130 PROCEEDINGS OF THE COTTESWOLD CLUB 



When the Club visited Abhngton in its Field Meeting 

 last September, the structure had been, by the kind offices 

 of Mr Game, partially cleared of its accumulation of 

 debris. A further clearance might, however, reveal 

 objects of interest, and it is sincerely to be hoped that 

 care will be taken to preserve intact this almost unique 

 monument of our prehistoric Cotteswold ancestors. 



The Valley of the Coin is intersected by two well- 

 known Roman roads. The Foss Way crosses it at Foss 

 Bridge, and Ikenild Street at Coin St. Aldwyns. Parallel 

 with the Valley on its northern side, and running 

 to, and probably through, the town of Lechlade, 

 is the Salt Way. But these are not the only ancient 

 highways in the district. On the Ordnance map the 

 Welsh Way is the name given to a road running from 

 Barnsley past Ready Token to Fairford and Lechlade. 

 On old maps of the county a road bearing the same name 

 goes in the other direction from Barnsley to Perrott's 

 Brook. Connecting with it at Perrott's Brook is a short 

 length of road, also known as the Welsh Way, which 

 joins the Irmin Street about three miles north of Ciren- 

 cester. In the days when W'elsh cattle were driven from 

 the Principality through Gloucester to the metropolis, 

 this road was greatly used for that purpose, and a glance 

 at the map shows that it is shorter than the ordinary 

 route through Cirencester. 



The probability that the road is an ancient one is very 

 much strengthened by the name of a place upon it — 

 Ready Token, in its present form the name is meaning- 

 less, and it is obviously a corruption of a name that had a 

 meaning. For the original name we must look at the 

 position and surroundings of Ready Token. It is a small 

 area of high ground, and with its clumps of trees is 



