But, as culture advances, human development
becomes so complex that we must refrain from attempting to
pursue, even in summary, its many outgrowths. The evolution of
morality, of art, of religion, of polity, and of literature would
each require a whole volume for satisfactory treatment. All that
we can do here is to show how the modern world and its
progressive culture are related to these ancient empires.
The aphorism that "all light comes from the east" may at times be
pressed too literally. To suggest that western peoples have done
no more than receive and develop the culture of the older east
would be at once unscientific and unhistorical. By the close of
the Neolithic age a great number of peoples had reached the
threshold of civilisation, and it would be extremely improbable
that in only two parts of the world the conditions would be found
of further progress. That the culture of these older empires has
enriched Europe and had a great share in its civilisation, is one
of the most obvious of historical truths. But we must not seek to
confine the action of later peoples to a mere borrowing of arts
or institutions.
Yet some recent historical writers, in their eagerness to set up
indigenous civilisations apart from those of Egypt and
Mesopotamia, pass to the opposite extreme.
Pages:
487
488
489
490
491
492
493
494
495
496
497
498
499
500
501
502
503
504
505
506
507
508
509
510
511