110 Dr. F. H. H. Guillemard — Ornithological 



earlier but for the fact that heavy rain was falling in the low 

 country. The season of 1887 was one of extraordinary 

 drought — a drought so severe that in the eastern parts of the 

 island there was practically no harvest, and in consequence 

 the people were reduced almost to a state of famine. During 

 the whole period of my residence in Cyprus I only saw i-ain 

 upon three occasions. I am hound to say, however, that on 

 one of them at least three inches must have fallen. 



To the south of Larnaka, at no great distance from the 

 town, is a large salt lake, which affords an inexhaustible 

 supply of salt of excellent quality, a monopoly of the British 

 Government. Along its level, glaring shore it is rare to see 

 a bird, but towards the south-western extremity a little 

 stream expands to form a marsh, in which I found many 

 species of water- fowl. Ardea cinerea, A. bubulcus, and A. 

 comata were here, and, in spite of the lateness of the season, 

 I found plenty of full Snipes and a single Jack. The natives 

 told me that some of the former remain throughout the 

 summer ; but as they are largely given to needless romancing, 

 I do not guarantee the accuracy of the statement. The tiny 

 Cisticola schcenicola was abundant, rising twenty or thirty 

 feet into the air when disturbed, and plunging up and down 

 in a series of short dives, uttering at each its single note of 

 alarm. On the outskirts of the marsh I shot the Waterhen 

 (Gallinula chloropus) and the Sedge Warbler [Acrocej)halus 

 phragmitis) ; but the best bird in my bag was Porzana parva, 

 retrieved from deep water by a good mongrel belonging 

 to a peasant, who twice threw the bird back into the pool 

 in order to demonstrate the extraordinary sagacity of his dog, 

 heedless of my cries of mingled rage and anxiety from the 

 opposite bank. 



The Greek Easter was at this time in full swing, but its 

 festivities were, perhaps, a little less festive than usual, owing 

 to the prevailing agricultural depression. Food had become 

 so expensive that the natives had to part with their mules, 

 donkeys, and cattle for what they would fetch : a sum, in 

 many cases, inconceivably small. My host^s servant one day 

 bought an excellent little cow for three shillings and four 



