A TOUR THROUGH OLD PROVENCE THE “MOTOR TOUR” SERIES =A MOTOR TOUR THROUGH ENGLAND AND FRANCE.= By ELIZABETH YARDLEY. Cloth gilt, illustrated. =THE MOTOR BOOK.= A complete work on the history, construction, and development of the Motor. By JOHN ARMSTRONG. Illustrated with 100 drawings and photographs. =A TOUR THROUGH SOUTH AMERICA.= By A. S. FORREST. Profusely illustrated. ⁂ _Other Volumes in preparation._ [Illustration: AVIGNON. [Frontispiece.] A TOUR THROUGH OLD PROVENCE BY A. S. FORREST _WITH 108 ILLUSTRATIONS IN HALF-TONE AND LINE DRAWN BY THE AUTHOR_ LONDON STANLEY PAUL & CO. 31 ESSEX STREET W.C. PRINTED BY HAZELL, WATSON AND VINEY, LD., LONDON AND AYLESBURY. FOREWORD Southwards from Valence, the Rhone flows swiftly and silently through a fertile and picturesque valley, the river broadening as the valley widens. The undulating valley is filled with vineyards and farms, amidst which are scattered houses and villages innumerable, with here and there on rising ground the ruins of an ancient castle or the grey mass of a city or town of some importance. From the banks of the river, as far as the eye can reach in every direction, the land was known in Cæsar’s time as Provincia or The Province, although the term Provence is in these modern times only applied to the extreme south-eastern portion. The wayfarer, in this land of sunshine and fertility, passing through its villages and visiting its towns, will continually meet with those relics, ruins, and remains which are left like footprints by races, dynasties, and empires long since passed away. Some of these footprints are nearly effaced, but others stand out to-day in clear and distinct outline, recalling whole histories of bygone days. The very appearance of the people, of their buildings, their manners and customs are as reminiscent of their remote ancestry as the ancient monuments to be found in their midst.