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SANDYS. BEAUVAU. 2(19 J5EAUVAU. A AA short aeeount of Cyprus is here translated from pp. 86—92 of the Relation journalière dit voyugr du Levant faiet ci deserti par Haut et puissant Seigneur Henry ile Bear ear, Baron tin diet lien ei dc Manonville eie. The seeond edition of this work, enriched with quaint maps aud cuts, was printed iu 4to, at Naney, 1615. M. de lteauvau left Veniee witli the Baron do Salignac, ambassador from Henry IV. of France to Sultan Ahmed, on All Saints'. 1604. He dwells at length ou the Court of Constantinople, and the sights of Jerusalem, more cursorily ou Cairo, Alexandria, Malta. Syracuse and Naples. Fifteen miles from Satalia we passed the point of the island of Cyprus which sailors call Piphanie, and coasting along we fronted the city of Baffo, anciently called Paphos, now pretty well iu ruins. It is situated on the sea-coast, near its port, on a fertile and pleasant hill, in which are found diamonds almost as heantiful as the true. In this city S. Paul was bound as he was going to Jerusalem, as you may see'Tn the Acts of the Apostles: and pagan histories tell ns that, the goddess Venns, as queen of the said island, held here her royal seat, and that the first temple dedicated iu her name was here, where men aud women sacrificed to her all naked : but at the prayer of the apostle Barnabas, a native of Cyprus, the temple and idol of the said lady fell and were overthrown together. Men called the goddess of old Cypria, on account of the island, and Paphia, on account of this temple, A mile hence are the grottos where it is said the seven sleepers slept for more than three hundred years without awaking. But before entering on the peculiarities of the island L ought first to describe it to you generally. Its ancient names were Carastoni, Aehamatide, Spelta, Amatusa and Macharia, or the happy. Its length is two hundred miles, its breadth one hundred and sixty-five, and its circumference five hundred aud fifty. It is very fertile in all kinds of grain, olive trees, oranges, lemons, carobs, capers, salt, cotton and other necessary products. It was long nnder the rule of kings, particularly of the house of Imsiguaii, nntil the last queen of the Comars family gave it after her husband's death to the Venetians, from whom it was taken by the Turks in 1570. Then it was fully inhabited, bnt now is greatly depopulated, though it brings iu yearly three hundred thousand crowns to the Grand Signor, who takes a fifth of the revenue of the island. Its chief towns are Nicosia and Famagusta, the first is about thirtv . Trom the coast, almost round, and fortified by good bastions; it is the residence of the Pasha of the island, aud of the Consul of the Franks. The other is much stronger, and has a port not far away, bnt it is not always that any but small vessels can enter it: it is the same with all the ports of the island, with the exception of certain roadsteads, such as you find at l'Ampso and the Salines. But let ns continue our voyage from Baffo. Coasting along we passed Capo Bianco, so named from its whiteness, then Capo delle Gatte, which is the point of a fine rich plain stretching well into the sea, and so called from certain onts, belonging to the abbey of S. Nicolas not far off, which were said to be trained to catch the snakes, of which there were many in the neighbourhood, and were so well taught that they returned on hearing a bell. Nowadays there are no more of them. But in the church there are some Caloyeres, or Greek monks. Thence we sailed te Limiso, where there is a small fort, and excellent land round about. Here formerly was the port to which vessels came to load cotton and other produce of the island : now they go fifty miles further on to a place called the Salines from a small c. 27

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