For
the most part Turkish laws are based upon pure equity, and leave little
to be desired beyond their faithful execution. The oppression and
extortion prevalent throughout the Turkish dominions are directly
contrary to the laws, and are the result of personal tyranny on the part
of the authorities.
In the event of a rupture with our ally that would result in a
Russo-Turkish combination, Cyprus would exhibit its importance as a
strategical position that would entirely command the coasts of Syria and
the approach to Egypt. As I have already stated, the value of the island
is conditional upon the permanence of the Turkish alliance; should
Turkey and England remain friends and allies, Cyprus is quite
unnecessary as a British military station; but our possession will
probably ENTAIL THE ABSOLUTE NECESSITY OF TURKISH GOOD FAITH, as the
restored arsenal and harbour of Famagousta would complete a position
that would dominate the whole of the Turkish shores upon the
Mediterranean, and in conjunction with Greece, which would assure the
refuge of Corfu to our fleets, the naval power of Great Britain would be
absolute to the east of Gibraltar.
CHAPTER XX.
CONCLUSION.
TROODITISSA MONASTERY, CYPRUS.
It is the 22nd August, and the manuscript of "Cyprus as I saw it in
1879" has already been forwarded to England. In another month we shall
be en route for the Euphrates via Alexandretta, and through Bagdad to
India by the Persian Gulf. I shall therefore be placed at the serious
disadvantage of an exclusion from the proofs, which may require
alterations and corrections; this will I trust excuse me should any
repetitions be apparent that would otherwise have been detected before
publication. 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.
