CHAPTER II.THE GREEKS OF TURKEY.Importance of the Greeks at the Present Moment—Their Attitude—The Greek Peasant as Contrasted with the Bulgarian—His Family—Eloquence—Patriotism—Comforts—The Women—A Greek Girl—Women of the Towns of the Upper Class—Of the Lower Class—Wives and Husbands—Greek Parties—The Conservatives and the Progressives—A Conversation on Greek Go-a-head-ness—Physical Features of the Modern Greek—Character—General Prejudice—A Prussian Estimate—Greek Vices—An Adventure with Greek Brigands—Adelphé—Unscrupulousness in Business—Causes and Precedents—Jews and Greeks—Summary.
Importance of the Greeks at the Present Moment—Their Attitude—The Greek Peasant as Contrasted with the Bulgarian—His Family—Eloquence—Patriotism—Comforts—The Women—A Greek Girl—Women of the Towns of the Upper Class—Of the Lower Class—Wives and Husbands—Greek Parties—The Conservatives and the Progressives—A Conversation on Greek Go-a-head-ness—Physical Features of the Modern Greek—Character—General Prejudice—A Prussian Estimate—Greek Vices—An Adventure with Greek Brigands—Adelphé—Unscrupulousness in Business—Causes and Precedents—Jews and Greeks—Summary.
All eyes are now turned upon the Greek race as one of the most important factors in the Eastern Question. The future of South-Eastern Europe is seen to lie in the balance between Greek and Slav, and people’s opinions incline to one side or the other as dread of Russia or distrust of “Greek guile” gets the upper hand. I have nothing to say here about the people of free Hellas: I have only to tell what I have witnessed of the character and condition of the subject Greeks in Turkey. These, though they shared in the national effort of 1821-9, reaped little of the fruits. The Greeks of Macedonia, Thessaly, and Thrace did not gain the freedom accorded to the people of “Greece Proper,” though their condition was somewhat improved. But they are only biding their time. They know that their free countrymen are anxious to share with them the results of the glorious struggle of 1821. They know that centuries of subjection and oppression have demoralized and debased the nation; and they have long been striving with their whole strength to prepare themselves for freedom. They have employed the time of transition with great moderation and judgment. Those whom the Porte has appointed to high offices have filled their posts with conscientiousness, fidelity, and dignity. Taught worldly wisdom in the school of adversity, they have avoided premature conspiracy and rebellion, and have directed all their energies to educating the race for its future. “Improve and wait patiently” is the motto of the Greeks in Turkey.
The Greek peasant differs greatly from the Bulgarian. Agriculture is not all the world to him; his love for the pursuit is decidedly moderate unless he sees an opening for enterprise and speculation, as in the growth of some special kind of produce which he can sell in the raw condition or as manufactured goods. Unlike the Bulgarian, his whole family is not chained to the soil as the one business of life. When the paterfamilias can dispense with the services of some of his daughters, they leave their home in pursuit of occupation, and his sons in the same manner are allowed to quit the paternal roof in search of some more lucrative employment elsewhere. It is thus that the Greek is to be found in every nook and corner of Turkey, established among his own kindred or with foreigners, and following various professions and callings, as doctors, lawyers, schoolmasters; whilst, descending to a lower scale, we find him employed in every town and village as a petty tradesman, mason, carpenter, shoe-maker, musician, in all which occupations he manages by dint of energy, perseverance, and address to obtain a modest competence, or sometimes even to reach prosperity.
I remember, among other instances of the kind, the case of a Greek peasant family in the district of B⸺. The father was a respectable man, who owned a small property in his native village, and whose quiver was filled with eight children. The eldest remained to assist on the farm; two others of tender age also remained under the mother’s care; the other five, including a girl, left their home, and came to the town. One of the boys and the girl took service with me; a second boy apprenticed himself to a photographer, another became a painter of church pictures, and the fourth a cigarette-maker. The salaries these young peasants received were at first very meagre; but all the same the four boys clubbed their savings together, and after a time sent for their younger brother to live in town in order to enjoy the benefit of receiving a good education. Six years passed, during which the boy and his pretty and intelligent sister remained in my house; both learned to speak English, the boy having studied the language grammatically in his leisure moments. They are now honest, intelligent servants, perfect in the performance of their duties, and devoted to my family. The three apprentices, through their steadiness, good conduct, and energy, have become proficient enough in their different callings to set up for themselves, while the boy at school is one of the most advanced students of theGymnasium.
The intellectual position of the Greeks is far superior to that of the Bulgarians. They are cleverer, and they and their children are more advanced in education. They display a great interest in passing events, as well as in politics, a knowledge of which they obtain by means of the numerous Greek newspapers they receive from Athens, Constantinople, and all the large towns of Turkey. These journals find their way to the remotest hamlets, one or two being sufficient to make the round of a village. They also possess other literature in the shape of the history of their country, biographies of some of their illustrious ancestors, and national songs in the vernacular. All these make a deep impression upon the entire population, who, after the conclusion of the labors of the day, gather together in the taverns and coffee-houses to discuss matters, talking excellent sense over the coffee-cup, or waxing hot and uproarious over their wine andraki.
The Greek peasant displays none of the embarrassment and tonguetiedness of the Bulgarian. I have often met with instances of this: one especially struck me which happened in the early part of last summer in the vilayet of B⸺. Some Bashi-bazouks had entered a village, and committed some of their usual excesses; but the peasants had found time to send away their wives and daughters to a place of safety. On the following day a body of fifty Greeks came to complain to the authorities. In order to render their claims more effective, they applied for protection at the different Consulates. I happened to be at luncheon at one of these Consulates, and the Consul ordered the men to be shown into the dining-room to make their statements. One at once stepped forward to give an account of the affair, which he related with so much eloquence and in such pure modern Greek that the Consul, suspecting him to be some lawyer in disguise, or a special advocate of Greek grievances, set him aside, and called upon another to give his version. Several looked questioningly at each other, but with no sign of embarrassment; on the contrary, the expression on each face betokened natural self-confidence, and meant in this instance to say, “We can each tell the tale equally well, but I had better begin than you.”
Patriotism is highly developed among the Greek peasants, who are fully aware of the meaning of the wordpatris, and taught to bear in mind that half a century ago free Hellas formed part of the Ottoman Empire; that its inhabitants, like themselves, were a subject people, and owe the freedom they now enjoy to self-sacrifice and individual exertion. “They are our elder brothers,” say they, “who have stepped into their inheritance before us. There is a just God for us as well!”
The wants of the Greek are more numerous than those of the Bulgarians. Their dress, for instance, is not limited to a coarse suit ofabaand a sheepskingougla, but is sometimes made of fine cloth and other rich materials, and includes shoes and stockings. The culinary department also demands more utensils; besides which, tables, table-linen, knives and forks are often seen at their meals. The bedding they use is more complete, and does not consist solely of rugs, as with the Bulgarians. Their houses are better built, with some regard to comfort and appearance, frequently with two stories, besides possessing chimneys and windows (when safe to do so). The village schools are better organized, and kept under the careful supervision of the Society for their direction, and the churches are more numerous. The women are less employed in field work, and consequently more refined in their tastes, prettier in appearance, and more careful and elegant in their dress. The Greek peasant girl knows the value of her personal charms, and disdains to load herself with the tarnished trinkets, gaudy flowers, and other wonderful productions in which the Bulgarian maiden delights. A skirt of some bright-colored silk or mixed stuff and a cloth jacket embroidered with gold form the principal part of her gala costume, covered with a fur-lined pelisse for out-of-door wear. Her well-combed hair is plaited in numerous tresses, and surmounted by the small Greek cap, which is decorated with gold and silver coins like those she wears as a necklace. She is not to be bought, like the Bulgarian, for a sum of money paid to her father as an equivalent for her services; but according to her means is dowered and given in marriage, like the maidens of classical times. Still the peasant girl is neither lazy nor useless; she takes an active part in the duties of the household, is early taught to knit and spin the silk, flax, wool, or cotton which themother requires for the different home-made tissues of the family. She leads her father’s flock to the pasture, and under the title ofVoskopoulakindles a flame in the heart of the village youth and inspires the rustic muse. On Sundays and feast-days she enters heartily into all the innocent pleasures of her retired and isolated life. She has more pride than the Bulgarian; and although in married life she is submissive and docile, she possesses a greater depth and richness of love. I have known instances of peasant girls exchanging vows with youths of their village who are leaving their home in search of fortune, and patiently waiting for them and refusing all offers in the mean time. In most cases this devotion is requited by equal constancy on the part of the lover; but should she be deserted, her grief is so terrible that she not seldom dies from the blow.
If there is more than one daughter in a family, some from the age of twelve or fourteen are usually sent to town and placed out as servants, with the double object of giving them the opportunity of seeing more of the world and the means of earning something for their own maintenance. These earnings as they are acquired are converted into gold coins and strung into necklaces.
When these girls are honest and good, and fall into proper hands, they are usually adopted by the family with whom they take service, under the title of ψυχόπαιδα. On reaching the age of twenty-five or twenty-seven a trousseau is given to them with a small dowry, and they are married to some respectable artisan. Those simply hired as servants either marry in the towns or do so on returning to their native village.
The Greek peasant women are as a rule clean and industrious, fond mothers and virtuous wives. The best proof of their morality is in the long absences many husbands are obliged to make from their homes, which are attended by no unfaithful results. In some instances for a period of even twenty years the wife becomes the sole director of the property, which she manages with care and wisdom, and the only guardian of the children left in her charge.
The peasants who still cling to the soil plod away at their daily toil in very much the same way as the Bulgarians, but show a greater aptitude for rearing the silkworm and growing olives and grapes. The Greek peasants are not models of perfection; but as a body they are better than any other race in Turkey, and under a good government they are certain to improve and develop much faster than either the Bulgarians or the Turks.
The Greek women of the towns, according to their station and the amount of refinement and modern ideas they have been imbued with, display in their manners and mode of living the virtues and faults inherent in the Greek character. I must in justice state that the former exceed the latter; their virtues consist principally in their quality of good honest wives, and in the simple lives they are usually content to lead in their homes. The enlightenment and conversational talents of some of the better class do not fall far short of those of European ladies. Those less endowed by education and nature have a quiet modest bearing, and evince a great desire to improve. The most striking faults in the Greek woman’s character are fondness of dress and display, vanity, and jealousy of the better circumstances of her neighbors. The spirit of envious rivalry in dress and outward appearance is often carried to such a pass that the real comforts of home-life are sacrificed, and many live poorly and dress meanly on ordinary occasions in order to display a well-furnished drawing-room and expensive holiday costumes to the public. When living in the town of N⸺, I was taken into the confidence of the Archbishop’s niece, who was my neighbor. She confessed to me that on promenade days she regularly stationed her servant at the end of the street in order to inspect the toilette of her rival, the wife of the richestchorbadji, so that she might be able to eclipse her.
Greek ladies are fond and devoted mothers, but they are not systematic in rearing their children. This has, however, been remedied in many cases by children of both sexes being placed from a very early age in the care of governesses, or at school, where the more regular training they receive cannot fail to have beneficial results.
The life of women of the working classes is still more homely and retired, as it is considered an impropriety to be seen much out of doors, especially in the case of young girls, whom prejudice keeps very secluded, even to the length of seldom allowing them to go to church. When abroad, however, their fondness for display is equal to that of their richer sisters, whose toilettes, however novel or complicated, in cities like Constantinople and Smyrna, are sure to be copied by the fishermen’s or washerwomen’s daughters. In provincial towns like Rodosto and Adrianople, the love of dress finds its satisfaction in bright colors and wreaths of artificial flowers, especially the much coveted carnation, when out of season, which is worn by some as a love-trophy; for it must have been given by some lover on the feast-day. Greek girls are very clever at needlework and embroidery; but their life is nevertheless monotonous, and they have little variety of occupation and amusement. This is owing in part to the exclusion of women of all races in Turkey from occupations in shops, and to the absence of manufactories, which, with the exception of some silk factories, do not exist in the country. Those in the silk-growing districts, however, give employment to a number of Greek girls, who show great aptitude for this branch of industry, and often become directresses of establishments in which Armenian and other women are employed.
The affection of a Greek wife for her husband is joined to a jealous care of his interest; she will strive to hide his faults and weaknesses, and the disinterested devotion with which she will cling to him in prosperity and adversity is astonishing. A woman belonging to the town of S⸺, on hearing that her husband had been arrested on a charge of complicity with brigands, left her home and five children to the care of a blind grandmother, and set out on foot on a three days’ journey to the town where he was to be tried. He was condemned to seven years’ imprisonment, and sent to the prison at A⸺, whither she followed him. Young and pretty, entirely friendless, and without means of subsistence, she lingered about the Greek quarter until her sad tale gained her an asylum in a compassionate family. She toiled hard to gain a small pittance, which she divided between herself and her unhappy partner shut up in the common prison. The dreadful news was brought to her that three of her children were dead, that her house was falling to pieces, and that her aged and afflicted mother was unable to take care of the two surviving little ones. Unmoved by these calamities, she refused to quit the town of A⸺ until, through the instrumentality of some influential persons whose sympathies she had enlisted, her husband’s period of punishment was shortened.
Greek society may be divided into two classes, the conservative party and the progressive. The former, in the provincial towns, are jealous of their rights and privileges as elders of the community and representatives of the nation in theMedjliss. In many instances these side with the authorities in acts of injustice, sometimes from timidity and sometimes from interested motives. This small retrograde class is also strongly opposed to the progress of education, and often hinders it by stint of money and general hostility to all changes.
The second class consists of the educated members of the community, who earn their fortunes in much the same way as the rest of the civilized world, and spend it liberally in comforts and luxuries, and for the benefit of the nation—an object to which every Greek tries to contribute in some degree. The motto of this party isEmbros!(Forward!) They are stopped by no difficulties and overcome by no drawbacks, either in their personal interests or those of the nation. Their success in enterprise should no longer (as formerly) be attributed to disloyalty, dishonesty, and intrigue—in these respects there is no reason for believing them worse than their neighbors—but to the wonderful energy and ability they show in all their undertakings. I heard a conversation some time ago between two medical celebrities of Constantinople with reference to the Greek spirit of enterprise and ambition. One praised their enterprise as a promising quality, and, to use his own expression, said, “There is an immense amount of ‘go’ in the Greek.”
“Go!” repeated the other, waxing hot, “Too much so, I believe: there is no telling where a Greek’s enterprising spirit may not lead him, or where his ambition will stop! Listen to my experience on the subject and judge for yourself. Some years ago I was asked by a good old Greek I knew very well to take his son, a youth of twenty, into my service. According to the father’s recommendation, he was a good Greek scholar and knew a little Latin. I asked the father in what capacity I was to engage him. ‘Any you like,’ was the reply: ‘let him be your servant—your slave.’ ‘Very well; but he will have to clean my boots and look after my clothes!’ ‘πολὺ καλὰ’ was the response, and I engaged his son.
“On the following day my new valet entered upon his duties. He was a good-looking, smart, and intelligent fellow, and at first exact and able in the performance of his functions; but gradually he became lax, absent in manner, and negligent; although steady and quiet in his conduct. One day the mystery of this change was revealed on my returning home unexpectedly, and finding the fellow, instead of cleaning my boots, which he held in his hand, deeply plunged in one of the medical works on my table. In my anger at seeing my papers and books meddled with, I brought my boots into contact with his head, telling him that if ever I caught him again at that sort of thing, he would be punished more severely. ‘Forgive me,’ said he, in a very penitent manner, and walked demurely out of the room. He showed, however, no signs of improvement, and subsequently I discovered him committing no less a piece of impertinence than copying some prescriptions that lay on my desk. This was too much; so, as a punishment, I made him take one of the potions; but on the next day he calmly told me that theiatricohad done him good, having calmed his blood and cleared his head! Of course, I dismissed the fellow and replaced him by an Armenian, who answered my purpose better, though he did dive now and then rather extensively into the larder. For some years I lost sight of my former valet, and had forgotten his very existence till it was brought to my recollection in the following unexpected manner. I one day received a pressing message to go at once to the house of D⸺ Pasha to see a sick child and hold a consultation with his newhekim bashi(doctor) on its case. At the appointed hour I went, and on entering the konak was ushered into the selamlik to await the arrival of the other doctor who was to lead me into the harem. In a few minutes my supposed colleague walked in, hat and gold-headed stick in one hand, while the other was extended to me, with the words ‘καλημέρα, ἴατρε’(good-morning, doctor). The face and voice transfixed me for a moment, but the next presented to me the fact that my former valet stood beforeme, claiming the right of holding a consultation with me. Whereat I was on the point of giving vent to my indignation, by seizing him by the collar and ejecting him from the apartment, when he quietly said, ‘Excuse me, ἴατρε, but I stand before you in right of the diploma I have obtained from Galata Serai. Allow me to submit it to your learned and honorable inspection.’ There was no denying the fact; the fellow’s diploma was in perfect order. My anger cooling, I consented to consult with him, when he again incensed me by venturing to take a view of the case opposed to mine. His opposition, however, was only momentary; for, taking the upper hand, I dictated my directions to him, and he, yielding with a good grace to my experience, carried out my orders with great precision. I had subsequently many opportunities of meeting him, and must in justice say that he turned out one of the best pupils of Galata Serai, and the most grateful man I have ever known. He is at present attached to the Red Cross Society, to which he gives the greatest satisfaction.”
In feature and build the modern Greek still possesses the characteristic traits of his ancestors. Scientific researches and anatomical observations made upon the skulls of ancient Greeks are said to prove that if art had glorified to a slight extent the splendid models of statues, it could not have strayed very far from the originals. Such pure and perfect types are constantly met with at the present day in the modern Greeks, who, as a rule, possess fine open foreheads, straight noses, and fine eyes full of fire and intelligence, furnished with black lashes and well-defined eyebrows; the mouths are small or of medium size, with a short upper lip; the chin rather prominent, but rounded. The entire physiognomy differs so essentially from the other native types that it is impossible to mistake it. In stature the Greek is rather tall than otherwise, well made and well proportioned; the hands and feet are small in both sexes. The walk is graceful, but has a kind of swagger and ease in it, which, although it looks natural in the national costume, seems affected in the European dress.
The distinct Greek type, so noticeable in certain localities, has in others suffered from the admixture with foreign elements; but we find it again in all its perfection in the inhabitants of the coast of Asia Minor, where the Greeks were at one epoch so crushed and denationalized as to have lost the use of their mother-tongue. Some of the finest specimens of the Greek race may be found in Smyrna, Gemlek, and Philadar, as well as in more inland places, such as Mahalitch, Demirdesh, and Kellessen.
The influence and effects of the last and most important change must be carefully followed and the transformation already wrought upon the nation taken into consideration before a fair and impartial estimate of the character of the present Greeks can be arrived at. The nation in its present scattered condition presents great variety and dissemblance; but even these points, in my opinion, constitute its force and guarantee its future prosperity. No person well acquainted with modern Greece can contest the vast improvement in the national character during the last half century, the moral development already gained, and the prosperous condition the little kingdom has now entered upon. The educated and enlightenedrayahfollows closely in the footsteps of his liberated kinsmen, and bids fair some day to catch them up. Until recent times the real advance in the Greek character seems to have escaped the notice of European critics, and in obedience to ancient prejudice it is still the fashion to cry down the future queen of South-East Europe. A charitable Prussian diplomatist, writing with more zeal than knowledge, gave the following flattering portrait of the Greeks of Constantinople at the end of the last century;
“Le quartier est la demeure de ce qu’on appelle la noblesse grecque, qui vivent tous aux dépenses des princes de Moldavie et de Valachie. C’est une université de toutes les scélératesses, et il n’existe pas encore de langue assez riche pour donner des noms à toutes celles qui s’y commettent. Le fils y apprend de bonne heure à assassiner adroitement son père pour quelque argent qu’il ne saurait être poursuivi. Les intrigues, les cabales, l’hypocrisie, la trahison, la perfidie, surtout l’art d’extorquer de l’argent de toutes mains, y sont enseignés méthodiquement!”
An English author of more recent date, but neither more enlightened nor animated with a greater sense of justice or impartiality, denies their right to a national history or their possession of an ancestry, furnishing them instead with one out of his fertile imagination. According to him several millions of Greeks are nameless, homeless upstarts, who have invariably made their fortunes by following the trade ofbakals, or chandlers, and, with the enormous and illegal profits of their business, send their sons to Athens to be educated and receive a European varnish, then to return to Turkey full of pretension and bad morals, to sow discord and create mischief among their less enlightened brethren. Such absurd statements carry their own refutation; but they mislead people who are already prejudiced and ready to believe anything bad of the Greeks. The general currency such erroneous assertions receive, even in England, the country of Byron and the seamen of Navarino, struck me in a remark lately made by an intelligent English boy of twelve, who, happening to hear the Greeks mentioned at the luncheon-table, asked his mother if all the Greeks were not cut-throats?
These fallacies are gradually being cleared away. As a nation the Greeks possess undeniable virtues and talents, which, properly encouraged and guided, have in them the making of a strong progressive people—such as one day the Greeks will assuredly be. Their faults are as distinct and prominent as their virtues. In the careful and impartial examination a long residence has enabled me to make of the character of this people, I discovered a good deal of vanity, bravado, and overweening conceit. They are vain of their ability, and still more vain of the merits and capacity of free Hellas, of which they are so enamoured as to consider this little kingdom, in its way, on a level with the Great Powers. The spirit of bravado is often shown in animated disputes and controversies, for which they have a great partiality. They are subtle, extremely sensitive, fond of gain, but never miserly. Their enthusiastic nature, given free scope, will lead them into the doing of golden deeds; and, in the same way, bad influence will make of some the most finished rogues in creation. No Greek thief of Constantinople will be beaten in daring or in the art of carrying out acoup de main. No assassin will more recklessly plunge his knife into the heart of an enemy, no seducer be more enticing, no brigand more dashing and bold. And yet in the worst of these there is some redeeming quality; a noble action polluted by many bad ones; crimes often followed by remorse and a return to a steady and honest life. Gratitude for a good service is always met with among the Greeks, as among the Albanians. An example of this may be seen in an adventure that more than twenty years ago happened to an Englishman in the Government employ, who was travelling in a province infested by brigands. Armed and accompanied by a good escort, Mr. F. had set out during the night for the town of L⸺, and following the impulse of an adventurous spirit, he strayed away from his companions in a dense forest. The light of a full moon made the path quite distinct, and he had proceeded some distance, when his bridle was suddenly seized by some fierce-looking fellows, who appeared by his side as if by magic. Mr. F.’s surprise was as great as the action was menacing; but he instantly seized his revolver, and thought on the prudence of using it, when the “capitan,” a regularleromenos,[1]sprang forward, and a struggle ensued for its possession, in which the weapon was broken. The moment was critical, the danger imminent, for self-defence was out of the question with a broken revolver. In this emergency, with the presence of mind which characterizes him, Mr. F. thought of another means of protection, and removing the white cover of his official cap, pointed out the crown on it, and declared himself a servant of the British Government. This had the desired effect, for the chief released his hold of the bridle, and retired a short distance with his companions to hold a consultation, the result of which was his again stepping forward, and inquiring if the gentleman was the son of the consul of the town of T⸺, and being answered in the affirmative the “capitan,” with much feeling, declared he was free to pursue his way, for his father had rendered many good and noble services to the Greek families of Thessaly and Epirus, and had saved the lives and property of many others. “Besides,” added he, “we love and respect the English. But a few miles hence you will fall in with the camp of old A. Pasha, who, with 800 troops and two guns, intends to surround yonder mountain, where he expects to entrap and chase us like wild beasts. The price of your freedom is your word of honor not to reveal to him your meeting with us until to-morrow; when that is given, your escort will be allowed to pass unmolested.” Mr. F. then continued his journey, and a couple of hours brought him to the camp of his friend the brigand-chasing Pasha, who gave him an excellent supper, and entertained him with the plan of his next day’s assault on the brigand band, to which he had patiently to listen, bound as he was by his word not to reveal what he knew of their whereabouts until the next day. As the game the Pasha expected to entrap escaped him on the morrow, the revelation naturally annoyed him; but he was too well aware of the value an Englishman placed upon his pledged word, even to a brigand, to find fault with the reticence of his friend on that occasion.
The Greek aristocracy has almost disappeared, and the nation seems now eminently democratic, though fond of giving titles to persons of position, such as “Your Worship,” “Your Honor,” “Your Highness,” etc., and “Your Holiness” to the clergy. Such terms are smoothly introduced in epistolary addresses or used in conversation, so long as this is carried on with calmness and reflection; but directly discussion becomes animated, and the speaker, whatever his condition, excited, all such high-flown phrases are discarded and exchanged for that more natural to the Greek fraternal feeling, the word “Adelphé” (brother), which never fails to grate upon the ear of Englishmen in the East.
It certainly had this effect upon one of our old consuls who had rather a hasty temper and was a strict observer of etiquette. On one occasion he had to listen to an excited Greek who had a dispute with another, and heard the title of Adelphé addressed to him by the complainant, who, to make matters worse, was by no means such a respectable person as could be wished. The indignant consul exclaimed in Greek, “Brother! I am no brother of yours!” and was proceeding to render his assurance more effectual by a vigorous and unexpected movement of his foot, when he lost his balance and was stretched on the floor. This unforeseen aspect of affairs appeared so comical to him that he indulged in a hearty peal of laughter,in which the Greek, though politely asking after his injuries, joined—in his sleeve.
The charges raised most frequently against the Greeks are their want of honesty in their dealings with strangers, and their general unscrupulousness in business transactions. These accusations, in great part well founded, are due to the unnatural position in which the rayah is placed. Every Greek who is truly a Greek in heart (and I have known few who were not so) must detest and dislike his rulers, and direct his energies to promoting, openly or secretly, the interest of his nation. In order to do this, however, he must work in the dark, and strive to undermine the interests of his masters; consequently the mask of hypocrisy has to be worn by all in the same way. To cheat the Turks in small matters when he can, in revenge for grosser injuries he is liable to receive from them, becomes one of his objects. His is not the only subject race that evinces a laxity of principle and want of morality in the transaction of business. He is sharp in its despatch, perhaps sharper than some others, but no worse than they in the manner in which he carries on his trade.
I have often heard this subject discussed in all its bearings, and the statements of European as well as native merchants appeared to agree on the main point—that with the corrupt administration, and the perpetual necessity of having recourse to bribery in order to facilitate the course of business, honest and straightforward dealing was out of the question. “We must,” said a wealthy French merchant, “do in Turkey as the Turks do, or else seek a fortune elsewhere.” The following incident out of innumerable others will give an idea of how enterprise is encouraged and business carried on in this country.
Some Jews in the town of L⸺ had established a soap factory, producing a bad article and selling it at high prices. Subsequently some Cretan Greeks set up a rival establishment in the same town. The Cretans enjoyed a great repute in Turkey for this branch of industry, and offered their soaps to the public at a lower price than the Jews, who were thrown into the shade; these therefore had to invent some plan to ruin their rivals. Both factories imported their own oil from the Greek islands, and paid the duties in kind or in cash. The Greeks adopted the former method, and the Jews, aware of the fact, presented themselves at the custom-house, estimated the oil the Greeks received at double its value, and transported a portion of it to their premises, thus obliging the Greeks to pay double duty—a serious matter, which, if not remedied, would ruin their business. They decided upon offering the Jews privately half of the extra duty they were called upon by them to pay to the revenue. But on a second cargo of oil being imported they abstained from paying that sum to the Jews, who thereupon made them pay double duty a second time, which so exasperated the Greeks that they resolved to have their revenge. So, sending a fresh order for oil, they instructed their agent to have two of the barrels filled with water, and marked with some sign. This cargo on arriving was left by the Greeks in the custom-house until the Friday afternoon when they went to clear it. The Jews, made aware of this fact by their spies, also presented themselves, estimated the oil, as formerly, at double its value, and offered to purchase the two barrels left as payment of duty. The Greeks prolonged the affair until there was only just time for the Jews to take away their purchase, but not to inspect it without breaking the Sabbath. On the following evening the Jews discovered the trick that had been played upon them, and exposed it to the custom-house officials, demanding redress. The Greeks, summoned to appear and answer the charge, denied that the swindle had been practised by them, and exposed the dishonest dealings of the Jews towards them, saying that it must have been they who abstracted the oil and replaced it with water, with the object of cheating the Customs. The authorities, unwilling to take further trouble about the matter, sent away both parties, and would have nothing more to do with the case. The Jews in the mean time were inconsolable; and when the Cretans thought they had been sufficiently punished, they confessed the trick, and offered to make amends by refunding the money they had paid for the casks if they would go with them to the Rabbi and take an oath to make no more attempts to injure their business by dishonest means.
The principal Greek merchants trade under foreign protection, as it affords them greater security and freedom from the intrigues of the ill disposed.
To sum up. The subject Greek of Turkey has his vices: he is over-ambitious, conceited, too diplomatic and wily; and, in common with most merchants, European or Eastern, in Turkey, he does his best to cheat the Turks—and occasionally extends the practice further, not without excellent precedent. But these are the vices of a race long kept in servitude and now awaking to the sense of a great ancestry: the servitude has produced the servile fault of double-dealing and dishonesty; and the pride of a noble past has engendered the conceit of the present. Such vices are but passing deformities: they are the sharp angles and bony length of the girl-form that will in time be perfected in beauty. These faults will disappear with the spread of education and the restoring of freedom long withheld. The quick intellect and fine mettle of the Greek, like his lithe body, descended from a nation of heroes, are destined to great things. The name alone of Hellenes carries with it the prescriptive right of speaking and doing nobly; and the modern Hellenes will not disown their birthright.