1926. Barnes writes in the Preface that: The present work deals with the development of the new or synthetic and dynamic history, and indicates possible applications of this type of historical writing to some of the leading institutions and problems of contemporary civilization. The writer does not accept the view that history can in many cases be directly useful to the present generation through the discovery of alleged specific analogies between the remote past and the present day. Perhaps the greatest lesson of history is that it has no such lessons for our generation. The text is divided into four Parts titled: Aspects of the Newer History; History, and Some Problems of Nationalism; Creation Tales; and The Rise and Fall of Democracy.