Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 232, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 16 October 1917 — Visit to the Cyclades [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Visit to the Cyclades

THE Greek islands, many of which have taken a prominent part In the Venezellst movement, are full of interest to the student of classical mythology, the artist, and the geologist. The following account In the Sphere describes a visit to one particular group—the Cyclades. We were warned that we must know Greek and that Athens would interest, us very much, but the Cyclades not at all! I was not, however to be put off; we started one evening from Piraeus —two ladies alone —and after two nights and a day anchored in the pretty little harbor of Santorln; and there, 900 feet above us, perched on the top of the cliff, lies the modern town of Thera, or Phera. A collection of boys with their donkeys were waiting to take up the passengers and their luggage, as there are no carriages, and a 20 minutes’ ride along a zigzag path brought us to the summit. The less said about the hotels the better, but with the assistance of some kind friends, a charming ride was arranged for the following day. We w r ent to the top of Mount Ellas, the highest point of the island, and down below at our feet was Messavouna, the ancient town of Thera, full of interesting old remains. In Greek legend, the Island of Thera was connected with the story of the Argonauts, and was represented as sprung from a clod of earth which was presented to those heroes by Triton. After the fourth Crusade it received the name of Santorln, i. e., St. Irene, the patron saint of the place.' Standing on a Volcano.

From earliest times it has been a center of volcanic agfency; we were reminded of this on the Kaumene islands, where the heat of the water, the smell of the sulphur, and the smoke that oozed out under our feet made it very evident that we were standing on the crater, and I was thankful when we got safely off to the harbor, where we had to wait for our boat, w hich was to take us to Naxos.

There we sat on a terrace listening to the soothing sound .of the. water against the fishing boats and watching the approaching night coming on, faintly lit up by a beautiful new moon. About nine o’clock our Greek steamer appeared through the darkness, brilliantly lit up, and slowly glided into the harbor ; it was like a scene in fairyland. Early next morning we reached Naxos; the town stretches picturesquely up the slopes of a rock hill rising from the sandy beach and dominated by the ruined castle of the Frankish dukes. Two nights were all we could spend here as we were anxious to get on to Delos. On inquiry we heard that no steamers went there; that two Englishmen had once crossed in a little open boat, but that it was a dangerous undertaking. Befog a fine day, I determined to risk it and to start at once, A. little sailing boat, the Evangelista, was got ready, and at 2 o’clock we were under way, with our crew of four Greek sailors, and myself at the helm. What a pleasure was that sail across the bEgean sea, ‘-spell-bound withip the clustering Cyclades”! A feeling of mystery and awe came over us as tfie night began to fall and we entered the sacred harbor of Delos. j Sacred Isle of Delos. There are no hotels on this island — In fact, it is absolutely without a permanent inhabitant' —but we had met the director of the French excavations

in Piraeus, and he had very kindly offered to put us up. However, as the wire we had sent never reached him, our arrival caused him no little surprise; he had seen our boat, and thought we were Greeks carrying contraband goods. Delos is the smallest but the most famous of the Cyclades, and the birthplace of Diana and Apollo, to whom it has been forever sacred. In 426 B. C., to ensure the sanctity of the island, the Athenians passed a law that anyone whose condition seemed to threaten Its pollution by either birth or death should be at once removed, and finally they expelled all secular Inhabitants. The following morning Monsieur Replat took us all over the ruins, which are very extensive; he had a good deal to do with the excavations 'at Delphi, and considers these even more interesting. We saw the site of the ancient city where, under the Roman empire, a thousand slaves were often put up for sale in a single day. Further on was the portico erected by Philip of Macedon, and the base of the colossal statue dedicated to the Delian Apollo by the people of Naxos. Climbipg to the rocky peak of Mount Cynthus, we came upon a theater of beautiful Parian marble, and a little further on the remains of a very early temple of Isis. But our time was nearly up; below in the harbor we could see the Evangelista with our crew ready, impatient to start, and after a hurried lunch we took leave of our kind host and sailed for Syra, and so to the Piraeus.

Island of Santorin.

Town and Harbor of Syra.