Excerpt from The Great Cities of the Modern World There is a saying, as old as it is true, that he who would be a writer must first of all have something to write - something new to tell, or some new or better way of putting forth what is already known. This volume has not been called into existence as something new, but because there was not, so far as could be found, any work devoted entirely to a description of the outward appearance and real position of the Great Cities of the Modern World. A metropolis represents a focus of power; the chief forces of a country's civilization are centered in its great towns; and it has been believed that in giving a description of the large cities of the chief countries of the world, and bringing them together in a classified volume, there will be presented in a condensed form the leading features, not only of the great cities of the world, as a whole, but also of the civic national life of all the important countries of the globe. The endeavor has been to prepare a book instructive and interesting to readers of all ages, but especially to place before young people a clear and, in a measure, complete idea of the greatest cities of our time, rated according to size, importance in intellectual, commercial, and manufacturing power, and descriptive of population and architectural appearance. In all cases the aim has been to make the leading features - either of a single city or a national group - stand out prominently and leave the strongest impression. To combine all these characteristics into a single volume upon so broad a subject it has been necessary to consult a multitude of authorities; and, although these are far too many for the briefest enumeration, it is but just to acknowledge that valuable aid has been received from the standard encyclopædias and from nearly all the leading works of reference of both special and general character whose scope comes in any way within that of the Great Cities of the Modern World. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.