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.
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