[T]he French held to the policy of making friends with the Indians. No pains were spared to win them to the cause of France. They were flattered, petted, treated with ceremonial respect, and became the companions, as the women often became the wives, of the Frenchmen. Much was expected of this mingling of races. It was supposed that the Indian would be won over to civilization and Christianity. But the Frenchmen were won over to the Indians, and adopted Indian ways of life. They lived in wigwams, wore Indian dress, decorated their long hair with eagle feathers, and made their faces hideous with vermilion, ocher, and soot. -from "The French and the Indians" It's clear why A School History of the United States, first published in 1897, became a definitive textbook: simple language, straightforward ideas, and easy organization make it browsable and concisely informative. Outdated attitudes make it more quaint than provocative, yet it still serves as a quick and useful introduction to the story of the United States, from the discovery of the New World by Europeans to the war with Spain at the turn of the 20th century, particularly for those readers interested in how the American perception of the nation's history has shifted over the last century. Handy historical maps abound, and useful appendices include the complete Declaration of Independence as well as the Constitution of the United States as it stood at the beginning of the 20th century. OF INTEREST TO: American history buffs, students of the history of education Also available from Cosimo Classics: McMaster's A History of the People of the United States, From the Revolution to the Civil War: Vol. 1. and A Brief History of the United States. American historian JOHN BACH MCMASTER (1852-1932) taught at the Wharton School of Finance and Economy at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, from 1883 to 1919. He also wrote Benjamin Franklin as a Man of Letters (1887).