IV PREFACE. 



has, by means of the slave-trade, powerfully influenced 

 the moral history of Europe, and the political history 

 of the United States. But I was gradually led from the 

 history of Africa into writing the history of the world. 

 I could not describe the Negroland of ancient times 

 without describing Egypt and Carthage. From Egypt 

 I was drawn to Asia and to Greece, from Carthage I 

 was drawn to Rome. That is the first chapter. Next, 

 having to relate the progress of the Mahometans in 

 Central Africa, it was necessary for me to explain the 

 nature and origin of Islam ; but that religion cannot 

 be understood without a previous study of Christianity 

 and Judaism, and those religions cannot be understood 

 without a study of religion among savages. That is 

 the second chapter. Thirdly, I sketched the history 

 of the slave-trade, which took me back to the dis- 

 coveries of the Portuguese, the glories of Venetian 

 commerce, the Revival of the Arts, the Dark Ages, and 

 the Invasion of the Germans. Thus finding that my 

 outline of Universal History was almost complete, I 

 determined in the last chapter to give a brief summary 

 of the whole, filling up the parts omitted, and adding 

 to it the materials of another work suggested several 

 years ago by the "Origin of Species." One of my reasons 

 for revisiting Africa was to collect materials for this 

 work, which I had intended to call " The Origin of 

 Mind." However, Mr Darwin's " Descent of Man " 

 has left little for me to say respecting the birth and in- 

 fancy of the faculties and affections. I, therefore, merely 

 follow in his footsteps, not from blind veneration for a 

 Great Master, but because I find that his conclusions are 

 confirmed by the phenomena of savage life. On certain 

 minor points I venture to dissent from Mr Darwin's 

 views, as I shall show in my personal narrative, and 



