In another sense he was very wide-awake. He had represented to me that he was the proprietor of the seven camels and five mules, but I quickly discovered that he was only the owner of a completely worn-out old camel and four mules: he had hired the other animals at a considerably lower rate than I had agreed to pay him, therefore I should have the difficulty of several discontented owners instead of one. However, we had started before this fact was explained by my factotum Christo. The route lay along the sea-shore through a forest of caroub-trees and olives, occasionally varied by patches of cereals. Upon our right to the sea-margin were tolerable crops of barley, most of which had been irrigated by water conducted from the hills. At about four miles distance from Kyrenia the caroubs and olives of all growths exhibited the effects of north-easterly gales, as they inclined to south-west; and those nearest to the sea, which acted as screens, and received the full unbroken force of the wind, were seriously damaged. As we proceeded towards Lapithus the trees became widely scattered, the slopes were steeper, and the strip of level ground to the sea-margin narrowed to only half a mile. The mountains rose rapidly from this base, and an extra deep tinge of green showed the effect of streams, which in this happy spot of Cyprus are perennial. Many little villages were dotted about the mountain sides with groves of olives and other fruit-trees, which appeared to be in danger from the impending cliffs, huge masses having fallen and rolled to various distances at the bottom. The country reminded me of the prettiest portions of South Italy. At eight miles from Kyrenia we arrived at the thriving town of Karava, built upon the mountain slope and watered by powerful streams diverted into artificial channels from the parent bed. The large population of this neighbourhood is principally engaged in the production of silk, for which the locality has long been famous. Every garden that surrounded the houses was rich in mulberry-trees, together with oranges and lemons and the luxuriant foliage of the almond. We rode along steep paved lanes within the town, through which the water was rushing in refreshing streams, until we at length reached the precipitous edge of the ravine, which in the rainy season becomes an important torrent. Although some flour-mills are worked, I observed a terrible waste of water-power, which might be turned to account for machinery. I heard the usual excuse for this neglect, "The people have no money!"