Hello to you, Next time you happen to be staring at your collection of names associated with the dead, or as some may wish to refer such a collection.. you ancestorial history, give some thought as to just how did they record that history. Ah the writer of this post has been delving too far into Sartre or some other wally weirdo again, you may suggest. Actually it was not him, more Mr. Arouet and some of his writings. Seems he touched upon a small piece of history that many of us are not aware. It seems that like many a writer of his time, Voltaire was concerned that the people would not hear his words. He wrote and was read by all, that is by those who could read but then adds that even if one could actually read, did they have access to books. Which brings me to looking over our own collection of documents relating to that small section on our Huguenot ancestors, and to ask myself the very same question. Hands up you listed as dead ancestors, if you could read and were proficient in writing. Making a mark is not considered as being able to write, although if one could make your mark then you were of that minority that chose to believe that you could indeed write. Now these Huguenot times were absolutely crammed with books, pamphlettes, notices and scribbles on doors, so reading was being practiced by the masses at every opportunity. But there were actually very few who could write. So who did all the writing ? Surely it was not left entirely to Calvin, Zwingli and other infamous folks to write all in favour of things Huguenot ? Now reading and writing, as mentioned, was one thing, but just how did the general population get their little hands on one of those new fangled mass produced things called books? We are talking the 15th to 17th century here folks, education was for the rich and what we would today call, a reasonable education, was for the really really rich. So if books were expensive and not available in paperback from Amazon.com just how did so many people know about things Huguenot? Nope, Dan Rather or Mishal Husain didn't tell them nightly, Rupert Murdoch was too young to produce the news in print. So who did produce these books? Sure would not have been the Catholic Bishops, well they did but what good Huguenot wants to read pulp fiction. Who produced the Huguenot books is a very good question? Was it one of your ancestors ? I wonder how many of us are able to say that they have seen, or actually have, a document written by a Huguenot ancestor ? I shall ponder some more on this point as if I have a handwritten document, which is beyond doubt written by my Huguenot ancestor, then it is either true or his own version of the world. If the document is written by another, about my Huguenot ancestor, then its' reliability must come into doubt, afterall, it is the writers interpretation of my ancstors deeds or infamy and so, is it true ? Kind Regards, Peter Leroy