Author: M. J. Spalding

Publisher: Forgotten Books

Published: 2016-10-18

Total Pages: 432

ISBN-13: 9781333981976

Excerpt from Miscellanea, Vol. 2 of 2: Comprising Reviews, Lectures, and Essays, on Historical, Theological, and Miscellaneous Subjects; Theological and Miscellaneous Yes, we are free to avow the belief that ours is, in some respects, an enlightened age. In certain points Of view, the present is far in advance of any preceding age. As far as mere earthly interests and comforts are concerned, we can boast Of great improvements over our more simple and unsophisticated ancestors. All the useful arts have attained a perfection never dreamed Of by them, even in their wildest reveries. In navigation, in commerce, and in ship-building in warlike accoutrements and in naval equipments in the facilities Of intercourse both by sea and by land and in the appliances Of domestic comfort; we are immeasurably ahead Of our forefathers in all past ages. We travel a thousand miles now in a shorter time, and with more comfort, than our ancestors did a hundred we traverse the ocean with as much facility as they did an arm Of the sea, or an inland lake. By the invention Of steam-navigation and the great improvements recently made therein, we have almost succeeded in annihilating time and space. We have brought the Whole world into close and intimate cor respondence. The Old and new worlds, once separated by an almost impassable gulf, are now brought almost into contact. The most ordinary articles Of our daily consumption, such as Spice, pepper, and tea, are brought from the very antipodes and, in return, we spread out before the antipodes our own products. Thus the very extremities of the globe are made near to each other; and the children Of the earth, inhabiting the remotest boundaries thereof, are brought together, and associate as brethren Of the same great family. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.