A LITTLE LIGHT ON CRETE.*
IT is an obvious reflection that we have not heard the last of Crete, and this very clever little work, though very one-sided in its view, is a contribution towards the proper comprehension of a subject generally little under- stood. Cretan history is illustrated by the almost unbroken series of revolts which mark its downward course through nearly eight centuries. These have all one characteristic in common,—that of being intensely national,—" national as Cretan, not merely as Greek." Assigned by the Emperor• Alexius IV. to the Marquis of Montferrat in 1203, Crete was immediately transferred by its :new owner to Venice, for one hundred marks. The transfer aroused the jealousy of the Genoese, who got up a bloody and obstinate insurrection, sub- dued by the Venetian Government only at the cost of a great outlay in money and life. Then ensued a time of peace and prosperity. The fifteenth century was the golden age of Vene- tian rule in Crete ; commerce flourished, and Portuguese and English vied with each other in their appreciation of Candy wine. In 1645 took place the invasion of Crete by the Turks, resulting, after a long struggle, in their conquest of the island. Many of the Christian nobility embraced the faith of their new rulers. Here, as in other parts of the Turkish Empire, all Mahommedans are not Turks, as some of our would- be instructors of their country, whose pens of late years have been running so glibly, would appear to have supposed ; "at the present day, we find Moslem Orsini in Crete." At a later period, when Cretan troubles arose and long continued, from the lawlessness of the Moslem portion of the community and their defiance of the Government of Constantinople, the re- bellion was only at last put down, in the early part of the present century, by the Governor-General enlisting the Christian population on the side of order and government. The Christians of Canea were all armed ; the Beys were enticed to that place, seized, and strangled. The leading Moslems throughout the island, caught in detachments, were all brought to Canea, and butchered by instalments. " This horrible bloodshed lasted two months, during which time the evening gun daily told off by the number of its rounds the total of the heads that had fallen during the day." But " Hadgi Osman," the successful viceroy, "had served the Porte too thoroughly to enjoy its favour long. After three years' successful administration, the bowstring was sent him. He received the message respectfully, made his ab- lutions, said his prayers, and quietly put his head into the noose."
Crete had a good time again under the rule of Mehemet Ali, but his rebellion in 1840 restored the island to the Porte. By this time, practical equality had long been established between
a A Little Light on Cretan Inturreetion. By A. F. Yule. London : John Murray. 1879.
Christians and Mussnlmans, the result being that during the Crimean war the attempts of the Russian emissaries to stir up disaffection failed. The revolution of 1866 is attributed by our authoress to the emissaries of the late Emperor Louis Napoleon ; but, ill-blood having been once aroused between the two classes and creeds of the inhabitants, the flame was fanned by Greek sympathies, and the revolt into which the Christian population was at last driven was kept up by the exertions of Greek bands, Greece is, indeed, in Miss Yule's opinion, the persistent evil genius of the unhappy island. If Crete had only been left alone to the Turks, it would have got on, she thinks, well enough. The Cretans, according to her view, did not want emancipation, but only redress of certain grievances, which they demanded in a respectful and constitutional way. The in- surrection havingbroken out, she describes the situation thus :— " It is scarcely too much to say that the whole conduct of the Porte and Powers from May to December, 1866, was, on the surface, the absolute negation of common-sense. With regard to France. Russia, Greece, and, in a measure, Italy, the case is compre- hensible. Their conduct was wilful and deliberate action, on premises known to be false, for private ends. In the case of Turkey, it was due to mere dawdling stupidity and habits of suspicion ; in the case of England, to want of accurate informa- tion, and a dangerous habit of working every political problem
by certain foregone, conventional hypotheses We first, by our clumsy boring, let loose the subterraneous waters of Hellenic annexation intrigue, and then exhausted ourselves in attempting to pump them out again." Such is the author's view of the situation, which, however, we are far from accepting as an adequate statement. Very careful and conscientious writers, who have examined the situation in Crete for them- selves, differ from her very profoundly. Into the history of this last Cretan insurrection and its consequences, and the condition of things at the present day, we have not space to follow her. Suffice it to say that Crete has now a fair Constitution. The Governor-General is to hold office for five years ; the General Assembly, consisting of eighty Members, has a large majority of Christians"; the judicial power is to be distinct from the Executive. A large part of the revenues is to be appropriated to schools and public works. If this constitution be really worked out, Crete will have little cause of complaint on that score ; its people will have a larger measure of liberty than those of many of the countries of Europe.
It will be gathered that the pervading spirit of this remark- able little book is vehement partisanship with the Cretans, and aversion, mingled with contempt, for the Greeks. Miss Yule begins with a protest against "the attribution to the Cretans of a certain saying, neither pretty nor true, but sanctioned by Apostolic quotation. The true moral, if any there be, is, that even an Apostle may err, when caught in that tempting snare of all travellers,—random quotation." The book closes with the remark, "that in practical ability, common-sense, honesty of purpose, and power of development, the Cretans, though as yet necessarily untrained, rank unquestionably superior to the more showy and versatile Greeks of the Kingdom." They have, at any rate, found a doughty champion in our fair authoress, who has grafted on what must surely be an hereditary faculty of assimilating knowledge on an encyclopaedic scale, a terse and epigrammatic style, mercilessly employed, we notice with regret, but due humility, in expressing disparagement of and natural scorn for all the baser sex, especially those foolish members of it who have been so rash as to write anything about Crete, before the lady appeared on the scene. Miss Yule's vehement advocacy must be largely allowed for. But a clever partisan is often more instructive than a dull, though impartial, witness.
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