After a long and tedious descent we reached the base of the pass, and halted in a broad river-bed full of rocks and stones of all sizes, which had been rounded by the torrent of the rainy season. There was no water except in small pools that had been scraped in the sand for the benefit of the travelling animals. Having watered our mules and remounted, we ascended the steep banks of the stream and continued towards the sea, feeling a sensible difference in the temperature since we had descended from the heights.
The country was exceedingly pretty, as it sloped gently downwards for three or four miles, the surface ornamented with caroub-trees, until we at length reached the sea-beach and crossed the sandy mouth of the river's bed. The crops of cereals were perished by drought in the absence of irrigation; but upon continuing our route parallel with the beach we observed an immediate improvement, as the water was conducted by artificial channels to the various fields. This arrangement had been effected by erecting a temporary dam in the river's bed far among the mountains, and thus leading the stream into the conduit for many miles. Small brooks intersected our path along the coast, and in several places I remarked the ruins of ancient aqueducts. . . . There was nothing of peculiar interest upon this route; the land inclined upwards from the sea for six or seven miles to the foot of the mountain range, all of which was either cultivated with cereals or was covered with caroub- trees and olives. Many villages were dotted over the surface; these were green with mulberry and various fruit-trees. With the sea upon our right, and the waves dashing briskly upon the rocky shore, the scene was agreeable; but the sun was hot, and we were not sorry to see the distant minarets of Ktima after a ride of seventeen miles from Arodes.
We passed the ruins of ancient Paphos upon our right, and shortly afterwards ascended the rocky slope upon which the capital of the district, Ktima, is situated. It is a large town, and as we rode through the bazaar the narrow street was almost blocked with huge piles of oranges that had been imported from Jaffa, the season for the Cyprus fruit being nearly over.
Iiani was exceedingly stupid in selecting camping-ground, therefore upon arrival at a new place we invariably had to explore the neighbourhood, like migratory birds landed upon strange shores. We accordingly rode through the considerable town of Ktima amidst the barking and snapping of innumerable dogs, who attacked our British spaniels, keeping up a running fight throughout the way, until we emerged upon open country beyond the outskirts.
We were now once more upon a flat table-top, about a hundred feet above the plain between us and the sea, a mile and a half distant. The edge of the table-land formed a cliff, choked from its base with huge fallen blocks of sedimentary limestone, from the crevices of which trees grew in great profusion, reminding one of hanging coverts upon hill-sides in England. Descending a steep but well-trodden path between these cottage-like masses of disjointed rock, we arrived at the prettiest camping-ground that I had seen in Cyprus. This had formed the camp of the Indian troops when the occupation had taken place in July, 1878, and unfortunately in this charming spot they had suffered severely from fever.
The sea and the town and port of Baffo lay before us, but immediately in front of the rocky and tree-covered heights that we had descended were great numbers of park-like trees which I had never before met with. These were of large size, many exceeding fourteen feet in girth, with a beautiful foliage that threw a dense shade beneath. The name of this tree is Tremithia, and it bears a small fruit in clusters of berries which produce oil: this is used by the inhabitants for the same purposes as that obtained from olives. I had met with the bush in a wild state for the first time at Lapithus, and had been attracted by the aromatic scent of the young leaves, but I was not aware that it grew to the size of a forest-tree. Springs of pure water issued from the rocks in the cliff-side within a few yards of our position; these were caught in large reservoirs of masonry from twenty to thirty feet square and six feet deep, from the bottom of which the water could be liberated for the purposes of irrigation. We selected a position upon a terrace beneath a number of these splendid tremithias, which afforded a shade during all hours of the day. The little stream rippled just below, passing by the roots of the trees that sheltered us, and watered a rich and dark green plot of about two acres of—neither roses, nor violets, but something far better, which at once delighted our cook Christo—onions! According to his practical ideas the Garden of Eden would have been a mere wilderness in the absence of a bed of onions; but at length we had entered upon Paradise; this WAS a charming place! For some distance beyond this captivating plot the tremithias (which at a distance resembled fine-headed oaks) ornamented the surface and gave a park-like appearance to the country; but beyond them the plain was a gentle slope, highly cultivated towards the sea. Long before the arrival of our baggage animals we had visitors; Captain Wauchope, the chief commissioner of the district, and several officers in official positions, were kind enough to call. An old man and his wife, the proprietors of the onions, who lived close by, brought us some rush-bottomed chairs with much civility; and as the day wore on a long string of visitors appeared, including the Bishop and some of the native officials; and we were of course surrounded with the usual throng of women and children: these were cleaner and better looking than those we had hitherto encountered.
The camels did not appear until late in the evening, as they had descended the steep pass from the table-land of Arodes with much difficulty, and liani's "antique" had again fallen, repeatedly, and necessitated a division of his load, which already had been reduced to that of a donkey.
When the sun rose on the following morning I walked into Ktima by a good path, that led through the rocks along the base of the cliff until it ascended gradually to the town. Although the cyclamens were past their bloom, their variegated leaves ornamented the white stones as they emerged like bouquets from the crevices of fallen rock. There was little of interest in the town, which hardly repaid a walk: it left the same depressing feeling that I had so often experienced in our journey through Cyprus: "The past had been great, and the present was nothing."
The little insignificant harbour exhibited a few small craft of about twenty tons. There was a small fort and a British flag; there were also the ruins of ancient Paphos; but there was nothing to denote progress or commercial activity. In the afternoon Captain Wauchope was kind enough to accompany us over the ruins. As I have before explained, there is nothing of interest upon the surface of ancient cities throughout Cyprus. Anything worth having has been appropriated many ages since by those who understood its value, and beyond a few fallen columns and blocks of squared stone there is literally nothing to attract attention. Even General di Cesnola excavated in vain upon the site of ancient Paphos, which from its great antiquity promised an abundant harvest. There were two fine monoliths, the bases of which, resting upon a foundation of squared stones, appeared as though they had formed the entrance to a temple; these were pillars of grey granite (foreign to Cyprus) about twenty-seven feet high and three feet two inches in diameter.
There were stony mounds in many directions, and fallen pillars and columns of granite and of coarse grey and whitish marble; but beyond these ordinary vestiges there was nothing of peculiar interest. As there is no authority equal to General di Cesnola upon the antiquities of Cyprus, I trust he will excuse me for inserting the following interesting extract from his work, upon The Great Centre of the Worship of Venus:—