23 OCTOBER 1897, Page 26

The Story of the Extinct Civilisations of the East. By

Robert E. Anderson. (George Newnes.)—Mr. Anderson puts together in a convenient shape much knowledge. We may doubt some of his statements, that the belief of early Aryan, for instance, was an "instinctive monotheism ; " but if he errs, he errs in good company. He gives a general sketch of the great human families, of Chaldea and Babylonia, of Egypt and the Hittites, Phoenicians, and Hebrews, of the Arabs, and, finally, of ancient Persia. Everything is, of course, put very briefly ; but the volume will be found both instructive in itself and a useful introduction to deeper studies.