Contents Rassela's question -- Competition -- Two rivers -- The eunuch and the unicorn -- The spice race -- The mediocre kingdom -- Science -- The siege -- Micrographia -- Osman and Fritz -- Tanzimat tours -- From Istanbul to Jerusalem -- Property -- New worlds -- Land of the free -- American revolutions -- The fate of the Gullahs -- Medicine -- Burke's prophecy -- The Jiggernaut of war -- Médecins sans frontières -- The skulls of Shark Island -- Black shame -- Consumption -- The birth of the consumer society -- Turning western -- Ragtime to riches -- The jeans genie -- Pyjamas and scarves -- Work -- Work ethic and work ethic -- Get your kicks -- The Chinese Jerusalem -- Lands of unbelief -- The end of days? -- Conclusion: the rivals.