ment auspices, and the results freely made public. But in order that this pioneering work of the Government may be well and successfully performed, it ought to be entirely separated from the military organisation which must necessarily be established in the island. Indeed there ought to be an entire separation between what may be called imperial interests, and those that may be called local. We must keep in view that two distinct objects are aimed at by our settlement in Cyprus. One exclusively imperial, which is the establishment of a military depôt; the other the development of the riches of the island as a possession. The expenses incurred in the accomplishment of the first object ought to be covered by special grants, and the carrying out of the operations connected with it, such as barrack accommodation, transport, &c., ought to be exclusively undertaken by and entrusted to the War or Indian Department. But if we would successfully attain the second object, we must have a responsible administration, working side by side with, and yet entirely separate from, the military one just mentioned. An administration charged with the especial duty of the fiscal arrangements of the island, and which, assisted by a council containing a native, or at least a local element of representation, should determine, after reference to the Colonial Office, the nature and amount of taxation, the works of public utility to be undertaken; in a word, an administration which the British nation should hold responsible for the advancement of all Cyprian interests, and the well-being of the garden committed to its care. Only in this way can the British nation properly control the results of the twofold mission which it has undertaken, and avoid the dangers of thoughtless extravagance and inexperienced action. The civil administration would have a distinct object to attain, with clearly defined resources. Its fixed burden would be the annual payment of 130,000l. to

the Porte, and from the outset it should be distinctly understood that our new possession should be no burden upon the Imperial Treasury. Unless this is done, the results obtained will lose their value, as examples for the imitation of the surrounding countries; for not only must we show that our Government is enlightened, but also that we are good and wise stewards. It would be folly to make of Cyprus an expensive toy; she must be made a worthy member of the busiest family in the world, honourably paying her own way, and yielding her quota to the general prosperity of the Empire.

Nor need we fear the burden of 130,000l. which we have engaged to pay to the Porte. The possession is cheap at that price, and if we make that burden, with the cost of administration, the basis of taxation, in a few years the people of Cyprus will be the most favoured nation in the world. The cost of administration will not be great. There is no need of many functionaries-the necessity is that they be experienced administrators and practical men. A civil Governor and a financial agent were all the superior functionaries which the Porte found necessary for the administration of the island, and it was abundantly sufficient where there was a will and a capacity for work. We shall also greatly err if we do not use to the utmost possible extent native functionaries in the administration. Plenty of perfectly capable men for subordinate offices can be found in the island, and under a strict control they will do their work conscientiously. "Like master, like servant." When peculation and corruption are punished with dismissal and disgrace, they will soon disappear, and it is amazing how rapidly the moral purity of the source purifies the stream. But there must be no false economy in refusing to give employés the comfortable means of subsistence. This error is at the base of all the corruption in Turkey, and until it is rectified there is no hope

of honesty in the administration. In increasing the salaries of employés we do not necessarily increase the cost of administration. My own experience, based on a considerable administration, has been that the cost of administration generally diminishes with the increase of pay. Fewer, but better paid employés, is the principle which requires to be put in practice in Turkey.

Had the limits of this article permitted, I would gladly have made some remarks upon the taxes which were levied in Cyprus under the Turkish Government, and the manner of their collection, but the subject is too large to compress into a few lines, and must be reserved for a future occasion.

In concluding my present remarks, I think it well to recommend caution to all who propose to embark in enterprises connected with Cyprus. The crowd of people whom we hear of as going from Malta, Syria, and Egypt are simply speculating upon the demands created by the arrival of 10,000 British troops and the generally profuse expenditure which is associated in the East with the British nation. In one of the many articles which have lately appeared in the public

papers merchants were recommended to consult people in Egypt and Syria as to the kind of goods which the natives of Cyprus would buy, so that the shipments might prove suitable. But it must not be forgotten that the native population of Cyprus has not yet increased, and that a considerable time must elapse before any material increase can take place. It will be quite time enough when fuller information reaches us to embark capital in shipments of goods for the people of Cyprus. There is much new work to be done; but if it is to be done well, it must not be done precipitately. I should say that the only works to be undertaken at once are sanitary works and barrack accommodation. These ought not to be delayed a day, for the lives of our soldiers and civilians depend upon them. Nor ought any time to be lost in getting a thorough geological survey of the island-especially in reference to minerals and waterbecause such a survey will be the guide-book to the British capitalist in his future movements. This done, and done both thoroughly and quickly, we may afford to wait for fuller light to direct our further decisions.

R. HAMILTON LANG.

II.

UNDER the Sublime Porte the island of Cyprus formed part of the Vilaet of the Archipelago. The chief residence of the Vali was at the Dardanelles. The Governor of Cyprus, called a Mutassurrif, resided in the island, at Leufcosia or Nicosia. He administered the affairs of the island with a Council, over which he presided. This Council was composed of the Mufti, or highest Mussulman religious authority in the island, the Greek Archbishop, the Muhasebegi, or Financial Agent, the Evcaf-nazir, or administrator of Mussulman religious property, three Mussulman and two Christian notables. The Council met as often as it was summoned by the Governor, and always once a week. Its decisions were embodied in documents called "musbatas," which were signed by all the members present. These decisions relieved the Governor of much personal responsibility, and received the highest consideration at Constantinople. The Council occupied itself with all questions of public utility and general administration. From the large Mussulman majority in the Council it will be evident that no initiative could be taken by the Christian members; indeed, as a matter of fact, all initiative came from the Governor. The Council was advantageous in giving the Governor, invariably a stranger to the island, the No. 227.-VOL. XXXVIII.

benefit of local advice, and in obliging him to act in harmony with the representatives of the country. To a good Governor the Council never proved a hindrance; to a bad one it was an impediment to be overcome, but it was no protection against the evils of an inactive administration. The island was divided into five districts and sixteen arrondissements. The chief functionary over a district was called a Caimakam, and that over an arrondissement was called a Mudir. The Caimakam, or Prefect, administered with a Council, and reported to the Governor. The Mudirs reported to the Caimakam. The Council of the Caimakam consisted of the Cadi, or judge, and four notables. Such was the system of administration which prevailed in Cyprus, and which is known in Turkey as the Vilaet system. It assigned to the representatives of the people an important position, but, partly from incapacity and partly from servility, the Christian population did not profit by the liberal advantages accorded to it. The result was that the Christian representatives were in reality, although not avowedly, the choice of the Governor and Caimakams; but this was a defect, not in the system, but in its execution.

It is evident that much of the system which we have just described might be profitably adopted by the British Government. Substituting British for the Turkish functionaries

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who ex officio are members of the Councils, eliminating the ecclesiastical members, both Mohammedan and Christian, and giving to Mussulmans and Christians equal representation, there would be the elements of a very desirable Council, containing a highly civilised element, in whose hands would be all the initiative, and a less advanced section, possessing local knowledge and practical experience of the country. The evils of a too-greatly personal government would be avoided, and the people would be trained gradually to take an interest in the administration which ruled them. It cannot be too often insisted upon that our task is not to Anglicise Cyprus, but simply to preserve order, to facilitate the development of the material resources of the island, and to further the moral and intellectual interests of its people. We have to practise what we have so long urged on the Porteviz. to afford to the native races, by an enlightened and impartial administration, the means of moral elevation and material prosperity. For this result too much government is nearly as detrimental as too little. Our administration must be only the enlightened conception which guides the native hand; and the Queen of England must be not only the mistress of Cyprus, but also the honoured object of the love and devotion of its native races. There is a vast gulf between the natives of Cyprus and the natives of India, which we must not ignore, and our rule in Cyprus will be an utter failure if we apply to it, without important modifications, our Indian notions of government. The prosperous days of Cyprus were those in which she enjoyed a large share of selfgovernment; and it is to this elevated position that we must again raise her out of the depths of moral degradation and material bankruptcy into which an unenlightened foreign domination has plunged her.

The revenues which the Porte derived from Cyprus may be classified under three heads: -(1) Revenues

Such are the chief taxes, and we will proceed to examine them in detail.

In a former article we explained the nature of the salt monopoly. It is simply an enterprise worked by the Government for the exclusive benefit of the Treasury, and only in so far as it imposes a fixed price upon the quantity of salt consumed in the island is it a burden upon the population. Of the revenue obtained, 27,000l. is derived from salt exported to foreign parts, so that only about 13,000l. is paid by local consumers. The working of this revenue is very simple, and the new administration will not do wrong in continuing the system of accounts and control which existed in the past. Some years ago there, were extensive abuses perpetrated in the working of this administration, such as charging to the Government expenses never incurred, and the delivery of larger quantities of salt than was paid for to the Treasury. But these abuses have been, in great measure, put a stop to by a fairly perfect system of control. The revenue from salt may be expected to increase under the British rule. Greater facilities for shipment must be provided, which will be of importance in increasing the export consumption. The expensive and incon

venient transport by carts, from the salt mounds to the shore, must give place to a rapid and easy transport, either by tramway waggon, or by wire tramway bucket; and a good jetty should be constructed to facilitate the loading of small craft. With these acilities, and a slightly reduced tarif, the volume of export shipments may be considerably increased. As the chief object to be aimed at is the enlargement of the circle of consumption, it may be wise to supply the export trade for distant countries, such as England, at lower rates. The article is suitable for ballast, and consequently will be cheaply carried. It is expedient that this source of revenue from export should be developed to its fullest extent, seeing that it benefits the Treasury without being in any way a burden upon the island.

The second item of revenue we have described as a royalty upon the produce of all lands. This tax is called "dimes," a contraction of "decima," the tenth part. Its existence dates back from very ancient times, and may justly be connected in the mind of the reader with the tithes or tenth part which Abraham paid to Melchizedek, King of Salem. In Turkey, all lands are sold and purchased with this burden, and the natives scarcely regard it as a tax, but rather as the share of the Government in the cultivation of the land. It is upon this account that the tithe-tax, although apparently very heavy, is paid by the peasants with far less grumbling than any other tax, and the only disadvantage connected with it is the impediment which the measures necessary for its proper collection are apt to throw in the way of the freedom of the cultivator. This disadvantage is certainly a very serious one, and when speaking of the cultivation of cotton, in my former article, I had occasion to give a very good example of the hurtful manner in which it may operate. Many schemes have been proposed in Turkey for the abolition of this tax, but the difficulty is to find an equally

profitable source of revenue which shall vary according to the prosperous or adverse circumstances of the cultivator. One proposition received considerable favour amongst AngloTurkish reformers at Constantinople, and that was the imposition of a fixed tax upon each pair of bullocks. Taxing the possession of land presented the inconvenience of imposing a burden upon lands which might not be under cultivation, a serious disadvantage in a country where proprietors of large estates often leave extensive tracts of land fallow for years; and it was argued, that by taxing the cultivator according to the number of the bullocks which he possessed, this evil would be obviated. But a grave injustice would have been inflicted by the proposed new system. The tax per pair of bullocks would be necessarily a fixed one, without regard to the value or quality of the bullocks; and in this the small peasant would have been sacrificed. A good pair of bullocks, such as most large proprietors possess, will easily cultivate forty acres of grain land, while the small bullocks which the peasant rears and employs cannot cultivate more than twenty to twentyfive acres. The burden of the tax would therefore fall with unjust severity upon the small cultivator. Fuad Pasha, without exception the most enlightened of Turkish statesmen, and whose ability would have done honour to any country, was quite conscious of the disadvantages arising from the tax of tithes, and, as an experiment, in one of the provinces of the Empire, he converted the tax into a fixed money value, based upon the average of five preceding years. But the experiment did not succeed, and he was obliged to revert to the old system at the urgent request of the inhabitants whom he had wished to benefit by the innovation.

Later on, a somewhat similar experiment was made in Cyprus during my residence. Upon the urgent representations of Halet Bey, then Governor of the island, the Porte