It is always instructive to trace the influence of geographical conditions upon the history of a people and upon its national character; this influence is peculiarly strong in the case of the Greeks, who were keenly sensitive to their surroundings, whether natural or artificial. It was not only the material conduct of life, in politics and in commerce, that was thus affected, but the æsthetic propriety of artistic and literary forms, or even of national aims and ambitions. New Phalerum in front; Tourkovouni and Pentelicus behind. The clear air and temperate climate of Athens are constantly dwelt on by Attic writers as influencing the On the coast is the Phaleric Bay; Piræus to the right, Egina above, to the left. Not character of her people. This clear and luminous air may still be appreciated by a visitor to Athens. only the sea with the nearer islands of Salamis and Ægina, but also the more distant coast of Argolis, are constant features in the landscape, while even Cyllene and Erymanthus and Parnon, eighty to a hundred miles away in the heart of the Peloponnese, are frequently visible. Yet there is none of the hardness of outline which often accompanies extreme clearness; everything is seen through a kind of luminous haze which often makes the distances difficult to realise. Perhaps the temperate climate of Athens is not always so obvious to modern travellers, especially when a cold |