INTRODUCTION Our be It is still generally admitted that the most important history for every child is that of his own country, but happily the old narrow conception of the American story as a thing apart from the rest of the world seems to be rapidly passing. The roots of American civilization are in Europe. ginnings and early development form a part of one of the most far-reaching changes of history: the expansion of Europe beyond the ancient limits of the Mediterranean world, the discovery of the American continents, the opening of direct sea routes to India and the far East, the commercial revolution, the first stages of the Europeanization of the world. Only in this larger setting can the history of the United States become really intelligible. If we are to understand our own country and how it came to be what it is, we must know something of the story of our ancestors in Europe and of the heritage we have received from them. It was to serve the purpose of such an introduction to American history that the present volume was planned. The general field and larger topics have been chosen to meet the requirements for the sixth grade prescribed by the Committee of Eight of the American Historical Association, while that freedom in the choice and treatment of details which the Committee itself so wisely urges, has been exercised. The book may also serve its purpose apart from the Committee's course in any of the grammar grades or early years of the "junior high school." Among the original proposals of the editors were the following a special effort to combine historical accuracy with attractive style and adaptation to the understanding of children; concreteness of treatment with adequate detail for clear |