Christo was a very
good fellow, and he sometimes reminded me of a terrier ready to obey or
take a hint from his master upon any active subject, while at others, in
his calmer moments, he resembled King Henry's knights, who interpreted
their monarch's wishes respecting Thomas a-Becket.
On 6th June we had been somewhat startled by the sudden appearance in
the afternoon of a man perfectly naked, who marched down the approach
from the spring and entered the monastery-yard in a dignified and
stage-like attitude as though he had the sole right of entree. At first
sight I thought he was mad, but on reference to the monks I discovered
he was perfectly sane. It appeared that he was a Greek about forty-five
years of age, who was a native of Kyrenia, and for some offence twenty
years ago he had been ordered by the priests to do penance in this
extraordinary manner. His body, originally white, had become quite as
brown as that of an Arab of the desert; he possessed no clothing nor
property of any kind, not even a blanket during winter; but he wandered
about the mountains and visited monasteries and certain villages, where
he obtained food as charity. He would never accept money (probably from
the absence of pockets), neither would he venture near Turkish villages,
as he had several times received a thrashing from the men for thus
presenting himself before their women, and it is to be regretted that
the Cypriotes had not followed the Turkish example, which would have
quickly cured his eccentricity.
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