Therefore, it is only in a very summary manner that I can deal with the writer’s presentation of the rise of the Roman power and of the beginnings of the Empire; that is, with the unity of the European world as it was prepared by Divine Providence for the advent of the Catholic Church: the noble antique soil in which was planted, as alone worthy of it, that institution whereby alone Man can be put in tune, or, even in temporal matters, a right civilization preserved. As may be imagined, Mr. Wells on approaching the critical point in the drama of Human History, allows his anti-Christian enthusiasm more rein than he has given it hitherto, and the Roman Empire—because it was the foundation upon which our civilization was built through the action of our religion—moves him to an excited wrath in which he loses all historical sense, and curses at random. It would be wearisome to repeat again the excellences which this department of the book also presents: its accuracy in date, its lucidity in expression: but a third excellence, which Mr. Wells usually has, proportion in statement—the essence of good précis writing, and therefore of good summarization in History—here fails him. The reason of this is that he takes up, of the few pages allotted to him, far too much space in violent abuse. I think I had better give the reader a short list of these vituperations, in order to make him understand the state of mind in which our author approaches the majestic origins of Europe. On page 259 he is reluctantly “forced” to repeat his grave criticism that the Græco-Roman civilization had no printing press. On page 260 he expresses his “astonishment” that they did not hand printed copies of the measures about to be discussed round their assemblies, especially the Roman Senate. In the same page he points out that the failure of popular government towards the end of the Republic was due to a lack of Board Schools. A wholly disproportionate amount of the next few pages is devoted to diatribes against Cato the Elder. He begins as “a small but probably very disagreeable child of two.” He is a hypocrite who “poses as a champion of religion and public morality”; he “carries on a lifelong war against everything that is young, gracious or pleasant”; and therefore he was, of course (after much more abuse of the same sort), “the type of man that rose to prominence in Rome” (p. 265).