It
Is Said That These Dignities Were Conferred In Consequence Of The
Fortunate Discovery At Salamis Of The Body Of
St. Barnabas, with a copy
of the Gospel of St. Matthew, which precious relic was sent to
Constantinople, and in
Return the Emperor confirmed the Church of Cyprus
in its absolute independence, and gave the archbishop the above
privileges."* (*Savile's Cyprus, p. 142.)
St. Paul and St. Barnabas visited the island A.D. 45, and the conversion
of Sergius Paulus, the proconsul at Paphos, by their preaching, was the
first seed of Christianity implanted in Cyprus at the period when the
inhabitants were steeped in heathenism; but some of the superstitions at
present existing are hardly less degrading than pagan rites, and in the
kissing of the Virgin's cave at Trooditissa for the purpose already
described, we can trace an affinity with the ancient worship of Venus.
CHAPTER XVIII.
ON POLICE, FOOD, CLIMATE, &C.
The population of Cyprus is about 200,000, of which number more than
three-fourths belong to the Greek Church; nevertheless the minority of
Turks completely dominated prior to the British occupation. Although the
Cypriote is, as I have described, courteous, gentle, and affectionate in
his domestic circle, he is at the same time cunning and addicted to
petty larceny, and in all your dealings with these apparently easy-going
people you must exercise the same acuteness that is so absolutely
necessary in England. There are few great crimes in proportion to the
population, nor do we ever hear of such atrocities as those classes of
murders which so frequently blacken the page of our modern history.
Homicide is more common than actual murder, and is often the result of a
sudden quarrel where knives are drawn, and a fatal stab in passion
constitutes the offence. Sheep-stealing is the prevalent crime, and is
carried on with an amount of hardihood that can only be accounted for
from the difficulty of proof. The flocks of goats, &c., roam over the
wild and uninhabited area of the high mountains and frequently stray
from the shepherd and are lost for two or three nights; by the time they
are recovered a certain number may be missing, and it is hardly possible
to discover the thief, as the animals have been driven to a great
distance. Tracking would be out of the question over the rocky surface,
where every small plot of naked soil is trodden into countless footmarks
by the innumerable goats which browse upon the mountain slopes. At night
the flocks are generally herded within a circle protected by a fence of
thorny bushes; sometimes these folds are invaded by thieves during the
darkness, and a considerable number are driven off. As the locality
would be generally distant from the principal town, and the shepherd
cannot forsake his flock for several days to prosecute, the thieves
frequently escape, and this immunity encourages them to further
depredations. During my residence within the precincts of the monastery,
the fold upon the hill within a quarter of a mile of the establishment
was thus robbed, and the thieves were never discovered.
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