Alcoholics Anonymous, Fourth Edition

FOREWORD TO FIRST EDITION

This is the Foreword as it appeared in the first
printing of the first edition in 1939.

WE, OF Alcoholics Anonymous, are more than
one hundred men and women who have re-
covered from a seemingly hopeless state of mind and
body. To show other alcoholics precisely how we
have recovered is the main purpose of this book. For
them, we hope these pages will prove so convincing
that no further authentication will be necessary. We
think this account of our experiences will help every-
one to better understand the alcoholic. Many do not
comprehend that the alcoholic is a very sick person.
And besides, we are sure that our way of living has
its advantages for all.

It is important that we remain anonymous because
we are too few, at present to handle the overwhelm-
ing number of personal appeals which may result
from this publication. Being mostly business or pro-
fessional folk, we could not well carry on our occupa-
tions in such an event. We would like it understood
that our alcoholic work is an avocation.

When writing or speaking publicly about alcohol-
ism, we urge each of our Fellowship to omit his
personal name, designating himself instead as "a
member of Alcoholics Anonymous."

Very earnestly we ask the press also, to observe this
request, for otherwise we shall be greatly handi-
capped.

We are not an organization in the conventional