There Is Little To Add To The Description I Have Given That
Would Be Of Public Interest, Therefore The Few Additional Details Are
Consigned To A Short Appendix.
The seclusion of the monastery has been an agreeable interval that has
formed a moral harbour from the uncertain seas of busy life, and we
shall leave the quiet spot and the good old monks with some regret.
A
great change has been effected since our arrival in early May. The heaps
of filth have given place to extreme cleanliness; the monks wash their
hands and faces; even the monastery yard is swept. No atom of impurity
is allowed to deface the walk from the cold spring to the great
walnut-tree. My little garden has flourished and produced largely; the
melons were of excellent flavour; the tomatoes and other vegetables were
good, including a species of esculent amaranthus which is a substitute
for spinach. I employed a man and his son to open the path for 2.75
miles, from the monastery to the military route to Troodos, which much
improved the communication, and somewhat relieved our solitude by
increasing the visits of our friends. If any stranger should now arrive
from England at Trooditissa he would appreciate the calm and cool asylum
contrasting with the heat of the lower country; but should he arrive
even one short month after our departure, I fear the picture will have
changed. Throngs of mules will have defiled our clean courtyard, and
will be stabled within our shady retreat beneath the walnut-tree, which
will remain unswept. The filthy habits of the people, now restrained
only by strong remonstrance, will be too apparent. The old monks,
Neophitos and Woomonos, (who are dear old people when clean) will cease
to wash, and the place and people will certainly relapse into the
primeval state of dirt and holiness in which we first discovered it.
We leave in friendship with all, and during our sojourn at Trooditissa
of more than three months, no quarrels, or even trifling disagreements,
have occurred between the servants or the people. The temporary storm
occasioned by the abrupt departure of Christina was quickly lulled by
the arrival of the middle-aged-maid of all work of seventy-five, who
has performed all her arduous duties with admirable patience. Our own
servants have been most satisfactory since their first engagement upon
our arrival in Cyprus in January last; Georgi the "prodigal son," has
been of much service as interpreter, and is an honest and willing young
man, but there is a peculiarity in his physical constitution exhibited
in the mutual want of attachment between his person and his buttons.
These small but necessary friends continually desert him; and his shoes
appear to walk a few inches faster than his feet, leaving him in a
chronic state of down-at-heel. Collars will not assimilate with his
neck; whether they are tied with strings, or fastened with buttons, the
result is the same, and Georgi's exterior when all or three parts of his
buttons have deserted him, exhibits a looseness which I am glad to say
by no means applies to his character. The cook Christo is an excellent
fellow, always willing to please, and good in his profession; added to
which, he assumes a demeanour of importance which is irresistible, and
makes all paths smooth. My Abyssinian, Amarn, is always the same quiet,
steady character, who performs his daily work with the calm regularity
of the stream that turns a mill-wheel, and can always be depended on. It
is a pleasure to me that our party does not dissolve upon leaving
Cyprus, but the servants accompany us on the Asiatic shore.
In conclusion, I must acknowledge with due thanks the valuable
assistance that I have received in statistical information afforded by
the kindness of the High Commissioner, His Excellency General Biddulph,
R. A, C. B., and the various chief commissioners of districts, including
Lieutenant-Colonel White, First Royal Scots, of Lefkosia;
Lieutenant-Colonel Warren, R. A., of Limasol (now promoted to Chief of
the Staff); Claude Delaval Cobham, Esq., M. A., of Larnaca; Captain
Inglis, of Famagousta; and Captain A. Wauchope, 42nd Highlanders, of
Baffo.
In taking leave of Cyprus I must express my share in the general regret
at the departure of Sir Garnet and Lady Wolseley, from whom we received
much kindness. His successor, General Biddulph, R. A., is well known as
a most able and painstaking officer, who is admirably suited for the
responsible position he now occupies, but all will remember with due
appreciation the vigorous administration of Sir Garnet Wolseley, who was
selected for the command of Cyprus in the difficult period of the first
British occupation.
THE END.
APPENDIX.
METEOROLOGICAL REGISTER THROUGHOUT JOURNEYS IN CYPRUS.
FROM 1ST FEBRUARY TO 21ST AUGUST, 1879.
It will be remarked that August at Trooditissa is considerably lower in
temperature than July.
The following data, from 1st to 17th August, kindly supplied me by
Lieut.-Colonel White, Chief Commissioner of Lefkosia, will exhibit the
difference between that station, 442 feet above the sea level, and
Trooditissa Monastery, 4,340 feet.
The following official estimate of revenue and expenditure must be
accepted as only approximate. As the taxes are at present collected by
dimes, or tenths, the amount must depend upon the agricultural
prosperity of the island, which is liable to considerable fluctuations,
and during the present year of semi-famine will result in a serious
diminution. There will probably be a sensible decrease in the Customs
receipts, as the import of European goods has been checked by the
collapse of many European traders who had arrived in Cyprus at the first
announcement of the British occupation, and discovered that their goods
were unsuited to the requirements of the extremely poor and frugal
population. The greater portion of the English traders have already
retired from the island; the Greek merchants who have been long
established are satisfied with small profits, and their expenses are
upon a proportionate scale, which renders British competition quite
impossible.
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