THE AMATEUR TRAMP IN ENGLAND 137 



some distance and the impression is confirmed on 

 closer acquaintance. At Copenhagen, as at Frankfort, 

 there is a monotony of beauty, with a sense of con- 

 finement, in the magnificent beech forests, whose shades 

 you may seek at no great distance. So there are 

 dreariness and dulness of a different kind in the ruin- 

 strewn desolation of the Roman Campagna ; or you 

 must depend for variety on distant views of the hills, 

 or on lights that are apt to be distressingly glaring. 

 Most capitals, like Rome, are situated on plains, 

 although without Rome's natural and archaeological 

 advantages. Near Vienna there are most charming 

 valleys running up among the spurs of the neigh- 

 bouring mountains ; but, as a rule, you can only 

 approach them painfully by tram-car, to find yourself 

 in so many paradises of the Cockney, redolent of the 

 fumes of beer and sausages, and resonant of the brass 

 bands that are discoursing popular music. While at 

 Constantinople, the foreground of its matchless views 

 is enveloped in clouds of penetrating dust, and 

 enlivened by the gloomy groves of cypresses that 

 shade the resting-places of the true believer ; and the 

 environs of Naples are all dust, clay, or chalk, accord- 

 ing to the time of year ; and Madrid is a purgatory 

 ' either of ice or fire, breathed upon from the chilly 

 blow-pipes of the Guadarrama. 



London, on the other hand, because it is the biggest 

 city in the world, is brought into most intimate 

 connection with the surrounding country by the count- 

 less lines of rail that radiate from central stations. 



