Eventually the wine is
ready for sale.
Now comes the necessity for a second journey to Limasol, perhaps thirty
or forty miles distant, to petition for the government official to
measure the contents of the jars; without such an examination, no wine
can be removed from the stores.
This is another loss of time to the grower, and occasions an expense for
himself and mule for the journey.
The jars are at length measured; but before any wine can be removed a
general examination of the quality of the district produce must be
completed, and, an average value having been determined, the tax of 10
per cent. must be paid ad valorem.
After these necessary forms have been gone through, with the attendant
vexatious delays and expensive journeys, entailing loss of time for men
and mules, the vine-grower wishes to carry his wine to market.
Before a drop can be removed he must present himself at the official
quarters, either at Kilani or one other village, to obtain a teskeri, or
permit, for the quantity that he wishes to convey. After this trouble
and delay he returns to his home with the official permit to remove to a
specified place (generally Limasol) a fixed quantity of wine, which is
calculated by the load; one load equals 128 okes of 2.75 lbs.
avoirdupois, and, packed in goat-skins, is carried by two mules.
The vine-grower himself weighs his wine when the skins are filled, and
he starts upon his long journey over steep mountain rocky paths to
Limasol, where he will sell his load to the wine-merchant, who
subsequently will ship it to the various ports of the Mediteranean.
The sun is burning; and the wine, contained in tarry goat-skins, is,
after a few hours' exposure to the heat, about the temperature of the
hottest bath; thus absorbing the vile smells of the primitive but secure
package. The owner is well aware that the value of his wine will depend
upon the flavour, therefore he hurries his mules forward, in order to
deliver it as quickly as possible to the merchant, before it shall be
contaminated by the skins.
Upon arrival at Limasol it may be late, and nothing can be done. His
wine must be weighed by the government official at the public
weighing-place, specially assigned for the wine trade; and he drives his
laden and tired mules to the yard. Here he finds some hundreds of mules
and their proprietors in a similar position to himself; however, there
is no help for it, and they must be patient through the night while
their wine is imbibing the hateful flavour of the goat-skins. In the
meantime they must purchase food for their mules and seek quarters for
themselves.
When the morning appears the government official has enough to do, and
as a certain time must be occupied in weighing a given quantity, the day
wears away. Every man has to present his teskeri, or permit, for removal
from his village to Limasol of a specified quantity of wine, and his
load must weigh that prescribed weight upon delivery. His scales may not
have been exactly in harmony with those of the government official; but
should the quantity exceed the teskeri, the owner must pay DOUBLE THE
AMOUNT OF TAXATION.
In the meantime, during the wrangles concerning discrepancies in weight,
mules are arriving with their loads, their owners all desirous of
despatch, and the hours fast wearing away. The next day is probably a
Greek holiday, and all the merchants' stores are shut (there is a Greek
holiday at least once a week,--generally twice). The unfortunate
vine-grower, after waiting patiently in despair, discovers that he must
wait still longer. At length, after vexations and delays, he draws a
sample of wine into a gourd-shell from his skins, and hands it to the
merchant; who, having made a wry face and spat it out, advises him to
"throw his wine into the sea, as it is undrinkable," having remained too
long in the goat-skins exposed to the sun. A most respectable informant
related to me the total loss of a large quantity of first-class wine
from the delay thus occasioned at Limasol. . . .
The refuse, after pressing the grapes, is calculated to yield upon
distillation a proportion of 100 okes of spirit for every ten loads
(1280 okes) of wine. This pays a tax of eight paras the oke, which,
added to the 10 per cent. upon the wine, makes a total of 15 per cent.
upon wine and spirit included.
The vine-grower, irrespective of the size of his vineyard, is allowed
200 okes duty free for his own consumption; and when his jars are
measured to determine the contents for taxation an allowance is deducted
for the muddy deposit at the bottom.
It will at once be seen by this enumeration of the delays and vexations
occasioned by this arbitrary system, that it is barely possible for the
vine-grower to calculate the actual cost of his wine, as the loss of
time, expense of journeys, and uncertainty of the amount of delays are
entirely beyond his control. It is therefore extremely difficult to
discover the exact financial position of the cultivator, but from the
data in my possession it is nearly as follows:--
One donum of land, which is supposed to measure a square of fifty yards,
would be about half an English acre; and this area is calculated to
yield an average of one load and a half of wine = 192 okes = 528 lbs.
The value of the ordinary wine of the country will average about 90
piastres the load, wholesale price; therefore one donum will represent a
gross value of I.5 load at 90 .. = 135 piastres (Cr.)
Against this annual produce the natives
calculate as follows:--
Piastres.
Per donum--Expenses of cultivating the
land, i.e. ploughing, weeding, &c. . . . . . . 25
Pruning vines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Gathering crop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Feeding labourers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Carriage of wine to market . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
TOTAL government dues, including malliea . . . . . . . 25
___ ___
(Dr.) 105 135 (Cr.)
This leaves a balance in favour of the producer of only 30 piastres,
about 5 shillings per donum.
