since Geneva is comparatively so small, is it so celebrated?
Almost every person who goes to Europe visits Geneva, and talks of
Geneva when he comes back; while there are multitudes of other cities
and towns, many times as large in extent and population, that he never
thinks of or speaks of at all.

There are several reasons for this.

1. The first reason is, that this town stands on the great high road
leading from England and France into Italy. Of course it comes naturally
in the way of all travellers making the grand tour. It is true that at
the present day, since steam has been introduced upon the Mediterranean,
a very large proportion of travellers, instead of passing through
Switzerland, go down the Rhone to Marseilles, and embark there. But
before the introduction of steam, for many ages, the way by Geneva was
almost the only way to Italy; and the city acquired great celebrity
through the accounts of tourists and travellers who visited it on their
journeys.

2. The second reason is, that Geneva is a convenient and agreeable point
for entering Switzerland, and for making excursions among the Alps.
There are two great avenues into Switzerland from France and
Germany--one by way of Geneva, and the other by way of Basle. By the way
of Basle we go to the Jungfrau and the Oberland Alps which lie around
that mountain, and to the beautiful lakes of Zurich and of Lucerne. All
these lie in the eastern part of the Alpine region. By the way of Geneva
we go to the valley of Chamouni and Mont Blanc, and visit the vast
glaciers and the stupendous mountain scenery that lie around this great
monarch of the Alps.

There is a great question among travellers which of these two Alpine
regions is the most grand. Some prefer the mountains about Mont Blanc,
which are called the Alps of Savoy. Others like better those about the
Jungfrau, which are called the Oberland Alps. The scenery and the
objects of interest are very different in the two localities; and it
seems to me that any difference which travellers may observe in the
grandeur of the emotions which they severally produce upon the mind must
be due to the peculiar circumstances or moods of mind in which they are
visited. It is true you can get nearer to the Jungfrau than you can to
Mont Blanc, and so can obtain a more impressive view of his icy and
rocky sides and glittering summit. But then, on the other hand, Mont
Blanc is really the highest peak, and is looked upon as the