Evening star., 1925-01-23
THE PUBLIC
LIBRARY
The Ancient World.

"Man seems to become keen on
moIding and improving the future
Just as his interest and knowledge
of the past increase" writes f. s.
Marvin, the well known historian.
Two excellent guides to historical
books to furnish busy readers with
the necessary knowledge of the past
for this forward living" are avail
able; the essay of Frederic Harrison,
In his Meaning of History" (FB-
H244) entitled Some Great Books of
History" and the book recently pub
lished in the Doran Modern Readers
Bookshelf, How to Read History"
(FA-D2S3h) by w. w. Davies, lee
turer in history at Bristol University,
England.
For brief but vivid picture Of the
past from the days of primitive man
to the French Revolution one can
have nothing better than Frederic
Harrison's own essay on THE Con-
nection of History" Amy one who
knows this piece of writing" Mr..
Davies says, has firm and sure
foundation of historical knowledge
upon which to build and the fuller
knowledge when 1t afterWard comes
to be acquired will fall naturally into
it's proper place" The essay Is only
SO pages long and is charmingly
written.
A longer sketch of Western prog
ress from the earliest time down to
the Industrial age in which we live,
but one still In small compass, is
found in an admirable book by Mr.
Marvin entitled the Living Past"
! CFE- -M36S1). He traces the contribu-
tion of successive ages to the prog
ress Of mankind and concludes, I'VE
2 ha
on from the infinite behind viii not
slack it's course and we begin TO rec
ognize a regular movement and Ger
tain goal"
In a style so engaging that no one
willingly lays down the book, Alfred
T.. Zimmern pictures the life in NTH
century Athens in The Greek Com
monweaIth" CF32-Z6D. 1t is not a
political history, but gives the reader
a knowledge of the Greek environ
ment by which he may understand its
history. Another picture of the golden
age Of Athens is found In an interest
ing biography of Pericles by Evelyn
Abbott.
A most useful series of books for
| the busy reader, inasmuch as in
small compass the salient facts of
subject are outlined by authorities in
University Library published by Holt
Warde Fowlers Rome" in this series
| is one of the best books on Roman
civilization as a whole.
"The most brilliant biography Of
| Caesar, worth reading for It's VIVID
and glittering picture of life at Rome
and in the provinces in the last days
of the Republic" according TO Prof
Davies, is Froude, though he also
\ -,-st
as more balanced and authoritative.
The Ruin of Ancient Civilization
and the Triumph Of Christianity"
| (FS63-F413r.E) is a brilliant book by
| Ferrero, published in 1921, pointing
out the cause Of decay in classical
! civilization and drawing some COM
PARSONS with recent conditions in
! Europe.
Reading on ancient Rome would be
| incomplete without some familiarity
| with Gibbons masterpiece, The De-
cline and Fall Of the Roman Empire"
| recognized as "the most perfect his
torical composition that exists in any
| language" Fortunately for readers
| unable to undertake the five volumes,
| Frederic Harrison recommends es-
| pecially the famous first three chap
| ters, the survey of the Roman Empire
down to the age of the Antonines; the
seventeenth on Constantine and the
| establishment of Christianity; the
| reign of Theodosius chapters 32-3D !;
the conversion Of the barbarians
| (chapter 80; the kingdom of Theo-
doric (chapter 39); the reign of Jus
tinian (chapters 4e-42); with the two
famous chapters on Roman law
| Chapters 43, 44). OF these he writes,
| Every sentence Is compacted of
learning and brimful Of thought and
yet every page is as fascinating as ro-
nance"
All the books cited above. however
| interesting and valuable, are secon-
| Diary sources Of information and fail
| to give the reader the flavor of the
| cosemporanious accounts of Herodo-
! tus, the father of history; Thucydides.
who joys the reputation of being
| one of the greatest historians the
| world has ever seem; Livy and Taci-
| tus. OF the latter, Harrison says
| THE literature of history has moth
| ing to compare with his gallery of
portraits, with his penetration into
| character, his tragic bursts of indig-
nation. his judicial sarcasms and his
| noble elevation of soul"
| In subsequent articles, books will
/ be suggested on latter periods of Eu-
ropean history and on American his
tory.