ability to "open up" and permit those in other stages to speak through them. The Unobstructed Universe came after Betty had joined those or, the "other side of life", when she used the services of her close friend and co-worker "Joan" to do some communicating, herself.

Unfortunately not all the work which has been done has been of this most excellent quality. Since World War II the vast bulk of material published in this country has run to sheer rubbish and sensationalism. And when White joined Betty in 1946, his manuscripts passed into hands which made them inaccesible for further publication.

However, sometime before he joined Betty he got together the contents of a book which appears in these pages - called, indifferently, The Gaelic Manuscripts, or Communications of Gaelic. Some of the material was used elsewhere. Some of it has never had regular book Publication. For this reason it has sometimes been assumed that White's reason for not having his regular publishers handle it was because he felt it should not be generally circulated. That it was for the few rather than the many.

A knowledge of the publishing business, however, rather discredits this idea. It seems far more likely that the publishers were inclined to feel that they already had sufficient in the other material. It is entirely possible that they simply did not want to publish "Gaelic" in this particular form. This, too, is an assumption. However, what White himself did with respect to this material lends a good deal of credence to the idea that he and his publishers did not see eye to eye on the value of it (although the publishers were probably right about potential sales - it is not the sort of thing that "sells" in the thousands) - what is certain and known, is this:

White himself had 200 copies of Gaelic mimeographed for distribution. While it is not a great number, considering that the usual "first run" is apt to be at least 5000 on regular book publication, neither is 200 copies an amount which might be made up simply for a "few close friends". Since that time it was again put out in the same form to the extent of some 400 copies. More recently about 50 copies were made for circulation among a few people who were interested by someone who had copies of one of the copies issued by White, complete with White's notations on it. A copy of that, run off on a copying machine, and a copy of the last 50 issued came into my hands. The material is too valuable to not give as wide a circulation as possible - hence the present edition, which is also a limited one, and still in mimeographed form; but at least it does make it available to those who seek the sounder, saner material in the field.

The strangest part of it all lies in the actual intention of Stewart Edward White in making the first two hundred mimeographed copies. And the question which remains unanswered is this. If White himself felt that the circulation of this manuscript be restricted, why didn't he take the precaution of copyrighting it? A writer with many, many published books to his credit is not acting in ignorance when he deliberately puts out material in the public domain. Because of this, we feel that his intention was not to restrict circulation of it but in hopes that from time to time a few more copies would be issued for circulation so that those who could benefit from reading it would be able to get copies of it - that someone in a position to do so would always pick it up and issue a few more.

It is for this reason that we have published the present edition.

True it is not a book for "everyone" - but neither is any other book. True that many people will simply misunderstand it, or fail to understand it. True that some people are apt to try to misuse the information it contains. This is equally true of not only every other book in this field, but true of practically any book which does not come under the sheer entertainment class.

"Gaelic", like "Silver Birch" and the other truly great "Guides" have not come to communicate for the amusement or instruction of a few. Rather they are trying to help a humanity blinded by the material to realize how pitifully inadequate the material criterion is, and how much unnecessary anguish and misery has been and is being caused by the ignorance of the truth of the continuity of life - and how such misery is caused by our failure to recognize both that continuity and the personal responsibility which attends it.

They look on a world filled with unnecessary struggle and strife and deprivation and try to explain to us both that Cosmic (or God's, if you prefer the term) Law is and how if we try to understand and use it we can eliminate most of the difficulties which beset us. They are trying to help us to understand. We need the understanding badly. With it we can make a world which is all that it should be. Without it we can only continue to destroy under the delusion that when we have wiped ourselves out of physical existence that there is nothing else. These "Invisibles" or "Discarnates" or "Guides" know better. They can but try to tell us. If we in our folly and conceit misuse, or ignore, the responsibility is ours. They have tried.

Meanwhile no information which is potentially helpful to any of us should be withheld - no matter how some of us may see fit, through stupidity or greed, to deal with it.

Jerryl L. Keane, Ph.D.