136 MEMOIR OF FLEEMING JENKIN 



in the face with heat and come on board to hear 

 the Canea cable is still bad. 



' May 23. 



* We arrived in the morning at the east end of 

 Candia, and had a glorious scramble over the moun- 

 tains, which seem built of adamant. Time has worn 

 away the softer portions of the rock, only leaving 

 sharp jagged edges of steel. Sea eagles soaring 

 above our heads ; old tanks, ruins and desolation 

 at our feet. The ancient Arsinoe stood here ; a 

 few blocks of marble with the cross attest the 

 presence of Venetian Christians ; but now the 

 desolation of desolations. Mr. Liddell and I separ- 

 ated from the rest, and when we had found a sure 

 bay for the cable, had a tremendous lively scramble 

 back to the boat. These are the bits of our life 

 which I enjoy, which have some poetry, some 

 grandeur in them. 



* Yesterday we ran round to the new harbour [of 

 Alexandria], landed the shore end of the cable close 

 to Cleopatra's bath, and made a very satisfactory 

 start about one in the afternoon. We had scarcely 

 gone 200 yards when I noticed that the cable 

 ceased to run out, and I wondered why the ship 

 had stopped. People ran aft to tell me not to put 

 such a strain on the cable ; I answered indignantly 

 that there was no strain ; and suddenly it broke 



