Norwich bulletin., 1917-01-04
THE WAR PRIMER
BY National Geographic Society

Zante, the fafous currant island of
the Ionian Sea, where the revolution
airy movement against the policy of
King Constantine followed close upon
the heels of similar manifestations OF
discomfort in Crete and Lesbos, is de-
scribed by the National Geographic
Society in the following war geogra-
ply bulletin:
THE frequency with which zante
is visited by earthquakes OF diSaSt-
rouS severity accounts in some meas
ure, for the comparative lack of pros
perity on this IOnian island which en-
joys a salubrious climate, is abundant
ly watered by springs, still deserves
the appellation OF wooded Zacynthos'
applied to it by the poet Virgil, and
whose central plain is a veritable gar
den spot with its succession OF VINE
yards and olive groves.
'Zante lies eight miles south of the
island of Cephalonia, and is nine
miles west of the nearest point on the
Peloponnesian coast. Its greatest
length is about % miles and it has
baXimum breadth of II miles. The
western half of the island consists of
a series of bare. limestone mountains
which terminate in precipitous cliffs
on the SeaWard side but which slope
gradually down to the eastward until
the luxuriantly fertile central plain is
reached. The eastern side of the ISL
ant also is elevated but here the hills
are clad with vines and groves of fig,
are, with the exception of those grown
on the neighboring island of Corfu,
the largest in this part of the world.
The chief product of the island and
the principal article of export is the
currant (Which derives it's name from
it's native city, Corinth). This small
grape, which grows on a dwarf vine,
has played and IS still playing an i'm
portant role in the economic life of
Greece. A mania for currant culture
swept over Zante and other sections
of the country adapted to the vines
growth during the last quarter of the
18th century. Farmers seemed to go
mad in their haste to raise this crop,
just as the Dutch went wild over the
cultivation of tulips in a previous
century. This feverish impetus to the
industry came as the result of an in
sect pest which destroyed a large part
of the French grape crop in 1877.
Dried currants were used by French
manufacturers as substitute in
wine. Prices scared, and Greek cur
rant planters saw enormous fortunes
within their grasp Olive groves and
orange orchards were destroyed ruth
leSsly to make room for currant
bushes. The reaction was inevitable
and disastrous, for when the ravages
of the phylloxera were checked in the
vineyards of France that nation i'm
posed heavy import taxes on Greek
currants in order to rehabilitate their
own wine industries. 1t became nee
essary for Greece to evolve some
method of protecting the Zantiots and
other currant raiSers, but emergency
laws have not proved altogether eff
cacious, SO that what with earth
quakes and the Cutting of the cur
rant markets the lot of the island has
not been a happy one during the last
two decades.
-'zante was colonized either by the
Arcadians or Achaens in very early
times. 1t remained independent for
hint in he
of the fifth century before the Chris
tan era the Athenian admiral Toll
mides forced the Inhabitants to ack-
nowledge the supremacy Of his city
while Sparta's sway was accepted af-
ter the Peloponnesian war. In 357 B.
G. the island was used as u base from
his native land, his property confis-
Gated and his wife given to another
ton was success but Dion's career
as master of Syracuse was Short-lived
Tor he fell victim to the assassin
Callippus, one of his own Athenian
followers.
''The Macedonians conquered Zante
in 217 B. c.: and they We're followed
by the Romans under whose regime
the island was part of the province
of Epirus. Vanda1s, Normans Franks
and Turks held the island in turn I'M
til 14S5 when the Venetians bought it
from the last named conquerors. The
long suzerainty of the republic city is
reflected today not only in the appear
ance of the people but in their Ian
guage, and most of the Zantiot aris-
tocracy boast Of their Venetian de-
scent, while they speak both the
Greek and Italian languages
In 1897 the island became a French
possession, and shortly afterward was
occupied for a brief season by. the
Russians who were followed by the
British. In 1854 England ceded Zante
and the other Ionian islands to the
modern kingdom, of Greece.
can interesting natural phenomenon
Of the island is a shallow spring on
the Bay of Kerr where both pitch and
water bubble up. The pitch has been
used by the natives in caullxing their |
boats since the days of Herodotus
"On the east coast is the capital |
city and chief seaport, Zante occu-
pying the site of the ancient city of |
Its Il, 900 people repre- |
sent a third of the total population |
Of the island