y own between Prague and Paris.

The true Parisian will probably shrug his shoulders at any idea of
comparing his city with Prague; but as he is above all a logically
minded, reasoning sort of person and, moreover, courteous, he will
listen to my argument, and even should he not agree, is generous enough
to join me in the happy auguries for Prague which my comparison
suggests.

Take a map showing the physical features of France and you will find
that the capital of the country could be nowhere else but exactly on the
spot where Paris stands in a fertile plain where meet a number of
waterways--Seine and Marne just above the city, Oise some little way
down. By these waterways and by high roads that came after, a constant
stream of peoples has been swirling into France and mingling in the
basin of Paris. Among these were Latins from the south coming up the
valley of the Rhone and Saone, over the heights and down the Yonne to
the valley of the Seine. Then came Franks through the gap of Belfort and
over the hills by Nancy, down to the Marne and the Aube; Celts and
Flemings from the north, and Norsemen from the west, all met and mingled
with the native Gauls and eventually became Parisians. Environment acted
its part, and so did the forces of Nature. The soil of the basin of
Paris is fruitful, the climate equable, but neither encourage idlers;
both demand a toll of strenuous labour, yet not so trying to man's
strength as to leave him exhausted at the end of the day's work; he may
recreate himself and bring his mind to bear on the result of his
handiwork.

This made him critical, and the constant flow of foreigners brought him
new ideas to test by the light of his own experience, and so Paris
became, as it were, a crucible in which theories of life were tested and
rendered by science into practical form.

Only the best is good enough for Paris, and this will remain the case
until the disintegration of our planet; no invading hosts, be they never
so numerous, nor the most fiendish inventions in modern chemistry, can
alter this fact, they may beat down the superficial Paris, they cannot
destroy its spirit.

To a lesser degree this is also true of Prague. As we have already seen,
its geographical position marks it out as a centre where meet roads
coming from all directions. This fact was not discovered at such an
early period as that in which Paris arose out of the river swamps.
Possibly this was due to the westward tendenc