We can still see the lion of Venice and the old inscription 7 on the fortifications of the citadel of Famagusta, and here 8 too is a fragment of the ancient palace of the Lusignan dynasty, which has escaped destruction by the Turk only to be converted into a prosaic police station. Unlike the knights of Malta, the Lusignans made little impression on the natives of the island. They attempted to replace the national Greek Church by the Latin; yet the old Latin cathedral of St. Sophia is now used as a mosque, while, in spite of occasional persecution, the Greek Church still survives as the Church of the majority of the 9 people. Here is the outside of St. Sophia: it is partly ruined, but we can see that it was once a fine building. Inside, it 10 still looks like a church, except for the presence of Mohammedans wearing turbans. Out in the country, near Nicosia, we come on a fine old monastery, still in the possession of the Greek 11 Church. Notice the monks in their curious dress. Not far away is a once-famous abbey, now somewhat decayed, as we may 12 judge from a near view of the cloisters; here again is an 13 ugly modern village church, and here by way of contrast a 14 famous _tekkye_, or Mohammedan shrine. Everywhere Turk and 15 Cypriote, Mohammedan and Christian, are side by side; and behind all is British power enforcing law and order and compelling the different parties to live at peace with one another.
Cyprus of to-day is what the Turks have made it, since they conquered it from Venice in 1570; we have succeeded to a heritage of mis-government, and the conditions of our tenure hamper us greatly in the task of bringing back prosperity to the people. In 1878, after the treaty of San Stefano had been forced on Turkey by Russia, we agreed to defend the Asiatic dominions of the Sultan against further aggression, on condition first that reforms were introduced for the protection of his Christian subjects, and secondly that Cyprus should be occupied and administered by Great Britain. We added to the agreement an undertaking to pay annually to the Porte the surplus revenue of the Island at the time of the occupation, and to evacuate Cyprus if ever Russia should restore Kars and her other Asiatic conquests to Turkey. This undertaking has retarded the progress of the island under our rule in the past, since this tribute, which now goes to pay the interest on a Turkish loan, represents a steady drain on the revenue, so that it has been found necessary to make an annual grant-in-aid from the British Treasury.