PROGRESS AND
HISTORY

ESSAYS ARRANGED AND EDITED

BY

F. S. MARVIN

late senior scholar of st. john's college, oxford
author of 'the living past'
editor of 'the unity of western civilization'

'Tanta patet rerum series et omne futurum
Nititur in lucem.'
Lucan.

THIRD IMPRESSION

HUMPHREY MILFORD
OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS

LONDON   EDINBURGH   GLASGOW   NEW YORK
TORONTO   MELBOURNE   CAPE TOWN   BOMBAY

1919

PRINTED IN ENGLAND
AT THE OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS

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PREFACE

This volume is a sequel to The Unity of WesternCivilization published last year and arose in thesame way, from a course of lectures given at theWoodbrooke Settlement, Birmingham.

The former book attempted to describe some ofthe permanent unifying factors which hold ourWestern civilization together in spite of suchcatastrophic divisions as the present war. Thisbook attempts to show these forces in growth. Theformer aimed rather at a statical, the present ata dynamical view of the same problem. Both arehistorical in spirit.

It is hoped that these courses may serve as anintroduction to a series of cognate studies, ofwhich clearly both the supply and the scopeare infinite, for under the general conception of'Progress in Unity' all great human topicsmight be embraced. One subject has beensuggested for early treatment which would haveespecial interest at the present time, viz. 'Recent[4]Progress in European Thought'. We are by thewar brought more closely than before into contactwith other nations of Europe who are pursuingwith inevitable differences the same main linesof evolution. To indicate these in general, withstress on the factor of betterment, is the aim ofthe present volume.

F.S.M.

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CONTENTS