after the fashion of the ancients, and I shall not be sorry if this acquaintance is kept up by means of letters.  Not only may this be useful, not only is it always pleasant to have a correspondent in foreign lands, it is also an excellent antidote against the sway of patriotic prejudices, to which we are liable all through our life, and to which sooner or later we are more or less enslaved.  Nothing is better calculated to lessen the hold of such prejudices than a friendly interchange of opinions with sensible people whom we respect; they are free from our prejudices and we find ourselves face to face with theirs, and so we can set the one set of prejudices against the other and be safe from both.  It is not the same thing to have to do with strangers in our own country and in theirs.  In the former case there is always a certain amount of politeness which either makes them conceal their real opinions, or makes them think more favourably of our country while they are with us; when they get home again this disappears, and they merely do us justice.  I should be very glad if the foreigner I consult has seen my country, but I shall not ask what he thinks of it till he is at home again.

When we have spent nearly two years travelling in a few of the great countries and many of the smaller countries of Europe, when we have learnt two or three of the chief languages, when we have seen what is really interesting in natural history, government, arts, or men, Emile, devoured by impatience, reminds me that our time is almost up.  Then I say, “Well, my friend, you remember the main object of our journey; you have seen and observed; what is the final result of your observations?  What decision have you come to?” Either my method is wrong, or he will answer me somewhat after this fashion—­

“What decision have I come to?  I have decided to be what you made me; of my own free will I will add no fetters to those imposed upon me by nature and the laws.  The more I study the works of men in their institutions, the more clearly I see that, in their efforts after independence, they become slaves, and that their very freedom is wasted in vain attempts to assure its continuance.  That they may not be carried away by the flood of things, they form all sorts of attachments; then as soon as they wish to move forward they are surprised to find that everything drags them back.  It seems to me that to set oneself free we need do nothing, we need only continue to desire freedom.  My master, you have made me free by teaching me to yield to necessity.  Let her come when she will, I follow her without compulsion; I lay hold of nothing to keep me back.  In our travels I have sought for some corner of the earth where I might be absolutely my own; but where can one dwell among men without being dependent on their passions?  On further consideration I have discovered that my desire contradicted itself; for were I to hold to nothing else, I should at least hold to the spot on which I had settled; my life would be attached to that spot, as the dryads were attached to their trees.  I have discovered that the words liberty and empire are incompatible; I can only be master of a cottage by ceasing to be master of myself.