Clan Kith & Kin

[Canadian Livingstone]

Regarding your earlier letter, among ancient peoples their family history, their entire history of generations past was passed on from father to son in an oral tradition. This was so with early Greeks, with our Gaelic ancestors and with North American Indian tribes. While most native people's may have lacked a written language, they still rather sucessfully managed through the centuries to pass on myths and legends regarding their ancestors and the origin of their world. As for the Greeks, the tales told in Homer's Iliad and Oddesey were drawn from much older oral tradition. Now the interesting thing about these so called myths and legends is how many of them have some basis in fact. The great flood in Genesis, ancient folklore to some was proven to have at least some basis in fact with the later discoveries of massive flooding of the Tigris and Euphrate's Rivers about 5000 years or so. Some of the information from Homer's Iliad was used by 19th century German archaeologist Heinrich Schlieman to successfully locate the lost city of Troy (although not Helen's Troy). So it is with the old MacLea tales. Some of the information may be inaccurate, but I look at each of the old documents that the Livingstones have managed to locate as valuable pieces to a family puzzle worth examing and reexaming again again. As in any scholarly study, different scholars have different oppinions, different approaches to the Livingstone research. Regardless we are all enjoying what were doing. Having spent a good deal of time prior to the Livingstone research studying myths and legends of North American Indians and other cultures, the study of my own ancient gaelic people and their stories holds much enjoyment and fascination to me.

[Grant South1]

Kyle, Sorry for the delay. Yes I am interested in a copy of the OPR for Bute! I will email. Grant.