volume 2 - Robert Bedrosian's Armenian History Workshop

The Christians of Malabar. 235
that Nimrud was a Nestorian, and that his own clergywere
as well acquainted with French as he was ; then
calling one of his own people forward he told him to
interpret for me. The Patriarch's action and words
were autocratic, but it was evident that he was well
accustomed to be obeyed, and no one present seemed
to be in the least surprised. Having thus arranged
matters according to his pleasure, he smiled sweetly
and continued his talk. When he had asked after my
health, and congratulated me on my arrival for the
second time in Mosul, and cursed the Yazidis and the
Shammar, he began to talk about England, which he
visited in 1874. He spoke of Queen Victoria and of the
gracious kindness which she had shown him on two
occasions, and of Archbishop Tait and of several of the
Ministers whom he had met at the reception at the
India Ofl&ce which was arranged in his honour, and then
went on to talk about the reason of his visit, namely,
the Ulegal appointment of Philip Malpan as Metropolitan
of Malabar by the British Resident in 1825. I was in
a general way acquainted with the principal events
which followed this appointment, and I knew well how
the Patriarch had been abused, misrepresented and
maligned. It is a plain historical fact that the Christians
of Malabar have since 1665 always regarded the Patriarch
of Antioch as the head of their Church, and it is not
easy to understand how the British Resident at Malabar
covdd have overlooked this fact. I told the Patriarch
that this was my opmion, and that I was very glad
he had succeeded in maintaining his authority against
the attacks that had been made upon it, and he was
pleased. He then said that he had many points he
wanted to talk over with me, and invited me to come
to his house as soon as possible, and having fixed upon
the day and hour for my visit he departed.
I went to see him at the appointed time and he
received me very kindly. He began to talk at once
about the matters which he wished to discuss with me.
He said that I was employing Nestorians as scribes,
and purchasing manuscripts of Nestorian works, and