64

The

A SHOOTING EXCURSION.

young

numbers. buffalo is, without exception, one of the most uncouth creatures I have ever met.

Having been informed by the natives that the woods in our vicinity contained bears, leopards, jackals, and wild boars, a hunting excursion was planned for the 26th, on the morning of which great was the preparation on board; guns, pistols, cutlasses, boarding-pikes, and tomahawks were put in requisition, and battle, murder, and sudden death vowed against the Fera of the neighbouring mountains. Sailors love a frolic, and care not whether it be the riding of a jackass or the baiting of a lion, so that fun, excitement, and personal hazard are connected with it. Formidable was the array we made, and no doubt a cause of admiration to the simple natives who met us on the shore; the armed men were posted at the passes, and the beaters set to work in the wood; great was the noise and tumult; every thing that had life, large or small, was doomed to destruction; whole volleys were discharged, and running fires kept up with much spirit against hares, woodcocks, and waterhens. Bullets and small shot whizzed and peppered on all sides, front and rear; Jack called to his comrade and was answered in an unknown tongue by a Turk; sheep and goats were mistaken, and in one instance suffered the fate of wild beasts. The scene was one of considerable interest, and not without personal danger, not from ravenous animals, but from the fire of some worthy tar who wanted to have

PROCEED EASTWARD.

65

Of the

a shot, no matter when, where, or at what. animals we came to destroy, none such were seen; so, late in the day we sounded a retreat and called in all stragglers, who, wet, bruised and torn, but not disheartened, plied the supple oar, and soon sent us dashing over the blue waters to our wooden home.

These scenes, though apparently irrelevant to our subject, are necessary, in one form or other, to the life led on board ship, and, accidents excepted, contribute in no small degree to the comfort, health, and happiness of a sailor, who is debarred from sources of amusement that landsmen can avail themselves of daily.

We left Karagatch on the 28th, intending to proceed to the Gulf of Glaucus.

VOL. II.

F

CHAPTER III.

ASIA MINOR.

The Gulf of Glaucus-Macri-Its Scenery-The Modern Town-Its Inhabitants -Unhealthy situation of the place-Telmessus-Its Tombs-Barrows-SteloPillars mentioned by Josephus-Inquiry into the origin of Pillars-Found in the British Isles-Their different uses-The Soros-The Tomb of Helen-Sarcophagi peculiar to Asia Minor - A Warrior's Tomb-Rock-carved SepulchresRegal Mausolea-Their Facades-An ancient Temple- Remarkable form of its Roof-Reflections upon Tombs-The Theatre-Description of its Ruins Acoustics of the Ancients-Cyclopean Prosceneum-Magnificent prospect of the Spectators-Surrounding Scenery-The Grecian Drama-The charms of Travel The Soothsayer's Cave-Baths-Dromedaries-Climate-Classic Authorities upon Telmessus-The Isle of Cavaliere-Bay of Kalamaki-Kastelorizo Its Town and Harbour-Navy-Cyprus-Limasol-The Cyprian Wine -Unhealthy condition of the Island-Sail for Syria.

MARCH 1st. We sailed for Macri, in the ancient Gulf of Glaucus. As we proceeded eastward, the coast became bolder; and owing to its greater exposure, it is less wooded. Within this deep gulf the scenery becomes quite changed; here there are none of the valleys, the rivers, cottages, and cultivated spots that surround the smaller and more western bays. The mountains rise to a greater elevation, many of their more distant summits are in the region of perpetual snow, and the whole

THE GULF OF GLAUCUS.

67

aspect of the country has been well described as that of "gloomy grandeur."

We found this great arm of the sea much more extensive than we had anticipated, or than the charts and maps we had seen could have led us to suppose, being from twelve to fifteen miles in depth, with its entrance wide and very much exposed. As the wind fell and the night began to close in upon us, we were compelled to anchor in fourteen fathoms water, to the westward of the point that forms the north-western barrier of the bay, in which are situated the ruins of Telmessus; to examine which, was the object of our present visit. A heavy swell sets in here from the open sea, and yet, that there is a current setting outward, I can have little doubt, both from the information I obtained from the people, and the fact, that several Greek boats which passed during the night, were carried southward without a breath of wind to fill their canvass. The temperature of the different bays along this coast varies considerably, owing to the position of the mountains in their vicinity, and here the height of those around caused us to feel the cold very much. Next morning we towed the vessel round, and lay a short way off the town of Macri.

Dr. E. D. Clarke has said, with great truth, that "there is no part of the Grecian territory more interesting in its antiquities, than the Gulf of Glaucus. The ruins of Telmessus are as little known, as they

68

THE SCENERY OF MACRI.

are remarkable in the illustration they afford with regard to the tombs and theatres of the ancients." His labours have done so much to elucidate these ruins and antiquities, that future inquiries must of necessity partake more or less of the character of commentaries upon his work.

The approach to Macri is strikingly grand, and strongly impresses the beholder with an idea of the refined taste of the people who chose it for the position of their city; for the scene combines all that nature can bestow to charm the senses and adorn the landscape. A broad sheet of water, broken with many islands, and forming bold curves, and sheltered basins, is bounded on the south by a range of hills, whose sides are channelled by columnar rocks, which, rising in broken and irregular masses, form at the top a sharply defined outline; in some parts, partaking so much of the castellated form that one is almost disposed to believe they are the effect of the line, the plummet, and the chisel. In other places, they are fringed with pines, which, owing to the excessive clearness of the atmosphere, are distinguishable from their stems to their topmost branches. Upon a gentle slope, between those mountains and the sea, stood Telmessus, and to the north-east of the bay extends a vast marshy plain, through which a considerable stream winds its tortuous course. Beyond this plain, bounding three of its sides, and stretching far away into the distance, rise the lofty mountains