Page:A short history of social life in England.djvu/21

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CHAPTER I

THE SPEECHLESS PAST

"Till dim imagination just possesses
 The half created shadow."

INTERESTING as are the glimpses of that pre-historic race, which in the dim ages of long ago roamed over the most accessible parts of the land, now known as the British Isles, it is unnecessary to do more than sum up slightly the vague scraps, that form all the knowledge we possess of this remote period.

Through the mysterious dawn of our country's history, early man moves fitfully to and fro, and it is difficult even dimly to discern his shadow. It is only by piecing together the scattered fragments of existing remains, and comparing them with the possessions of uncivilised mankind in other