Book excerpt: Spiritualism: The Open Door to the Unseen Universe, Being Thirty Years of Personal Observation and Experience concerning Intercourse between the Material and Spiritual Worlds, offers a unique insider¿s perspective on the growing Spiritualist movement in Scotland and England from the late Victorian era through to the dawn of the 20th century. Originally published in The Two Worlds magazine over the course of 30 years, Scottish author James Robertson and editor J.J. Morse compiled these essays into a single volume in 1908. Filled with first-hand accounts of sittings, séances and experiences with some of the most recognized practitioners of the era, the book includes chapters on notable Spiritualists such as the English poet and Egyptologist Gerald Massey and Scottish mediums Alexander and David Duguid. Robertson describes in detail the activities and meetings of the still-extant Glasgow Association of Spiritualists. He also thoughtfully and thoroughly discusses topics such as the religion and literature of Spiritualism, Spiritualist organizations and periodicals of the era, and phenomena such as automatic writing and spirit photography. This Classic Reprint edition has been newly typeset for ease of reading.