The Winslow mail., 1897-04-17
PICTURESQUE ATHENS.
The Sire is Are Made Brilliant n
Marble Houses

hlShCSl Nf,OtO leetJ, MOUNT ReQtllcuS
(3,641 feet, with its regular triangular
shape suggesting the pediment of
temple, is the most imposing: but the
| thyme-covered. hOneyproducing Hy-
mettus (3,36S feeO has always been
most intimately associated with
Athens. 1t lies nearer to the city. and
from almost all the streets and all the
windows looking eastward can be seen
its curved line marking the blue sky
above, except on the rare gray days.
when clouds resting on it's top are an
nfallible sign of rain. The various
hlIes of the mountains and the smaller
hills forming an inner circle around
Athens, combined with the view of the
sea, lend an additional effect of airiness
and buOyancy to the aspect In the
long, straight streets of the new town
from end to end, nothing impedes the
view on either side.
In praising Athens, we must not draw
veil over her defects. Such improve
ments as are Indispensable to a modern
city have not kept pace with her growth
in extent and aff1uence. The stages of
this progress can be seen in the struc-
tural inequalities even of continuous
dwellings. These dwellings may be
chronologically divided into three cate
gories: those of the first settlers, when
all were poor, and the main necessity
was at any rate to be housed; those of
the thrifty citizens, who felt the want
of more space and greater convenience,
! but had little regard for external ap-
! pear1nce or interior comfort, and con-
sidered carpets and plate-glass a lux
ury, and even chimneys of small conse-
quence; and those of the wealthy i'm
migrants, who gave an impulse to the
| building of elegant houses among all
who, thanks to increasing prosperity,
could afford to initiate them.
The proximity of the quarries of Hy-
mettus and Pentelicus enables Athens
to supply herself with a building ma
terial which no other city could have at
| equal cost. Marble. in itself an embel-
lishment, is profusely used, and loses
none of it's brilliancy In the dry atmos-
phere, whose transparency makes
pleasant to the eye even the light col
ors spread on the stone walls, which
| in other ATTITUDES would hardly be bear
able. The agreeable effect thus obtain
ed is increased by the trees in some Of
/ the streets and squares, as well as in
the gardens of the better class of
! houses. But Athens might and would
be more verdant still were it not for
| the lack of abundant water This want
was felt in antiquity as well; to it may
partly be ascribed the epidemics re-
corded by ancient historians in times
of war, when the number of inhabit-
ants was increased by those of the sur
rounding country seeking refuge within
| the walls.
Antoninus Plus endowed Athens with
a perfect system of water works. They
consisted of subterranean galleries col
lecting the waters of the neighboring
mountains. To these old Roman aque-
ducts, successfully discovered, repair
ed, and utilized, Athens still owes her
scanty supply of water. Projects for
increa asing the supply are ever talked
of, but will be deferred so long as the
municipal finances remain no better
than the national. Meanwhile, the
macadamized roads between the fine
sidewalks are hardly watered. This
fact and the nature of the soil, notO-
rious for it's thinness since the days Of
Thucydides, account for the dust,
which Is the greatest blemish of
Athens. An English lady was heard
to admire the picturesqueness of it's
whlrling clouds; but even were that
single representative of an optimistic
minority on a fine day, succeeding one
of rain, to see the town and the clear
outline Of the distant mountains
through a dustless atmosphere, she
could not help regretting that the same
effects are not artif1cially attainable.
On the whole, Athens will show to
best advantage if visited after Con-
stantinople and other towns in Turkey,
as the standard of comparisons will be
fairer than that afforded by the great
capitals of the West. 1t must not be
forgotten that, if one of the most an
cient, she is at the same time one Of the
newest among European towns; nor
ought the long period of her decline
ever to be lost sight of when compar-
ing her with other towns. The traveller
who, remembering that long period of
Turkish sway, counts on receiving an
Oriental impression from the aspect Of
Athens is doomed to disappointment.
Even the national garb is fast disap-
pearing. 1t may still be worn by few
elderly Athenians. These, and a peas
ant here and there selling milk or
cheese, recall the day when their dress
was the national one. 1t is, however,
the uniform of certain soldiers of light
infantry, who may be seen parading
the streets or mounting guard at the
palace, In all the white splendor of the
fustanelle. The wide blue trousers of
the Aegean islanders are not less rare
nor is there much chance of seeing
them at the Piraeus, among the craft
from the various islands moored along
the quays. The uglier and cheaper
product of the slop-shop has replaced
the picturesque drapery of the olden
time. The monotony of the modern
costume is broken only by the priests
with their long black robes and their
peculiar hats.-"Public Spirit in Mod
ern Athens" by D. Bikelas, in Cen
t11t