First Sentence

"In beginning the following chapters I propose first to summarise, Ch. III., IV., and V., in order to grasp them with greater facility, the whole series of evidences (including probably a few immature cases which will be confirmed or replaced by better ones in the course of our enquiry), on which rests chiefly at present my own discovery, made since 1879-80, that the early civilisation and writing of the Chinese were simply derivations from those of Elam and Chaldaea, about and after the time of Gudea and Dungi, derivations carried eastward later on to the Flowery land, namely in the XXIII. century before our era."