The Historical Library of Diodorus the Sicilian

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: THE PREFACE. ALL mankind are under a great obligation of gratitude to those that have written universal histories; forasmuch as there has been an honourable contest amongst them by their labours and pains, to be helpful to others in the due conduct and management of the common affairs and concerns of this...
More Description

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: THE PREFACE. ALL mankind are under a great obligation of gratitude to those that have written universal histories; forasmuch as there has been an honourable contest amongst them by their labours and pains, to be helpful to others in the due conduct and management of the common affairs and concerns of this present life. For whereas they usher in a sort of wholesome instruction, without any hazard to the person; so they thereby also procure to their readers art and skill in polities above the ordinary rate, with great ease and security. For knowledge gained by experience, though it brings a man to an aptness to be quick in discerning what is most advisable in every particular case, yet such knowledge is attended with many toils and hazards. And thus he that was the most experienced man among the heroes, viewed many cities, and came well to understand and pry into the minds and tempers of men, yet it was with many troubles aud misfortunes: but knowledge of what was well or ill done by others, gained by history, carries along with it instructions, freed from those misfortunes that others have before experienced. Besides, these historians have used their utmost diligence to reduce all men, in their consideration of them, (who are united and related one to another in the same common nature and original, though far distant each from the other as to place and time), under one and the same head, and common order, as if they were servants herein to the Divine Providence. For as Providence having marshalled the stars (visible to us) in a most beautiful frame and order, and likewise conjoined the natures of men in a common analogy and likeness one to another, incessantly wheels about every age, as in a circle, imparting to each what is before by fate shared out and allotted for them; so...