THE SPONGE FISHERY OF THE OTTOMAN ARCHIPELAGO. 19 



Sponges exported from the Port of Rhodes : — 





1856. 



1857. 



Quality. 

 Fine 



Quantity. 



Value. 



Quantity. 



Value. 



cwts. 



302 

 1,100 



333 



£ 



34,872 

 25,385 



4,487 



cwts. 

 294 

 1,195 

 393 



£ 



51,282 

 24,974 



479 



Common 



Coarse 







The sponge fishery on the coasts of Rhodes, which had gradually dimi- 

 nished to a few boats, was actively resumed in 1858, seventy boats having 

 gone there for the purpose, when the Governor-General immediately estab- 

 lished a duty of twenty per cent, on all sponges taken on the coast ; but, 

 upon the divers threatening to go elsewhere, the duty was commuted for a 

 fixed sum of £3 on each boat. 



A duty of twenty per cent, is levied on all sponges taken on the coasts 

 of Candia ; but the divers are gradually leaving that island for the coasts 

 of Barbary, where no duty is exacted, although their boats have to be 

 carried there in vessels, and brought back in them to their respective 

 islands, at a great expense ; whereas, they could proceed to Candia in 

 their boats themselves. It is not so much of the duty itself that these 

 poor people complain, as of its irregular and rapacious manner of 

 exaction. 



The inhabitants of the island of Halki, who are active, hardy, and enter- 

 prising, occupy themselves almost entirely in the sponge fishery, which has 

 doubled within the last ten years. They send out annually sixty boats to 

 it, manned with 450 divers. The export of sponges is calculated to reach 

 about £8,000 annually. They pay an export duty of one per cent. The 

 Tiliotes (island of Piskopi), who only began a few years ago to fish for 

 sponges, have already four boats for the purpose, with thirty divers. From 

 the active, enterprising character of these people, there is no doubt that this 

 braneh of commerce will increase. 



About 9,000 okes of fine sponges are annually exported to Great 

 Britain from the different islands. The sponges are of three qualities ; 

 namely, fine, common, and coarse. In the fine sponges there is but 

 one in ten of the first or superior quality ; the rest are of a second or in- 

 ferior fine quality. In the common sponges there is one in four of a first 

 quality; the rest are of a second common quality. In the coarse, one-half 

 are of a first quality, and the other half of a second coarse quality. Thus 

 it will be seen that the fine, common, and coarse kinds of sponges may be 

 divided into two qualities each. Formerly the divers used to sell their 

 sponges by weight, to increase which they put sand in them, a practice 

 which they still continue, though now sold by quantity. 



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