last was to combine this material with pictures, incidents
of travel, and descriptions of existing things so as to in-
duce if possible a sense of actuality.

This method savors of historical fiction, only that my
object is to state and illustrate facts, not invent romance;
and so extremely meagre do almost all of the troubadours
appear when presented as historical science leaves them,
that it seems to me well worth while to give life and relief
to them and their work in this way, even though lack of
space compels me to present sketches only and not finished
portraits. For, small as the information about these char-
acters may appear to the reader, I have intended to omit
no fact of general interest in the text, and in the notes to
supply everything up to the line of the specialist: for him
the study of the sources is of course indispensable.

I beg leave to assure the reader, too, that I have used
imagination only to combine facts, or, where knowledge
ends, to supplement without falsifying it. Further, I have
scrupulously indicated in the text itself or in the notes
all that I have invented; and, by subtracting these
things, the reader may easily reduce the book to an ac-
count of the present state of our knowledge and opinion
according to the highest authorities. This minimum re-
sult of my labor will not, I trust, be deemed valueless,
particularly in view of the fact that the best book we have
in English upon the troubadours was twenty years ago
pronounced by the most competent judge "in no respect
abreast of our knowledge" ( Romania, 1878, p. 445).

To secure greater ease, variety, and life, the work has
been thrown into the form of a journey, each troubadour
is studied as he is met, and the elements of the civilization
are grouped as far as they conveniently could be around
the persons with whom they associate themselves most
naturally; but the whole ground indicated by the title-
page will be found as completely covered--within the

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