Chapter 13

THE CAMARGUE.

Formation of the delta of the Rhone--The diluvial wash--The alluvium spread over this--The three stages the river pursues--The zone of erosion--The zone of compensation--The zone of deposit--River mouths--Estuaries and deltas--The formation of bars--Of lagoons--The lagoons of the Gulf of Lyons--The ancient position of Arles between the river and the lagoons--Neglect of the lagoons in the Middle Ages--They become morasses--Attempt at remedy--Embankments and drains--A mistake made--The Camargue now a desert--Les Saintes Maries--No evidence to support the legend--Based on a misapprehension