Our stay in the old town was all too short, but business reasons demanded our presence in London on Monday, so we left for that city about two o’clock.  We varied matters somewhat by taking a different return route, and we fully agreed that the road leading from Canterbury to London by way of Maidstone is one of the most delightful which we traversed in England.  It led through fields fresh with June verdure, losing itself at times in great forests, where the branches of the trees formed an archway overhead.  Near Maidstone we caught a glimpse of Leeds Castle, one of the finest country seats in Kent, the main portions of the building dating from the Thirteenth Century.  We had a splendid view from the highway through an opening in the trees of the many-towered old house surrounded by a shimmering lake, and gazing on such a scene under the spell of an English June day, one might easily forget the present and fancy himself back in the time when knighthood was in flower, though the swirl of a motor rushing past us would have dispelled any such reverie had we been disposed to entertain it.  We reached London early, and our party was agreed that our pilgrimage to Canterbury could not very well have been omitted from our itinerary.

IV

A RUN THROUGH THE MIDLANDS

I had provided myself with letters of introduction from the American Automobile Association and Motor League, addressed to the secretary of the Motor Union of Great Britain and Ireland, and shortly after my arrival in London, I called upon that official at the club headquarters.  After learning my plans, he referred me to Mr. Maroney, the touring secretary, whom I found a courteous gentleman, posted on almost every foot of road in Britain and well prepared to advise one how to get the most out of a tour.  Ascertaining the time I proposed to spend and the general objects I had in view, he brought out road-maps of England and Scotland and with a blue pencil rapidly traced a route covering about three thousand miles, which he suggested as affording the best opportunity of seeing, in the time and distance proposed, many of the most historic and picturesque parts of Britain.

In a general way, this route followed the coast from London to Land’s End, through Wales north to Oban and Inverness, thence to Aberdeen and back to London along the eastern coast.  He chose the best roads with unerring knowledge and generally avoided the larger cities.  On the entire route which he outlined, we found only one really dangerous grade—­in Wales—­and, by keeping away from cities, much time and nervous energy were saved.  While we very frequently diverged from this route, it was none the less of inestimable value to us, and other information, maps, road-books, etc., which were supplied us by Mr. Maroney, were equally indispensable.  I learned that the touring department of the Union not only affords this service for Great Britain, but