DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.4692#0016
^OLIA.
LEFT England for Marseilles, accompanied by my wife, July 25th, 18G1. Having
ascertained from experience the desirability of having a European servant when
travelling in Asia Minor, and the difficulty of obtaining a suitable one at Smyrna,
I determined to go by way of Corfu, in the hope of obtaining the services of a
sapper who had served in the Budrum expedition, and who was quartered there.
Accordingly, from Marseilles Ave went to Genoa, then across Italy to Ancona, and
from thence by an Austrian Lloyds' steamer for Corfu. The sapper was there; but upon
application to his commanding officer, I found that he could not be then spared, as he
was regimental interpreter, but that his term of service would expire in three months, when he promised
to join me at Smyrna, in case he should be required. From Corfu, our vessel proceeded to Syra, touching
at Zante, Cephalonia, and Ccrigo, and we reached Smyrna August 25th. As the weather was too hot for
excursions, we remained there to await the arrival of our heavy baggage, consisting of our tents, saddles,
&c, which had been dispatched from England in the Agio, Sofia.
Owing to increased strictness of the custom-house authorities, the trouble of clearing baggage is much
greater than formerly. The Turkish Government has lately imposed a duty of eight per cent, ad valorem,
on both exports and imports; consequently, if the contents of the packages do not consist of merchandise
accompanied by an invoice, the inspectors, who arc chiefly Armenians, fix the value according to their own
notions, which, it is needless to say, are frequently wide of the mark. In our case, however, thanks to
the kindness of our late Consul Mr. Blunt, matters were much facilitated, and after two visits to the
custom-house in company with a cavass from the Consulate, our effects were passed without charge, beyond
the usual baksheesh, which has here become a regular toll in place of a gift.
Soon after my arrival, Mr. Blunt informed me that he had received a dispatch from Sir Henry Bulwer
requesting him to take measures to secure a torso discovered by Captain Spratt at Elaea, in the Gulf of
Sanderlik, for the British Museum. As in all probability a fortnight would elapse before the heat moderated
sufficiently for me to commence excursions by land, I agreed to undertake this for him, as it would enable
me to explore the coasts of the Gulf of Sanderlik by means of a caique.
Mr. Blunt procured me a useful companion in an old man, Spiro by name, who had served as pilot
on board a British ship of war engaged in surveying the coast. Spiro was a man of sixty years of age,
hearty, robust, experienced, and trustworthy, as I afterwards found during other expeditions in which he
accompanied us in the capacity of a travelling servant.
The caique hired for the voyage, which was to occupy about a week or ten days, was a now boat,
about twenty feet long. There is no cabin in these vessels, which are built for lightness and speed, so
that at night we were obliged to moor our boat near the shore, in order that a tent might be formed
with a sail on the after part of the boat for us to sleep in, the sailors sleeping on shore or on the fore part
outside the tent. Our crew consisted of three men, besides Spiro, all Greeks who had been engaged by
English ships of war as boatmen, or in some other capacity.
°Wc started August 31st, at 7 o'clock in the morning; but as there \ras no wind, we did not make
much progress, and by night had only reached a sandbank opposite two picturesque mountains, called the
Brothers, from two peaks resembling one another. We were here isolated from the mainland by a large
sheet of shallow water, where extensive fisheries are carried on for the supply of Smyrna. We obtained fresh
fish, which our crew broiled upon the embers of a wood fire for dinner.
'on the mainland opposite us was a hill, upon which, according to the Admiralty charts, stood the
small toAvn of Lcuke. There were no ruins visible, as far as I could see by the aid of a powerful telescope.
Unfortunately, the water was too shallow to enable me to explore the site. Leuke was founded by a
LEFT England for Marseilles, accompanied by my wife, July 25th, 18G1. Having
ascertained from experience the desirability of having a European servant when
travelling in Asia Minor, and the difficulty of obtaining a suitable one at Smyrna,
I determined to go by way of Corfu, in the hope of obtaining the services of a
sapper who had served in the Budrum expedition, and who was quartered there.
Accordingly, from Marseilles Ave went to Genoa, then across Italy to Ancona, and
from thence by an Austrian Lloyds' steamer for Corfu. The sapper was there; but upon
application to his commanding officer, I found that he could not be then spared, as he
was regimental interpreter, but that his term of service would expire in three months, when he promised
to join me at Smyrna, in case he should be required. From Corfu, our vessel proceeded to Syra, touching
at Zante, Cephalonia, and Ccrigo, and we reached Smyrna August 25th. As the weather was too hot for
excursions, we remained there to await the arrival of our heavy baggage, consisting of our tents, saddles,
&c, which had been dispatched from England in the Agio, Sofia.
Owing to increased strictness of the custom-house authorities, the trouble of clearing baggage is much
greater than formerly. The Turkish Government has lately imposed a duty of eight per cent, ad valorem,
on both exports and imports; consequently, if the contents of the packages do not consist of merchandise
accompanied by an invoice, the inspectors, who arc chiefly Armenians, fix the value according to their own
notions, which, it is needless to say, are frequently wide of the mark. In our case, however, thanks to
the kindness of our late Consul Mr. Blunt, matters were much facilitated, and after two visits to the
custom-house in company with a cavass from the Consulate, our effects were passed without charge, beyond
the usual baksheesh, which has here become a regular toll in place of a gift.
Soon after my arrival, Mr. Blunt informed me that he had received a dispatch from Sir Henry Bulwer
requesting him to take measures to secure a torso discovered by Captain Spratt at Elaea, in the Gulf of
Sanderlik, for the British Museum. As in all probability a fortnight would elapse before the heat moderated
sufficiently for me to commence excursions by land, I agreed to undertake this for him, as it would enable
me to explore the coasts of the Gulf of Sanderlik by means of a caique.
Mr. Blunt procured me a useful companion in an old man, Spiro by name, who had served as pilot
on board a British ship of war engaged in surveying the coast. Spiro was a man of sixty years of age,
hearty, robust, experienced, and trustworthy, as I afterwards found during other expeditions in which he
accompanied us in the capacity of a travelling servant.
The caique hired for the voyage, which was to occupy about a week or ten days, was a now boat,
about twenty feet long. There is no cabin in these vessels, which are built for lightness and speed, so
that at night we were obliged to moor our boat near the shore, in order that a tent might be formed
with a sail on the after part of the boat for us to sleep in, the sailors sleeping on shore or on the fore part
outside the tent. Our crew consisted of three men, besides Spiro, all Greeks who had been engaged by
English ships of war as boatmen, or in some other capacity.
°Wc started August 31st, at 7 o'clock in the morning; but as there \ras no wind, we did not make
much progress, and by night had only reached a sandbank opposite two picturesque mountains, called the
Brothers, from two peaks resembling one another. We were here isolated from the mainland by a large
sheet of shallow water, where extensive fisheries are carried on for the supply of Smyrna. We obtained fresh
fish, which our crew broiled upon the embers of a wood fire for dinner.
'on the mainland opposite us was a hill, upon which, according to the Admiralty charts, stood the
small toAvn of Lcuke. There were no ruins visible, as far as I could see by the aid of a powerful telescope.
Unfortunately, the water was too shallow to enable me to explore the site. Leuke was founded by a