To be sure classical historiographers represented by Herodotus. Thueldides, Plutarch and Xenophon, Livy, Polybius, the Plinys, Tacltus. Dio Cassius and others offer every comparison with the recorders of ancient China, In style, critical acumen, and liveliness of narrative, they doubtless quite equal and perhaps in some respects excel their colleagues fof the great contemporary political entity of Eastern Asia, China of Antiquity. Later, Islam produced its rear historians such as Ton Ishaq 167), Tabari (4, 923) and Abulfeds 1381), With the extinction of the Holenistie and Roman hegemonies in the Mediterranean basin, classical historiography ceased, and men of letters for centuries occupied themselves largely with the patristic literature and the revival of classical studies. Simflarly the Arabic chronfolers did not begin their labours until centuries after the beginning of the Christian era. In the meantime, parallelling equally the classical historians and marching alongside the Arab chroniclers Chinese historlography continued its unbroken propre
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.