Clearcus, too, has given us the following description of a young Paphian king: “This young man carried the refinement of luxury, to the extent of lying on a bed, or sofa with silver feet, overspread with a splendid carpet or rug; under his head were three pillows covered with very fine linen of a rich colour, and handsomely trimmed. His feet rested upon two purple cushions, and he was dressed in a white robe. At some distance from the bed stood slaves, and near the young king were his flatterers, men of good position.” Clearcus adds: “Each of these devoted himself in some way to add to the indolence of the prince. One seated at the foot of the bed had the young man’s feet resting upon his knees; another seated near the bed, bent over the hand which the king allowed him to caress, and gently stretched out one finger after another; the third, who was highest in rank, stood at the head leaning over the cushions and passing his left hand through the young prince’s hair, whilst with the right he gently waved a fan.” To such a height of notorious extravagance had the princes of Cyprus attained, that Antiphanes, a comic poet of Rhodes, wrote a most amusing comedy, in which he caricatured the folly of the Cypriotes.[12] Manners such as we have described had their origin in the luxurious example of neighbouring Persian satraps, and were brought to the utmost refinement of self-indulgence by the subtile mind of the Greek. CHAPTER XX. CLIMATE AND TEMPERATURE. The climate of Cyprus is just now the subject of so much discussion in England, that we cannot do better than lay the following facts before our readers, only premising that we have left our readers to decide between many slight discrepancies in the various statements. In most respects the temperature and climate of Cyprus are similar to that of the neighbouring countries. The great heat of Syria is felt here, as also the violent winds and extreme dryness of Cilicia; but to compensate for this, there are most refreshing sea breezes and night dews. During the summer, as in India, those who can afford it seek the cool air of the mountains, returning to their homes in the plains and on the coast for the winter months, the cold at this season being far more severe than (judging from the situation of Cyprus) one would imagine. In the northern parts of the island, the icy winds from Taurus are keenly felt, and the summits of the Olympian range are entirely snow-capped. Old writers have said that the climate is unhealthy; in proof of this assertion, they mention the epidemic which attacked the army of St. Louis, in this island, in 1259, but many who have lived there are not of this opinion.