408 



GREECE. 



with about 1,890 inhabitants. The wool export 

 in 1888 was 76,573 in value. The export of 

 frozen mutton has been important in recent 

 years. 30,233 carcasses having been sent to Eng- 

 land in 1886 and 40,391 in 1887, but in 1888 

 there were no shipments. The value of imports 

 in 1888 was 54,008 ; of exports, 88,743. 



GREECE, a constitutional monarchy in south- 

 eastern Europe. The revised Constitution vests 

 the legislative power in a Chamber of 150 Dep- 

 uties elected for four years by universal suffrage. 

 Every candidate to be placed in nomination 

 must have the support of one thirtieth of the 

 electors in his district The annual session of the 

 Boule or Legislative Assembly must last for not 

 less than three, and not more than six months. 

 A bill becomes law that is voted three times on 

 separate days. The Legislative Assembly has 

 the power, after a lapse of ten years, to amend 

 such provisions in the Constitution as are not 

 reserved as fundamental laws. 



The reigning King is Georgios I, formerly 

 Prince Wilhelm of Denmark, born Dec. 24, 1845. 

 The heir-apparent is his son Konstantinos, born 

 Aug. 2, 1868. The following ministers, who en- 

 tered office on May 21, 1886, formed the Cabinet 

 in the beginning of 1890 : C. Tricoupis, Presi- 

 dent of the Council, Minister of Finance, and 

 Minister of War ; D. S. Voulpiotis, Minister of 

 Justice ; E. Dragoumis, Minister of Foreign Af- 

 fairs and acting Minister of the Interior; G. 

 Theotokis, Minister of Marine and acting Min- 

 ister of Worship and Education. 



Area and Population. The area of the 

 kingdom is 25,04l square miles. The census of 

 1889 makes the population 2,187,208, showing 

 an average annual increase of 1'05 per cent, for 

 ten years, as compared with 1'87 per cent, from 

 1870 to 1879. The population of Athens in 1889 

 was 114,355. 



Finance. The fotal revenue is estimated in 

 the budget- for 1890 at 93,967,720 drachma*, of 

 which 20,167,230 are derived from direct tax- 

 ation, 28,765,916 from indirect taxes, 15,986,000 

 from stamps, fines, dues, military exemption 

 payments, and posts and telegraphs, 8,993,000 

 from monopolies, and 20,055,574 from other 

 sources. The total expenditure is estimated at 

 91,081,985 drachmai, 29,587,219 representing in- 

 terest on the debt, 4,880,144 pensions and grants, 

 1,325,000 the civil list, 401,658 the expenses of 

 the Chamber, 2,263,154 expenditure of the Min- 

 istry of Foreign Affairs, 5,133,878 that of the 

 Ministry of Justice, 4,721,930 drachmai that of 

 the Ministry of the Interior, 3,222,990 that of 

 the Ministry of Worship and Instruction, 18,- 

 437,000 the 'military expenditure, 4,830,824 the 

 naval budget, 1,464,318 the expenses of the Min- 

 istry of Finance, 8,413,370 the cost of administer- 

 ing the finances, and 6,400,500 miscellaneous ex- 

 penditures. The total indebtedness of the Gov- 

 ernment in the middle of 1889 was 623,883,288 

 drachmai. The Opposition made a strong fight 

 against the acceptance of the budget, denounc- 

 ing the surplus as illusory, and this charge Tri- 

 coupis could not rebut ; but he contrasted his re- 

 constructive finanancial policy with the reckless- 

 ness of his predecessor and rival. The building of 

 railroads he defended as a means of increasing 

 the production and foreign commerce of the 

 country that will enable it to support the bur- 



den of the debt, which with the new loans that 

 are in contemplation will amount to 35,000,000 

 drachmai a year. The development of grain pro- 

 duction in Thessaly has thus far dissapointed 

 the expectations that were formed at the time 

 of the annexation, owing to bad seasons and the 

 emigration of Mohammedans. The cultivation 

 of currants has expanded, but the improved 

 wine culture of France and the threatened in- 

 crease of the French duties had a depressing ef- 

 fect on the trade. The trade in wines prepared 

 in Greece has not made as much progress as 

 was hoped for. The Pirams and Larissa Rail- 

 road was expected to conduce to prosperity by 

 bringing more visitors and much foreign money 

 into the country. 



The Chamber was closed on March 6, after 

 the contest over the budget was over, nothing 

 else having been accomplished during the ses- 

 sion. Two days later an extraordinary session 

 was convened, giving the Deputies a right of 

 drawing a double salary of 2,000 drachmai each. 

 On April 3 a charter was granted for the com- 

 pletion of the Isthmus of Corinth Canal, which 

 had been abandoned by its French promoters in 

 consequence of the collapse of the Panama 

 Canal Company, in which the same people were 

 interested, was granted to a Greek company, 

 which was authorized to issue 5,000,000 drach- 

 mai of stock and raise a loan of 15,000,000 drach- 

 mai. More than three quarters of the work was 

 already completed. The cost of the canal, which 

 was begun in May, 1882, is estimated at 25,000,- 

 000 drachmai, the length of the cutting being 

 4 miles. The Opposition took a stand against 

 the abolition of the octrois on the lines on which 

 the reform was effected in Belgium, for the 

 reason that the measure was strongly desired 

 by the communes, many of which are on the 

 brink of bankruptcy, and would redound to the 

 credit of the Prime. Minister. 



The Army and Navy. The strength of the 

 standing army was fixed by the law of 1887 at 

 24,076 men of all ranks, comprising 16,136 in- 

 fantry, 4,877 cavalry, and 3,063 artillery and en- 

 gineers. The budget for 1889 provided for an 

 army of 4,956 officers, 5,853 non-commissioned 

 officers, and 18,304 rank and file ; total, 26,113. 

 A scandalous breach of discipline due to politi- 

 cal intrigues occurred in February, 1890, when 

 Gen. Valtinos and other officers of the garrison 

 at Larissa, refused to carry out the dispositions 

 of the Minister of War, appealing against them 

 to the King. 



The navy in the beginning of 1890 consisted 

 of 2 small ironclads armed with 10- ton Krupp 

 guns, 1 wooden vessel, 30 torpedo boats, 2 un- 

 protected corvettes, 2 cruisers, and 16 gunboats. 

 A steel battle ship of 6,000 tons, the " Hydra," 

 launched in 1889, was not completed, and 

 another, the " Psara," of 4,850 tons, was 

 launched in France in January, 1890. A third 

 vessel of the same type, the " Spezzia," has been 

 built in the same establishment. They can 

 steam at the rate of 17 knots an hour, are plated 

 with compound armor, 12 inches thick, and carry 

 guns of large caliber. The navy is manned by 

 conscription and by enlistment. In 1887 the 

 period of naval service was lengthened to two 

 years. The total number of officers and men in 

 1890 was 3,361. 



