conversation, which is sometimes forced, that the person who speaks has
been learning his discourse by heart from some book in the morning, with
the intention of sporting it as a natural conversation in the evening. In
short, one does not meet with that _abandon_ in society that is to be met
with in Paris; you must measure your words well to shine in a Genevese
society. This, however, is a very pardonable sort of coxcombry; and tho' it
appear sometimes pedantic, and occasionally laughable, yet it tends to
encourage learning and science, and compels the young men to read in order
to shine and captivate the fair.

The Genevese women make excellent wives and mothers; and many strangers,
struck with their beauty and talent, as well as with the _agremens_ of the
country in general, marry at Geneva and settle themselves there for life.
It is observed that the Genevoises are so attached to their country that on
forming a matrimonial connection with foreigners, they always stipulate
that they shall not be removed from it. On the dismemberment of the Empire
of Napoleon, Geneva was _agrege_ to the Helvetic Confederation, as an
independent Canton of which there are now twenty-two. Three, viz. Geneva,
Vaud, and Neufchatel, are French in language and manners. One, the Tessino,
is Italian, and the remaining eighteen are all German. It is a great
advantage to Geneva to belong to the Helvetic Confederacy, as formerly,
when she was an isolated independent state, she was in continual dread of
being swallowed up by one or other of her two powerful neighbours, France
and the King of Sardinia, and only existed by their forbearance and mutual
jealousy.

I walked out one morning to Ferney in order to visit the chateau of
Voltaire and to do hommage to the memory of that great man, the benefactor
of the human race. It was he who gave the mortal blow to superstition and
to the power of the clergy. It is the fashion for priests, Ultras and
Tories to rail against him, but I judge him by his works and the effect of
his works. His memory is held in reverence by the inhabitants of Ferney as
their father and benefactor. He spent his whole fortune in acts of the most
disinterested charity; he saved entire families from ruin and portioned off
many a young woman who was deprived of the gifts of fortune and enabled
them to form happy matrimonial connections; in short, doing good seems to
have been one of the most ardent passions of his soul. In three memor