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. 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.
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