volume 2 - Robert Bedrosian's Armenian History Workshop

Greek Papyri from the Fayydm and Meir. 345
close to the steamer, and as she was drifting swiftly
past her, one of Grebaut's servants hailed him and
ordered him to stop, as the Director wanted to know
if he had any anticas on board. The captain made no
attempt to make the bank, and began to steer out into
mid-stream, and as he did so, he shouted out some
exceedingly rude personal criticisms of the man on the
steamer. Grebaut's man promptly leaped into the dinghy
which lay alongside the steamer, slipped her rope, and
the little craft began to drift down the river after the
large sailing boat. When the Luxor man with the box
of papjnri saw this, he jumped up excitedly, fearing
that he would be caught by Grebaut's servant and taken
to the steamer. So he took up the box of papyri, and
climbed over the cargo to the side of the boat, and threw
it into the river. The captain made every effort to
stop him, and failing to do so, was so much exasperated
that he grabbed him by his cloak and dropped him
overboard, and told him in vivid language to swim
ashore. This he managed to do, and found Grebaut's
sailors waiting for him. They gave him a rough time,
for their sympathy lay with their friends the owners
of the papyri in Luxor, and when he returned to Luxor
his welcome was of the coldest.
On my return to Cairo I received great kindness from
de Morgan, who facilitated the despatch -of my cases,
and did everything to help me. My business proceeded
so rapidly that I had time to go to Mansurah, and
Damietta, and to several small sites in the Eastern
Delta, where antiquities had been discovered.
The progress of our work in Egypt was such that
it was necessary for me to go there in November, 1896.
When I arrived .in Cairo I found a mass of smaU Greek
papyri, some from Meir, some from the Fayyum, and
some from places further south. I secured them all,
took them into my own hands, and despatched them
to the British Museum. Whilst I was concluding my
negotiations for these in a native house, a man from
Meir, who did not belong to the " company " of dealers
with whom I was acquainted, came into the room, carrying