"In this book I have tried to tell in part the story of the bondage of the nations due to the cost of war and of war preparation. I have tried to show that civilized nations are one and all in their degree under the domination of a power stronger than Kings or Parliaments, more lasting than Armies or Navies, that is, the Unseen Empire of Finance." David Starr Jordan (1851-1931) was a noted educator, scientist and peace activist. Educated at Cornell University, Butler University, and the Indiana University School of Medicine he became the President of Indiana University in 1885, the youngest university president in the nation at the time. Six years later, he accepted the post of President of Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, where he remained, first as president and later as chancellor, until his retirement. Dr. Jordan was a renowned expert in many fields. His training was mainly in ichthyology, the study of fish, and he was widely regarded in that field. He served as an expert witness on the validity of the theory of evolution at the Scopes trial in Tennessee. In addition, he was known for his work in education and philosophy, publishing many works on those subjects.