The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-01-09
TURKISH SMOKES
FOR US. May Be
CUT OFF BY WAR
Neutral Ships That Call at
Island Of Samos Likely
To Be Targets.

10 Dc 1dIgeIS.
Washington, D. c., Jan. 9.-The
Turkish governments warning to the
Bureau Of Navigation Of the United
States Department of Commerce that
neutral ships passing between the
Turkish coast and Island of Samos
may become targets for gunfre from
Turkish military forces is important,
as steamers call frequently at Vathy,
the islands chief seaport, for cargoes
| of cigarettes extensively imported to
| America. Concerning this historic
Greek possession the National Geo
gra phic society issues the following
war geography bulletin:
| 1.-THE strait which separates Samos
from the promontory Of the mainland
of Asia Minor known in ancient times
as Mycale is barely a mile wide. The
island, which has an area about one
and half times as large as Mar
tha's Vineyard, lies about forty miles
southwest Of Smyrna and has, excep--
tional natural resources with it's for
est clad mountains it's valuable mar
BILE quarries and its extremely fertile
valleys where raisins, oil, fruits, corn
and wines are most probably pro-
duced. The cigarettes ofsthe island
are shipped to every country in the
world while the wines are exported to
Europe where they are used for mix
| ing purposes. The population of the
| island is between $4,000 and 10000.
"Samos was the seat Of one of the
| first settlements Of the Ionians in the
Mediterranean and from it went out
many of the colonies which dotted the
coast Of Asia Minor and the neighbof-
ing islands of the Aegean.
During the second half of the sixth
century before the Christian era Sa-
mos rose to a place of dominance in
| the Ionian union, thanks to the excl
utive ability and judicial wisdom sof
| the famous tyrant Polycrates, who
prosecuted many successful wars with
the chiefs Of adjacent colonies and
who was at one time In alliance with
the POWERFUL Egyptian king Amasis.
"Herodotus is sponsor for the ia
NOUS story that Amasis, becoming
alarmed at the extraordinary course
of good fortune which attended all the
enterprises of his ally, wrote to Poly
crates urging him to disarm the envy
Of the god by sacrificing his mos,
treasured possession. The tyrant took
his friends advice and threw into the
sea a precious ring which he prizeu
above all his other Jewels A few
days later a fisherman brought fine
/ fish to the palace as gift to the ruler
and when 1t was being prepared for
| Polycrates table the ring was found
inside, and was thus restored to its
Iowner. It is said that when Amasfs
heard of this amazing incident he i'm
nediately broke his treaty with Poly
crates, being convinced that the jea1-
lous gods would visit some terrible
lcalamfty on this too fortunate mortal.
And the forebodings Of the Egyptian
were fully verified, for a short thine
| after these happenings the tyrant was
| decoyed to Magnesia where he was
seized by a Persian satrap and cruelty
crucified sss IA .ssq;s -ss.,,@
| MANY Of the most magnificent .edi-.
fees OF ancient Samos were, built dur
| ing Polycrates' time. When he died
the prestige of the island began 10
wane. tt came successfully under the
dominion of the Athenian Greeks, the
Romans, Bysantines, Arabians, Vene-
4 tians, Genoese and Turks In the
Greek war Of independence 1t took up
farms against it's Turkish masters. At
tier peace was declared, , it became an
autonomous principality, paying trib-
\ NSS w 0$hSy, UdC UClIlS IulCQ 10Y b
| prince of Samos' who was a Greek
nominated by the sultan. In April OF
1912, while the Tripolitan war was In
progress, two Italian warships en-
tered the harbor of Vathy and tor
pedoed the Turkish 'stationaire,' which
had been Kept there at the disposal OF
the prince. During the Balkan war
Ithe garrison of, a few hundred Turks
was compelled by Cretan and Samian
insurgents to retire to the mainland.
land at the close of the war the samI-
ans declared themselves in union with
Greece. af HI
1.-THE little town of Tigani stands
near the harbor of the ancient coast
of Samos, where the immense molcs
constructed by Polycrates have been
rebuilt to some extent The walls
and the celebrated underground aque.
duct are the chief remains Of the an
,cient capital. The former, which
/ Chamber over the ridge in rear Of the
city, look like fragment of the wall
i OF China Thirty Of its towers will
stand. Considering the age in which
1T was constructed. the aqueduct is a
marvel Of engineering skill
/ 1.-THE Temple of Hera, Of which q
lsolitary column alone remains stand
i ing, was one Of the most magnificent
edifices of ancient times
] Even had Polyerates never ruled
in samos the island would have been
famous for here was born the great
Samian Sage, Pythagoras, he who
never smiled and who always wore a
white robe and a golden crown II
is to Pythagoras, it is said, that we
owe the word philosopher Reine
, asked on one occasion Of what branch
i of knowledge he was master he re-
Piled that he was simply philoso-
pher'-a lover Of wisdom His doc
tr1ne of the TRANSPORTATION Of souls