690 



GREECE. 



Morea, and is also ihe most southerly point of the European continent. Cape Colonna, the 

 ancient promontory of Sunium, is the southeastern extremity of Attica. 



7. Climate. The climate of Greece resembles that of Spain and Italy, except that the 

 extremes both of heat and cold are somewhat greater. In Attica, winter begins in January, 

 and snow seldom lies longer than a few days, except upon the mountains. February begins 

 with gentle rains, and in this month is the commencement of spring. In the beginning of 

 March, the vines and olives bud, the almonds blossom ; the corn reaches a considerable heigh ! 

 during this month, and is reaped in May. The zephyr, a west wind, is famed for its balmy 

 softness. The south and southeast winds are humid. The sirocco is felt in Greece, and is 

 attended here with its common effects. The coldest weather is accompanied with a northeast 

 wind. The north and northwest winds are severe and dry. The sky is in general cloudless, 

 and at the end of summer the fields are parched with excessive heat. 



8. Soil. A great part of the country is rocky and mountainous ; yet the cultivated parts 

 have generally an excellent soil. In Attica the soil is light. Boeotia, Argos, Messenia, and 

 Arcadia are the most fertile districts. Nearly the whole soil rests on a stratum of limestone. 



9. Vegetation. The most common and remarkable trees and shrubs from Cape Matapan to 

 Mount Olympus, are on the plains and hills ; the olive, the shrubby jasmine {Jasminum fruti- 

 cans), the Styrax officinale, the strawberry-tree [Arbutus unedo), and Arbutus Andrachne, the 

 myrtle and pomegranate, the cherry laurel, and locust-tree (Cercis siliquastrum) , the pistachio 

 (Pistacia lentiscus) and terebinth (P. terebinthus) , yielding, the former the celebrated mastich, 

 and the latter gum-terebinth, the Cistus creticus, from which is obtained gum laudanum, the 

 caper bush (Cappara spinosa) supplying caper of commerce, the sweet-bay or poetical laurel 

 [Laurus nobilis), the fig (Ficus ccwica), the white and black poplars, aspen, celtis australis, the 

 cypress (Cupressus sempervireus) and stone-pine [Pinus pinea), the juniper and savin, &c., on 

 the banks of running waters and in damp spots are found the oriental plane (Platanus orienta- 

 lis)j the white, weeping, and crack willows, alder, the chaste tree (Vitex Jlgnus castus), and 

 the oleander. The mountains produce the Abies taxifolia, the beech, willow, Scotch fir, yew, 

 common oak, ash, chestnut, hazel, the flat-leaved lime [Tilia platyphillus) , horse-chestnut 

 (Jlusculus hippocastanum) , service-tree, mountain-ash, wild apple and pear trees, several oaks, 

 &c. The orange and lemon are found within the limits above indicated, but north of the 

 Morea only in favorable exposures ; a few date-palms are seen near Athens, and the prickly 

 fig does not extend beyond the Morea. The true mistletoe of the ancients (Lorantus europce- 

 us), of which bird-lime is made may be seen on the Arcadian oaks, and the banks of the 

 Alpheus are covered with a profusion of the narcissus of the poets (J^arcissus tazetta) . 



10. tMinerals. This country formerly contained mines of gold, silver, iron, lead, and cop- 

 per, but at present is not productive in minerals. Marble of almost every variety is abundant. 



11. Face of the Country. Half the surface of Greece consists of mo-untains. The coun- 

 try is in general bare of wood,* and from the want of inclosures, the profusion of weeds and 

 bushes, the thinness of the population, and the ruinous condition of the few cottages, combined 

 with the crumbling remains of the noble structures of the ancients, has a desolate and melan- 

 choly aspect. Yet every feature essential to the beauty of a fine landscape is to be found here. 

 The mountains, though not lofty, are imposing from the abruptness of their elevation. At their 

 feet lie rich and sheltered plains, or romantic valleys ; these, with spacious bays, islands, and 

 seas, broken by headlands, inclosed by mountains and studded with islands in every possible 

 variety of magnitude, form and distance, render Greece superior in scenery to almost every 

 other part of Europe. 



12. Divisions. The kingdom is divided into 10 districts or nomoi, which are subdivided 

 into 48 eparchies. f Population, 800,000. 



13. Towns. Athens., the capital, about 5 miles from the Gulf of ^gina, is one of the most 

 celebrated cities in the world ; long the seat of ancient learning and art, and decorated with innu- 

 merable masterpieces of architecture and sculpture, it still retains in its ruins some traces of itg 

 past splendor ; but it has suffered much during the late war of the revolution, having been sev- 



' The Egyptian army, which ravaged the Morea in 1825, J\'otnoi. Capitals. 



out down more than half a million olive trees in the sin- Arcadia, Tripolizza. 



gle province of Upper Messenia. Laconia', Misitras. 



t JVomoi. Capitals. Acarnania and ^Etolia, Vrachori. 



Argolia (Corinth, Hydra, > iv v m v Phocis and Locris, Salona, or Amphisaa 



Spetzia, Poros), 5 INapoU or JNauplia Attica (Bffiotia, ^gina), Athens. 



Achaia and Elis, Patras. EuboBa (with Northern Sporades), Chalcis. 



Messenia, Oyparissa, or Arcadia. Cyclades HermopoUs in Syra. 



