The Sun.
London, England, 1835-05-06 00:00:00

ante.

GREECE.

ATHENS, MARCH 31.—More than two years have now
elapsed since Greece became a kingdom, and since the
Regency arrived at Nauplia to govern it in the name of King
Otho. In two short months he will attain his majority and
assume the reins of government. It may not be uninte-
resting to examine how far the Regency have fulfilled their
high mission, and in what state they will deliver over Greece
to its Sovereign. The German papers contain accounts of
the advancement of the Greeks in civilisation, the wise
measures adopted by their rulers for their prosperity, and
the encouragement given to agriculture and commerce. A
plain statement of facts will serve to convince the English
public that these accounts are all fabulous and devoid of
truth. Greater blunders than those committed by the
Regency cannot be conceived—greater incapacity or greater
blindness to the wants of Greece could not be shown by
any people except Bavarians. The root of the evil is—that
the King of Bavaria insists on his plans of government be-
ing adopted, on the edicts of Munich being laws for Greece,
and on treating the Greeks more as a conquered people, or
a Bavarian colony, than as an independent nation.
From the death of Capo d'lstria to the arrival of the
Regency in 1833, Greece was in a state of anarchy. The
laws and institutions framed by the Greeks under Capo
d'lstria, however, existed, although temporily suspended.
These laws were adapted to the habits of the people, who
had begun to understand and to obey them. The best
founded complaint against Capo d'lstria's rule was, that to
serve Russian intrigues he interfered with justice, and made
the tribunals a means of persecuting his political enemies.
These Courts, however, under a paternal government; offered
to the Greeks a ready redress for wrongs, and a cheap ad-
ministration of justice. The towns and villages had muni-
cipal bodies charged with local matters, and the government
had its Prefets and Sous-Prefets, whose duties were clearly
defined. It would have been the natural course of any
rulers, on arriving in a country, where, from a political ca-
tastrophe, such as the assassination of Capo d'lstria, all
government had been suspended, to have endeavoured at
once to make use of the means which had been created by
their predecessors, and to adopt, provisionally, the laws
which the nation had sanctioned ; reserving to themselves,
after they had acquired experience in the wants of the
country, to suggest such improvements as might be found
necessary. By putting in force the laws of Greece in ex-
istence under Capo d'lstria, and keeping a strict check on
those appointed to execute them, the Greeks would have
had tribunals of which the reign of anarchy had deprived
them for fifteen months, and of which the Regency has still
further deprived them for more than two years. What has
been their conduct ? On their arrival, the Regency de-
clared that the laws in existence had no longer any force ;
they framed three provisional Courts for the trial of crimes ;
they suspended the municipal authorities ; they framed a
code of civil and criminal law, without consulting any
Greek lawyer, and without at all inquirinc, if the nation was
willing to submit to it. They rejected all the codes formed
by former governments, and sanctioned by national Con-
gresses ; and now that the tribunals are nominally esta-
blished, the Judges themselves declare that they cannot
understand the law, and the people who have suits to pre-
fer cannot find any lawyers able to comprehend the forms
necessary to advance a cause.
Another measure was to disband the irregular troops.
This was a necessary one, in order to destroy the power
, and influence of these Janissaries ; but it ought to have
been accompanied by an act of justice, and in setting at
large seven or eight thousand men, who, with all their sins,
had fought bravely for the independence of their country,
some means of subsistence ought to have been provided for
them ; on the contrary, nothing was done, the men were
compelled either to become robbers, to emigrate to Turkey,
or to starve. At that time the Regency might have formed
a national corps of light troops of two thousand to three
thousand men, selected from the best soldiers, and have
thus secured the attachment, affection, and support of
many of the old veterans of the war of independence. They
neglected this, wished to force the Palikari to abandon his
costume and his long-acquired habits, and to become a re-
gular soldier, with a leathern stock and a tight dress, after
he had attained the meridian of life. The want of an army
was evident, and the Government adopted the fatal mea-
sure of levying raw troops in Bavaria, at an enormous cost,
to keep order amongst the Greeks, who for thirteen years
had had arms in their hands. I need not state here what
was the result—sickness, Maine, and Messenia, have done
their sad work with these volunteers. Troubles began to
arise ; the conspiracies of Colocotroni, and subsequently of
the Russian party, caused the Government to fear for its
existence ; and the Regency at last, adopting the advice of
that arch-intriguer Colettis, created a number of superior
officers from amongst his adherents the Rumeliots, and
levied also a body of Palikari under Grivas ; thus showing
their own weakness, and doing, at a great expense, what
would have been a gracious boon on their arrival.
The navy of Greece, which had performed such distin-
guished services for the cause, was treated in the same way
as the army—no means were adopted to provide for
the numbers of brave sailors belonging to the maritime
communities of Hydra, Spezzia, and Ipsara, and who are
languishing in poverty. A Bavarian Colonel was made
Minister of Marine.
Another glaring fault of the Regency—the measures it
adopted respecting the national Church, declaring it inde-
pendent of the Patriarch, and confiscating the property of
the minor monasteries, which had been formed by the pious
offerings of the people. These measures have done more
to alienate the affections of the people from the Regency
than any other, and have given Russia a powerful weapon
to work upon the superstitions of the Greeks, by insinuat-
ing that Otho wishes to change the religion of their fathers.
When you add the fact that the Government has not made
any grant, or taken any steps to rebuild the ruined churches,
you may easily conceive the dissatisfaction of the Greeks
at the interference of the Bavarians in their ecclesiastical
affairs.

Greece possesses vast national domains—their extent is
stated to be 15 millions of acres, of which one-third are
susceptible of cultivation. Surely a Government possessing
the least intellect would have endeavoured to have utilised
this rich possession, either by granting a part of it as in-
demnity to those ho had served their country, or by en-
couraging colonization. The Regency, however, have neither
done the one nor the other, nay, they have refused to the
Candiot and Samian refugees a portion of this land, and
have compelled these brave Greeks to quit regenerated
Hellas, and to return to the more paternal yoke of the
Sultan from which their bravery had liberated them.
The allies had generously procured by their guarantee a
loan for Greece of 60 millions of francs, of which 40 mil-
lions have been paid, but not a farthing has been bestowed
on a Greek. Bavaria has kept this money, and all Greece
has seen of it are the gaudy tinsel uniforms of the Bavarian
volunteers and civil officers—the travelling expenses and
enormous pay of Bavarian fortune hunters, and some scores
of train waggons for a country that only possesses mule tracks.
With these facts before you, I think you will agree with
me that the prospects of. Otho, when he mounts the throne
in June next, are not very brilliant : an exhausted Exche-
quer—a discontented people—an expended loan—and an
unorganised unpopular Administration, are what he will
fidd. Not a school is established in the provinces, and
merely the skeleton of an academy here, and a gymnasium at
Nauplia. - This is the real state of Greece. The expecta-
tions which the Greeks form of immediate improvement in
their affairs from. the accession of the King, and the disap-
pointment they will naturally experience from the difficul-
ties which the maladministration of the Regency has caused
to the realization of these hopes, affords, too, matter for
serious consideration ; and will place Otho, who is deserv-
edly popular, and sees with grief the'errors that are com-
.mitted in his name, in a most embarrassing position, from
which it will be difficult for him to extricate himself. He
must cast off the Bavarians, and call around hint -the most
enlightened of his subjects. He must give them a national
representation.

The remarks of the public press on the rapid promotion
of young Bavarians who enter the Greek army, and the
neglect of the Greek officers, has caused the Minister of

War (a Bavarian) to publish a statement of the number of
officers and men in the service of this country in January
last., with a view to refute the assertions of partiality towards
the Bavarians. From this return it appears that the force
of Greece consists of

Greeks
Bavarians
Philhellenes

Total 5,690 731
It would be sufficient to glance at the first line of this
return, where one sees the enormous proportion of one
officer to eight privates, to judge of its absurdity ; but on
analyzing it, the truth of the complaints of the Greeks is
manifest ; for of the 533 Greek officers there are 365 be-
longing to the corps of Invalides, or not employed, who are
languishing on a miserable pittance of 16 to 20 drachmes
per month (11s. 6d. to 1/. 95.), leaving only 168 Greek
officers actually employed.
We have the effective army, consisting of eight batta-
lions of troops of the Line, one battalion of Artillery, one

From this return you will see that. there is not a single
Greek promoted to the rank of General, Colonel, Lieute-
nant-Colonel, or Major in the regular army, whilst there
are 22 Bavarians holding these ranks. There are 40 Cap-
tains from Bavaria to 18 Greeks ; and it is only in the rank
of Sub-Lieutenants where the Greeks equal the Bavarians
in number. This is not all. The Bavarian officers not
only receive a handsome allowance for their outfit on leav-
ing Bavaria, but have pay, rations, and allowances in
Greece, to the extent of one-third more than the Greeks
When these facts are stated, can you wonder at the discon-
tent of the Greeks, or their reluctance to enlist ?
Taking the whole active force of Greece, including the
gens d'armerie, we find the number of officers and men as
follows :

Greeks.