A FORTNIGHT AT MONT VENTOUX (vAUCLUSe). 9 



top square. There were really almost two " squares " in the village — 

 it was a corner in the blazing sun with a low stone wall surmounted 

 with flowering shrubs of various sorts, here I found Pob/noma et/ea, it 

 was evidently a favourite spot with this species so that I was able to 

 take a nice little series of it all in good condition. The heat of this 

 lowland country was so great, after a month or more at la Sainte 

 Baurae and St. Martin Vesubie, that I have no doubt one's energy was 

 somewhat modified and this might have affected the number of 

 specimens captured, but I do not think it affected the number of species 

 captured, for feeling the paucity of species I was anxious to increase 

 my list, and I do not think I missed any of the day-flying Macro- 

 lepidoptera that were then on the wing. 



Turning now to le Mont Ventoux itself, my wife was very 

 desirous to see the sunrise from its summit, so with this object in view 

 we made enquiries from the only garage in the neighbourhood and 

 ascertained that they woiild not take their car up to the summit under 

 200 francs, if, however, four people could be found to go, it would then 

 be possible to do the trip for 50 francs apiece. I must admit we 

 thought the charge " modest" to say the least of it, for the ascent m 

 the car was made in well under two hours. We left it, therefore, for 

 the time being, but intimated that if they could find two passengers 

 we would make the other two, and so time went on, when suddenly 

 just as we were finishing dinner one evening, Madame la Proprietresse 

 came in in great excitement and said " another lady and gentleman 

 wanted to go up Ventoux that night, would Madame and Monsieur 

 join the party ? " It was a case of yes or no on the spot, but it did not 

 take long to make up our minds and the reply came back very quickly, 

 " Yes, we would join. At what hour, however, would the start be 

 made? " At 2.30 a.m ! so there was not much sleep that night, but 

 just after 2 a.m. we left our quarters and made our way on a brilliant 

 night to the garage in the main street, and after some dela,y we were 

 all well wrapped up and comfortably settled in. The start was made 

 under almost a full moon and with the stars as bright spangling the 

 heavens in myriads. It was a weird but intensely interesting ascent, 

 the shadows, sO deep and black, thrown across our view by the 

 shoulders of the mountain and by the trees added to the novel strange- 

 ness of the scene, but up and up we went, and finally, just about 4 

 a.m., we pulled up in front of the door of the somewhat sheltered 

 hotel, that had been built just below the summit. By this time it 

 was bitterly cold and the wind was blowing like a hurricane, so that 

 the shelter of the hotel was very welcome. But to oursurprise we 

 found the house almost full of students of both sexes from Avignon, 

 a lively party indeed it was and hot coflee and cakes were very 

 refreshing, but in spite of the noise everything was quite orderly and 

 we made friends with one or two students, who kindly indicated all 

 the mountains and districts to be seen, for this is one of the great view 

 points of I^^rance. The wind was so furious that it was with the 

 greatest difficulty the final steep ascent (up steps cut in the rock and 

 with the assistance of a handrail) was made, when the announcement 

 was given that the sun would be up in five minutes. Having arrived 

 on the summit just above the " Observatoire," the best thing to be 

 done was to sit down and wait, and then in a short time the naiuutest 

 fraction of a deep red circle appeared above a hill, and moment by 



