PART I.
Survey of the Sources of Information.
Compilation of Materials.
SECTION I.
Origin of History. Probable Antiquity of the Oldest Records.
The primitive history of the human race, the origin of nations, their distribution over the globe, and their adventures during many ages of the world, occupy a wide field in the mose remote region of antiquity, the greatest part of which is enveloped in an impenetrable mist. The age of Moses is the great epoch of history, as recorded by contemporary annalists, and handed down to us in a succession of documents attested by creditable names. At this point we take our stand, as on a high watch-tower, the last of a long chain of posts, and direct our view over the obscure region beyond, where we discern in the distance many remarkable spots, some brighter than others, to which we can scarcely hope to gain a more immediate access.
Let us now inquire from what source flow those gleams of light which are dispersed over this distant field; or, in other words, to what authority are we in
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