[From The Haunting of Cashen's Gap ,1936]

INTRODUCTION

THE following pages are an essay in the Veracious but Unaccountable. Whether looked at from the point of view of psychology, of psychical research, of anthropology, or of sociology, this true story of Gef is very odd. We have been moved to set it down in as full a form as possible in order that every one interested-including, we hope, posterity-may be in a position to form their own judgement about it. To believers it will represent a proof of miracle; to sceptics a lesson in the laws of evidence. Some will call it nonsense from first to last; others will admit it to be at least as good as most ghost stories. Throughout we have sought to avoid mere credulity on the one hand and prejudiced scepticism on the other. There may be readers who will be disappointed that we have at the end no cut-and-dried solution of the mystery to offer; but this only suggests that the facts, as we have honestly tried to set them forth, are susceptible of various explana- tions. For obvious reasons we have had to alter the names of some of our witnesses; but the originals of their testimony, together with a complete set of the correspondence with Mr. Irving, and the objects which constitute the visual evidence for Gef, are all filed for reference at the offices of the University of London Council for Psychical Investigation, 13D Roland Gardens, South Kensington, S.W.7. We have to thank Mr. James T. Irving for the assistance which he gave us, particularly in the earlier stages of our inquiry. We have also to thank Captain Macdonald for putting at our disposal the reports of his several visits to Doarlish Cashen; and Mr. Northwood for coming forward and subjecting himself to cross-examination on the record of his own strange experiences.

HARRY PRICE
R. S. LAMBERT
November 15th 1935

Any comments, errors or omissions gratefully received The Editor HTML Transcription © F.Coakley , 2010