TO MY AMERICAN READERSWITH the appearance of the American edition of this book, I owe my dear friends on the other side of the Atlantic a word of explanation. They must not look for anything new here, because they themselves, and their own country, which they know much better than I do, are the subject of what I write; they will find merely an echo of impressions gathered in their midst, by a guest to whom they gave such a welcome as few men have ever received.If these impressions are characterised by a very manifest optimism, it may be attributed, in the first place, to the delight of a tour in which everybody vied with everybody else in delicate attentions to the traveller; and furthermore the cause may be sought m his mental proclivities and moral convictions.Certainly he docs not belong in the number of those who are blind to evil; quite otherwise. He sees it, and suffers cruelly because of it, especially when he discovers it among those whom he loves. But it seems to him thaAbout the Publisher Forgotten Books is a publisher of historical writings, such as: Philosophy, Classics, Science, Religion, History, Folklore and Mythology.Forgotten Books' Classic Reprint Series utilizes the latest technology to regenerate facsimiles of historically important writings. Careful attention has been made to accurately preserve the original format of each page whilst digitally enhancing the difficult to read text. Read books online for free at www.forgottenbooks.org