S&SWM PR papers L1794
[Note in pencil, from Thompson?, he went to Cyprus 1st w in Jan 97]
Nicosia | April 20
My dear Father
It is waste of time telling you about the GReeks and Turks and Crete, as you are much better informed by the Times telegrams than we are here. At the time of writing the Greeks [insert] in Cyprus [end insert] are paying their shillings & subscribing to receive telegrams from Athens about the war. There is great excitement but no one fears any trouble. They are sending, however, 200 (!) troops from Alexandria in case of disturbances. You will have seen the Professor and know all about his plans so I need not mention them. I have just recovered from a very mild attack of Cyprus fever it is very unpleasant, and I must take better case of myself especially as the weather is getting hot.
Out here the English do not share the enthusiasm felt in England for the Greeks as they are not altogether a loveable race from an English point of view. You would not find a single Englishman in the East who would not rather fight for the Turks. I have not been here long enough to dislike them thoroughly, but I already know they are not to be trusted more especially when you hear them say that they hope to have Cyprus before long.
I propose to leave here the end of May - the latest - and I want to go with the Armenian expert to Milan to study the irrigation works of the Po river for a few days on my way home. I have found furnishing my room, buying horses and especially my garden very expensive. The garden will only begin to pay when I have to leave, as I began late - under these circumstances I want you to send me £20 more, by return if you will, to enable me to get back. I have already bought considerable amount of womans work which I will bring you, and will get you other things that will do for the Museum. I dont feel up to writing much of a letter just now but will write more if I can before the post goes on Friday yr aff L. Fox Pitt
Capital invested
Garden
2 Horses ----- £14
Garden tools, harness etc ----- £6
Repairing well ----- £2
Stables ----- £1
Seed etc ----- £1
Preliminary labour to clear garden ----- £6
------------
£30
Besides 3/- a day labour = 21/- a week for 10 weeks £10.10
Furnishing room ----- £11
--------------
£51.10
Besides all this, travelling about with Professor & a hundred & one other exs. and having exs. & servant
OVER
All this has been very expensive and I undertook to do it at the very sensible suggestion of the Professor. I have at any rate learnt how not to do things at a comparatively low cost and chiefly out of my allowance.
This is the Greco-Turkish war or Thirty Days war of 1897, between the Kingdom of Greece and the Ottoman Empire. The apparent cause was the status of the Ottoman province of Crete whose Greek majority of residents wanted Greek rule. There are no 'women's work' from Lionel from Cyprus listed in the catalogue of the second collection. None of the accounts of the displays at Farnham mention this either. If it was put on display it would probably have been in Room 1.
