Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 17.djvu/364

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GBEEOE 348 GBEEOE

of the Immaculate Conception of the B. V. M., French, American, Italian, Austrian, and German

Women's Catholic Order of Foresters, St. Ann's institutions.

Altar Society, St. Mary's Aid, Men's Catholic Order Economic Condition b.— Within a decade Greece

of Foresters, Ancient Order of Hibernians, and K. has trebled her area and population and the ques-

of C. are organized. tion naturally arises as to whether she is m a

The Great Falls "Catholic Monthly Magazine" is position economically to incorporate the new ter-

published in the diocese. ritoiy and to develop it culturally. In Greece

, ^ „, proper, owing to the increasing despoliation of

GiMce (cf. C. E., VI-736b).— The pr^nt coun- the forests, which have almost entirely disappeared,

try of Greece mcludes Old Gree<y (25,014 sq. the soil cannot retain water and the agncultural

miles), which comprises contmental Greece, the j^ield suffers severely from drought. For this

Peloponnesus to the south of the Gulf of Corinth, reason lai^e districts remain imcultivated. Large

the iEgean Island of Euboea, the Cyclades, estates are in iixe hands of peasant proprietors

Sporades, and islands in the Ionian Sea, including and mitayer farmers. In 1918, 37,346,770 metric

Corfu, Zante, Santa Maura, and Cephalonia; New tons of wheat were produced on 1,104,608 acres;

Greece (16,919 sq. miles), which comprises Mace- 31,738,560 metric tons of new wine on 411,130 acres;

donia, Epirus, Crete, and the other iEgean Islands; 15^03,250 metric tons of barley on 418,435 acres,

and the territorial acquisitions of the recent war. 16,423,500 metric tons of maize on 423,807 acres,

which according to the Treaty of London and of About 717,500 acres of olives were under cultiva-

Athens, 30 May, 1913, are all those iEgean Islands tion; the production of olive oil was 31,702,800

occupied by Greece during the war, except Im- gallons. In 1919 the nut crops were estimated at

bro& Tenedos, and Castellorizzo, and according 4,486,185 tons. There are now in force about

to the Treaty of Sevres, 1 May, 1920, all that was 35 mining concessions, embracing a total area of

left of Turkey in Europe west of the Chataba nearly 20,000 acres. Under the pressure of war

lines, western Thrace, and the Dodecanese Islands, every effort was made to develop lignite deposits.

The Ministry of National Economy has given the In 1915 the output was 39,745 tons; in 1916,

following estimates of population (31 March, 1921) : 116,946 tons; in 1917, 157,956 tons; and in 1918,

Population of Old Greece 2,897,000 : of new prov- 208,797 tons. As an industrial nation, Greece is at a

inces acquired in 1913, 2,110,000; of Thrace acquired disadvantage, since, owing to the despoliation of

in 1920, 600,000; total 5,607,000. No figures for her forests, water power is lacking and lumber

the Smyrna district are given in the return. Defi- is inadequate. In 1917 the country had 2213

nite figures for the following important towns have factories, employing 36,124 hands, and valued at

been obtained in the census of December, 1920: 260,363,647 drachmai. The imports in 1919 (valued

Athens 300,462; Piraeus 130,082; Salonica 158,000 at 1,608,324,000 draclimat (1 drachma = .193 normal

(District 396,958); Adrianople 145,490; Crete exchange) came for the most part from England,

96,309; Patras 46,500. In 191&-19 the number of France, and the United States, while the exports

emigrants to the United States was 813. The (valued at 726,536 drachmai) also went to those

number would have been larger, but for the pro- countries. The staple article of export is currants,

hibition of the departure of men of several classes In 1920 the Greek mercantile marine comprised

of the reserve, and also on account of the political 228 steamships and 1048 sailing vessels. In 1920

situation. Emigration constitutes an asset in Greek the railway mileage totaled 1507 miles. Before

finance on account of the large remittances sent the war with Turkey (1912-13), Greece was com-

annually to Greece. pletely isolated by land from the rest of Europe,

Education. — Greek education has been chiefly in but on 8 May, 1916, the railway was completed

the hands of the ecclesiastical authorities and yet between Gida on the Salonica-Monastir line and

has tended to be of a too practically commercial Papapuli on the Thessalian frontier, a distance of

type. At the present time the Ministry of Public fifty-six miles, whereby Greece was linked with

Education recognizes three classes of schools the European railroads. The railway system has

(a) Demotic or Primary Schools; (b) Hellenic or been extended by the inclusion of the lines in

Intermediary Schools; (c) Gymnasia or Superior Western and Eastern Thrace. The Government

Schools. For purposes of administration the coim- has also purchased from England for 2,000,000

try (Old Greece) is divided into twelve school dis- francs the Salonica-Angista-Stavros line, seventy-

tricts, with a chief inspector of education in each five miles long, which was built by the British

center. All inspectors are appointed by the Min- during the war. All the lines are State-owned and

ister of Education. School attendance is compul- State-controlled.

sory for all children between the ages of six and Finance. — ^After the national bankruptcy in

twelve. In 1917-18 there were 6799 primary schools 1898 an International Finance Commission was ap-

with 8641 teachers and 476,695 pupils (174,805 girb). pointed, without whose permission the country

For secondary education there were 76 hi^h could issue no uncovered notes and no loans. The

schools, 425 middle schools, having 55,408 pupils result was that the currency came into compara-

(50,997 boys). There are two agricultural schools tively good order. The last wars and the Asia

in Greece, besides a Trade and Industrial Academy Minor Expedition, however, caused such huge

and Government Commercial Schools in Athens, demands to be made on the treasurv that the Gov-

Volo, Salonica, and Patras; also two universities at emment found itself compelled to borrow 500,000,-

Athens, the National University and the Capodis- 000 drachmai from the National Bank against

tria University and a Polytechnical Institute. The Treasury Bills. The unfavorable trade balance and

cost of primary education is borne by the State the serious depreciation of currencv have increased

and amounts to about 10,000,000 drachmai annually, the financial stringency. On 10 February, 1918, the

The Ministry of Education is also charged with Governments of Great Britain, the United States,

the Service of Antiquities, managed by an Archeo- and France agreed to advance to the Greek Gov-

logical Council, which is responsible for the con- emment credits as follows: Great Britain £14,700,-

servation and repair of ancient monuments. The 000, France 410,000,000 francs, and the United States

British School of Archeology in Athens has been $48,239,267. The control of the fund thus created

responsible for the excavations at Knossos in Oete, was lodged in an Interallied Financial Comxni»-

MUo, Sparta, and Thessaly. There are also similar sion and an Interallied Military Commission sitting