I deem it proper to express briefly my idea of what history should be, and to indicate the general line of thought that has guided me in this task. From the mere chronicle of happenings, petty and momentous, to the historico-philosophical essay, illustrated with here and there a fact supporting the writer's theories, the range is wide. Neither extreme meets the requirements of history, however accurate the one or brilliant the other. Not to a million minute photographs do we look for practical information respecting a mountain range, nor yet to an artistic painting of some one striking feature for a correct description. From the two extremes, equally to be avoided, the true historian will, whatever his inclination, be impelled by prudence, judgment, and duty from theory toward fact, from vivid coloring toward photographic exactness. Not that there is too much brilliancy in current history, but too little fact. An accurate record of events must form the foundation, and largely the superstructure. Yet events pure and simple are by no means more important than the institutionary development which they cause or accompany. Men, institutions, industries, must be studied equally. A man's character and influence no less than his actions demand attention. Cause and effect are more essential than mere occurrence; achievements of peace should take precedence of warlike conquest; the condition of the people is a more profitable and interesting subject of investigation than the acts of governors, the valor of generals, or the doctrines of priests. The historian must classify, and digest, and teach as well as record; he should not, however, confound his conclusions with the facts on which they rest. Symmetry of plan and execution as well as rigid condensation, always desirable, become an absolute necessity in a work like that which I have undertaken. In respect to time and territory my field is immense. The matter to be presented is an intricate complication of annals, national and sectional, local and personal. That my plan is in every respect the best possible, I do not say; but it is the best that my judgment suggests after long deliberation. The extent of this work is chargeable to the magnitude of the subject and the immense mass of information gathered rather than to any tendency to verbosity. There is scarcely a page but has been twice or thrice rewritten with a view to condensation; and instead of faithfully discharging this irksome duty, it would have been far easier and cheaper to have sent a hundred volumes through the press. The plan once formed, I sought to make the treatment exhaustive and symmetrical. Not all regions nor all periods are portrayed on the same scale: but though the camera of investigation is set up before each successive topic at varying distances, the picture, large or small, is finished with equal care. I may add that I have attached more than ordinary importance to