ements of her heroes, or the pen of her poets.

To a man fond of localities, travelling either on the continent or in
England, will furnish numerous opportunities of indulging the reveries to
which they give birth. It would be hardly possible to name a town, or a
village, utterly destitute of local interest. In almost every instance,
some memento would be discovered to hallow its site, and to engage the
observation of an intelligent traveller. With a mind predisposed to enjoy
mental associations, they will crowd on us wherever we go, and be suggested
by the veriest trifles. Rousseau could not contain his ecstacy at
beholding a little flower (_la parvenche_) in bloom, which thirty years
before, Madame de Warens had first pointed out to his notice. That simple
incident summoned up a train of exquisite reminiscences. No one, indeed,
ever yielded so entirely to the influence of local enthusiasm as the author
of the _Nouvelle Heloise_. No one has so successfully attempted to invest
scenes, in themselves beautiful, with the additional and powerful interest
of ideal recollections. Picturesque as are the shores of Leman, Meillerie,
and Vevai, yet to Rousseau's sublime conceptions and eloquent descriptions,
they are chiefly indebted for the celebrity which they enjoy. Nature made
Switzerland a land of rugged magnificence. To complete the charm, nothing
was wanted, but that its mountains should be peopled by the creations of
Rousseau.

It were needless, however, to travel to foreign countries in search of
interesting localities. Our own island teems with them. In the metropolis
and its environs, a diligent inquirer will find them at every step. How
many coffeehouses and taverns are there in London which at one time or
another have been frequented by celebrated characters, and how many houses
in which others equally celebrated have resided; such as that of Milton, in
Westminster; and of Johnson, in Bolt Court. How many old gable-ended
tenements do we see in the eastern parts of the town that were standing
before the fire, and which, if explored, might be found to contain the most
interesting relics of antiquity. What a number of streets, courts, and
alleys, bearing names at once indicative of their ancient origin, and of
scenes, and persons, and local circumstances long since forgotten!

Then, if we extend our perambulations to the vicinity of London, how many
hallowed places shall we meet with? Where can we find a palace like Win