Part 9

The quantity grown before the occupation appears to have been very fluctuating and to have averaged about 56,000 lb. annually, and the Government revenue, according to British Consular reports, would not have been more than £300 to £400 per annum. The Régie was introduced in 1874, but owing to the hampering restrictions the industry had been pretty well crushed out by the time of British occupation in 1878. Meanwhile the revenue from tobacco, imported mainly from Volo and Salonica, increased greatly.

The monopoly ceased at the British occupation, but the regulations and imposts remained. Those responsible for controlling the industry, collecting dues, and checking illicit consumption had a troublesome task, while on the other hand the cultivator became averse to engaging in a cultivation which was hedged round with so many restrictions and formalities.

These exist at the present time and may here be quoted:

The grower has to notify the Customs authorities of his intention to sow, giving the locality and area. Before picking he must again notify the Customs, so that a Customs officer may be present at the picking and weigh the freshly picked leaves. After storing, but before delivering the tobacco to the factory, the Customs officer must again weigh the now dry leaves.

The excise duties leviable are: Tobacco leaf, 4-1/2_cp._ per oke, payable on transfer of leaf from grower to wholesale dealer. Tobacco manufactured in Cyprus, whether made into cigarettes or otherwise, in addition to the import duty or transport duty, pays a banderolle duty of 3_s._ 6-1/2_cp._ per oke.

These regulations are a relic of the Turkish times, as in those days the State received a definite due called "City Toll" by charging the tobacco cutters and tobacco sellers with a trade tax. They appear to have been administered with more laxity in Turkish than in post-occupation times, and it is said that the abandonment of tobacco cultivation was mainly due to the severity with which these rather vexatious and irritating regulations were enforced.

For many years the tobacco imported by local cigarette manufacturers came almost entirely from Macedonia. This tobacco was of very superior quality and cheap, and locally grown tobacco could not compete with it. Of late years the price of Macedonian tobacco has risen considerably and the manufacturers have therefore been induced to import Thessalian tobacco instead, which is not of so fine a flavour and approximates more closely to Cyprus produce. Cypriot smokers have thus had their palates prepared for the flavour of the locally grown tobacco.

About the year 1912, when Houry's Cyprus Tobacco Association, Ltd., was formed, a revival in the industry set in. This has since received considerable impetus from the war, which, temporarily, has thrust Macedonian tobacco out of the market. The primary object of the Association was to manufacture tobacco and cigarettes from Cyprus-grown tobacco, although foreign tobacco could also be used. Tobacco then began to be regularly grown by the Association at a Chiftlik near Limassol and elsewhere, and cigarettes made therefrom have had a fair local sale. The arrival of well-to-do refugees from Latakia and other parts of Syria, skilled in tobacco cultivation, led to great extension of this crop. A large part of the produce was at first converted into Latakia tobacco. Owing possibly to the lack of care and skill on the part of native labour, partly perhaps to the unsuitability of the herbs and brushwood used in the fuming, the market was not found sufficiently encouraging and the Latakia, for which at best there is a very restricted market, has almost ceased to be produced. Tobacco for cigarettes, however, continues to be grown on a fairly large scale, but in order that land suitable for corn and other foodstuffs should not be sacrificed to tobacco, the cultivation of the latter is permitted only by special licence. In 1916 and 1917 the industry fell almost entirely into the hands of the richer refugees, who were expert growers, and they contracted with the small farmers and peasants. A number of speculative growers, professional men, merchants, etc., were tempted by the prevailing high prices to embark in the industry, but the licensing system has tended to throw it more into the hands of the _bona-fide_ farmers, who are allowed only to cultivate small areas which can be looked after mainly by their own families. In 1916 the total production was 89,065 okes, and the estimated yield for 1917 is 487,674 okes.

The Agricultural Department has for some five years carried out experimental growings in various districts, and samples of tobacco so grown have been submitted to the Imperial Institute (see BULLETIN OF THE IMPERIAL INSTITUTE, vol. xiii. 1915, pp. 547-550). The two best samples reported on were grown in the Nicosia plain. They were said to conform with the Turkish tobacco as regards size of leaf, but contained too much moisture for the English market. The tobacco was found to smoke rather hot and was only mildly aromatic, but it was believed that these defects would probably disappear with more experience in the curing. The samples referred to were incompletely cured, having been submitted quickly in order to roughly ascertain their quality. The report on the whole was moderately encouraging, and it is hoped that later samples which have been better cured will be found superior.

The tobacco grown in Cyprus is mostly of the Samsoun, Trebizond, Kavalla and Hassan Keff varieties.

The normal importation of tobacco into Cyprus is about 180,000 okes, which produces an import duty of £4,500 a year, at the rate of 4-1/2_cp._ per oke.

The average amount paid for banderolles on tobacco when issued from factories for consumption is about £30,000 a year, which at the rate of 3_s._ 6-1/2_cp._ per oke equals a banderolle duty on 161,000 okes; the difference of about 20,000 okes would be cigarettes exported on which no banderolle duty is paid.

If, then, no tobacco were grown and none imported the Government would lose £35,000 revenue annually. It would appear to be immaterial from a revenue point of view whether tobacco were imported or grown in the Island, since the imposts are the same, viz. on imports 4-1/2_cp._ per oke import duty and 3_s._ 6-1/2_cp._ per oke banderolle duty; on locally grown tobacco 4-1/2_cp._ per oke transport duty and 3_s._ 6-1/2_cp._ per oke banderolle duty. There is, however, this difference, that the money leaves the Island when the tobacco is imported and remains and fructifies when it is locally grown.

Tobacco cultivation is in many ways well suited to this Island, as a great part of its cultivation as well as the gathering may be done by women and children. It need not therefore make any serious demand upon man labour, which is already insufficient, and much of the work can be performed by those who are unfit for heavy field work. It is a summer crop, which is greatly in its favour, the quality when grown "dry" being much finer than when irrigated. Its introduction broadens the basis of cultivation, provides a revenue from land that would otherwise lie fallow and is a useful element in any system of rotation. As it calls for careful preparation and thorough cultivation of the soil it has a great educative influence on a people prone to slovenly, primitive husbandry, and corn crops following tobacco have frequently given a larger, more uniform yield.

At the same time it is an open question whether the crop can be grown and the leaf cured by the Cypriot farmer to produce a tobacco which, under normal conditions, will successfully compete in quality and price with the Macedonian tobacco.

TANNING MATERIALS AND DYE-STUFFS

Tanneries are fairly numerous and large quantities of skins are tanned and sold to native boot-makers. Before the war, goat- and sheep-skins and ox-hides were practically the only kinds handled, the two former being mainly used for the uppers of boots. The top-boots worn by villagers are nearly all made from goat-skin, locally called "totmaria." Since the war pig-skins and dog-skins have been also used. Camel-skins are often employed for making soles.

Pine bark and sumach are the native tanning substances chiefly used in the local tanneries. The pine is one of the commonest forest trees of the Island. Shinia leaves (_Pistacia Lentiscus_) are also used (see p. 51).

_Sumach_

The Sicilian, elm-leaved or tanner's sumach (_Rhus Coriaria_) is a shrub which grows wild throughout a large part of the Island, being principally found among the vineyards on the slopes of the southern range of hills. The leaves are largely used in the leather tanning industry, and a considerable export might have been established to the United Kingdom had it not been for dissatisfaction caused by the excessive presence of impurities, such as lentisc leaves and dust, which were usually found in the consignments sent.

One sample was sent by the Agricultural Department to the Imperial Institute in 1909. This was found to consist wholly of sumach and no lentisc or other leaves, and gave on examination the following results: Moisture, 10.1; ash, 9.8; tannin (by hide-power method), 26.9; extractive matter (non-tannin), 16.7 per cent. The report showed that the leaves produced a good leather, similar in texture and colour to that obtained with Sicilian sumach, and was considered likely to fetch about the same price as a medium quality of Sicilian sumach, which contains from 25 to 30 per cent. of tannin (see BULLETIN OF THE IMPERIAL INSTITUTE, vol. x. 1912, p. 45).

Two further samples were sent in 1916. The first sample "consisted of a finely-ground yellowish-green powder, containing a quantity of sand, small stones and iron dust." The second sample consisted of a "coarsely-ground, yellowish-green powder, containing a quantity of pinkish unground twigs, sand and small stones, together with some iron dust."

The results of examination were as follows:

NO. 1. NO. 2. _Per cent._ _Per cent._ Moisture 9.3 9.2 Insoluble matters 53.6 57.8 Extractive matters (non-tannin) 14.6 13.0 Tannin 22.5 20.0 Ash 8.5 12.3 --------------------------------------------------------- Tintometer readings--Red 0.7 1.2 Yellow 2.1 2.5

Both samples were low in tannin, compared with the Sicilian percentage of 25 to 30.

Sample No. 1 was valued at £13, and No. 2 at £12, per ton, with Sicilian sumach at £15 per ton; the lower value being due to the lower tannin contents, owing to the presence of sand, dirt, etc. It may be assumed that if more care in preparing clean samples were taken, Cyprus sumach would greatly improve its market value.

_Valonea_

There are a few well-grown specimens of valonea oak (_Quercus Ægilops_) to be seen, but being a slow grower and as it takes many years to reach the stage when it yields a profit, it does not commend itself to the Cypriot tree planter. It prefers deep soil and requires artificial irrigation or a greater rainfall than we have in Cyprus.

It has been tried at Salamis and failed, and also at Machaera with the same result. It has been grown also on Troödos, but after six years' growth attained a height of only 1 foot.

Only an insignificant quantity of Valonea cups are locally produced. These come from the Paphos district and are said to be rather poor in tannin. The bulk comes from Anatolia. The pre-war price for the latter was 5_s._ per cantar of 44 okes, that for the locally grown was 20 paras per oke on the spot, transport charges bringing up the price to about 1 copper piastre per oke delivered.

_Acacia Barks_

_Acacia pycnantha_ has been grown in Cyprus, but does not acclimatise well, and neither the soil nor climate seems favourable. _A. mollissima_ also has not shown any very successful growth. _A. cyanophylla_ and _A. longifolia_, on the other hand, thrive excellently. They are great drought-resisters and grow on almost any soil. They have been very extensively grown by the Forest Department in every district for fuel and along the coast upon sand dunes. They have not been utilised so far for the extraction of tanning, except experimentally. Samples of the barks of the two last-named species were found on examination at the Imperial Institute to be too poor in tannin to be worth exporting, but they should be quite suitable for use in Cyprus (see BULLETIN OF THE IMPERIAL INSTITUTE, vol. xi. 1913, pp. 412-414).

_Madder_

In former years, and within the period of the British occupation, the cultivation of madder (_Rubia tinctorum_) was fairly flourishing in Cyprus. The old madder grounds can still be distinguished, and are mostly to be seen near Morphou, Ayia Irini, Sotira, Ayios Serghios, Famagusta and Larnaca. These madder grounds were excavations made in order to expose the soil lying beneath 10 to 30 ft. of drift-sand; and they form, as it were, a series of tanks along the shore. The red dye obtained from the dried and ground madder roots constituted at one time one of the most valued of dye-stuffs, and was in special demand for military uniforms; but this has been entirely superseded by artificial coal-tar derivatives and, as Gennadius says: "The happy days of the cultivation of this plant are past, never to return."

It is propagated mostly by root cuttings. The leaf begins to dry at about the sixth month. There is no further growth above ground, but the roots continue to increase and shoot downwards till moisture affects them. "When they get too wet, they become black or rot. In Cyprus this rotting would often begin after about eighteen months, while in superior soils the roots would continue to improve during thirty-six months, and they would be known in the trade as eighteen months and thirty-six months roots. In Famagusta district they remain mostly eighteen months, while at Morphou they would continue fully thirty-six months, during the whole of which time the surface ground should be kept free of weeds."

After the root is lifted it is generally dried; if packed before quite dry, it ferments and deteriorates.

Two and a half tons of dried roots would be produced from an acre of good ground, and the madder grounds used to fetch a very high price.

DRUGS AND OTHER PRODUCTS

_Liquorice Root_

The liquorice plant (_Glycyrrhiza glabra_, Linn.) grows mainly in the Famagusta and Kyrenia districts, and the roots are collected and exported from time to time. Two samples were reported upon in 1917 by the Imperial Institute (see BULLETIN OF THE IMPERIAL INSTITUTE, vol. xv. 1917, p. 312) and the following opinions of two London firms of brokers were elicited.

(_a_) One firm described the Lapithos (Kyrenia district) roots as medium to bold unpeeled roots of good flavour, fairly well cleaned and very well dried; and valued them at from 50_s._ to 55_s._ per cwt. ex wharf, London (February 1917). The firm described the Famagusta roots as thinner than the Lapithos sample and not so well freed from smooth valueless pieces, but mentioned that they had apparently been washed. They valued these roots at 50_s._ per cwt. ex wharf, London (February 1917). The firm added that both samples were exceptionally dry, and that it seemed doubtful if the material in the bulk would be as dry.

(_b_) A second firm considered the roots to be rather mixed, inferior quality, and worth at that time about 45_s._ per cwt. in London (February 1917).

_Pyrethrum_

_Pyrethrum (Chrysanthemum) cinerariæfolium_ grows well from seed and is an attractive garden plant with pretty, marguerite-like flowers. These yield the pyrethrum of commerce so largely used as an insecticide, and which is said to form the chief ingredients in various flea powders. These flowers, when dried and ground to dust, are employed for this purpose by the natives. The original pyrethrum powder came from plants growing in Dalmatia.

The plant was introduced into the Cyprus Government Gardens some twenty years ago and has since spread more or less throughout the Island. It is perennial and drought-resistant, and will also stand several degrees of frost and seems indifferent to soil, provided it is not too damp. The seed is sown in September and the seedlings are transplanted in April or May, but it multiplies itself readily by suckers. The flowers, which are about three times the size of the Chamomile (_Matricaria Chamomilla_), which they closely resemble, are gathered as soon as they are fully open, and are then dried in a well-ventilated room. They are usually sold in bales of 50 to 100 kilogrammes. One donum may produce about 100 okes of flowers annually.

_Squill_

Bulbs of the local squill were submitted in 1917 to Kew and provisionally identified as _Urginea Scilla._ Like the asphodel, this root is found everywhere. If sliced and placed about the house they are said to drive away mice. It was intended by the Agricultural Department to make an attempt to find a market for these roots, in the hope that if they could obtain a small payment for them farmers might be induced to collect them off their lands, but the project had to be abandoned for the time owing to the war. There is a small demand for these roots, if sliced and dried, in Europe for medicinal purposes.

Squill bulbs from Cyprus were examined at the Imperial Institute in 1916 (see BULLETIN OF THE IMPERIAL INSTITUTE, vol. xv. 1917, p. 311). The samples, which were submitted to a firm of drug manufacturers, were objected to on account of their dark colour, and were valued at about 6_d._ per lb. as against a pre-war value of 3_d._ per lb.

According to the report by the Imperial Institute there are two varieties of _Urginea Scilla,_ white and red, the scales of the former being yellowish-white and those of the latter having a reddish tint, and there are also many intermediate forms. Though the red and the white varieties have been stated to possess equal medicinal value, the white variety is preferred in England.

In making stone irrigation channels which are lined with a coating of lime and sand or earth, local masons sometimes rub over this lining with a sliced squill which has been dipped in oil. It is found that this tends to harden and glaze the lining and prevent it from cracking.

_Colocynth or Bitter Apple_

The colocynth (_Citrullus Colocynthis_), locally called "pikrankoura" or "petrankoura," grows wild in some parts of the plains. The round yellowish-green fruit, about the size of an orange or small melon, ripens in July to September and, after being gathered, is skinned and dried in the sun. It is used by druggists as a purgative. Until about ten years ago it was cultivated on a small scale and an annual export of about £400 in value took place, chiefly to England and Austria. It was then in demand, it is said, as an adulterant of quinine. The fruit is locally thought to be a remedy for rheumatism. For this purpose the fruits are picked and put in a saucepan and covered with olive oil. After cooking for six hours the pulp or ointment is rubbed into the affected part. The European demand having ceased, the plant is now only found in a wild state.

_Asphodel_

The asphodel (_Asphodelus ramosus_), locally known as "spourdellos" or "spourtoulla," is a troublesome and abundant weed in many parts of the Island, up to an altitude of about 4,000 ft. The peasant farmer rarely attempts to remove it, though it occupies a large proportion of his land to the detriment of the crops. In the hills the villagers dry the bulbs and feed them to their sheep, cattle and donkeys. A paste is also made from the roots which is used by boot-makers to stick the leathers together. To make this paste the roots are dried in the oven and ground, and then mixed with ground vetches or maize and made into the gum or paste locally known as "tsirichi."

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 4: _A quantity of stored plant was destroyed by fire, reducing the output._]

VI. MINOR AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRIES

_Bee-keeping_

Although Cyprus bees are world-famed, bee-keeping in the Island is still in its infancy.

The native hive is generally an earthenware cylinder or pipe about 2 ft. 6 in. long and 9 in. in diameter (see Plate VII, fig. 1). Hives are also made of a mixture of earth and chopped straw, similar to native mud-bricks. These hives are also cylindrical, about 18 in. long and 10 to 12 in. in diameter with a 3-in. thickness of wall. These are cooler in summer and warmer in winter, and produce stronger colonies than the earthenware ones.

Of late years the Agricultural Department has introduced modern hives with movable frames, and had it not been for the high cost of timber since the war, the number of these would have increased rapidly. The difficulty is to get the local carpenters to construct them properly and with finish. Practical hive construction is taught at the Agricultural School.

Cyprian bees are, par excellence, the yellow race of the world. They are of uniform colour, size and character, slightly smaller than the Italians and the blacks. They have great power of flight, are very prolific and vigorous and good honey-gatherers. They are by many considered vicious and ill-tempered. This is possibly due to the constant war they have to wage against hornets, which in this country are a real plague and frequently exterminate whole colonies and sometimes whole apiaries. Various devices are employed for the protection of bees in or near the hives.

A good number of Cyprian queen bees have been imported into Europe and America, and are very highly regarded wherever they have been established. In the eighties Cyprian queens were sold in the United States of America at £2 each. This high price checked the importation and the crossing of Cyprians with Italians and blacks took place, the hybrid offspring being sold by dealers as Cyprians. These, however, did not possess the best characteristics of Cyprians, and for a time they brought about a reaction in favour of other breeds.

Cyprus possesses excellent honey-producing plants in the eucalyptus trees, orange groves, "throumbia" or wild thyme, and other aromatic plants.

In the neighbourhood of orange groves a competent bee-keeper can obtain an average of 50 lb. of honey per colony; although unfortunately the ordinary village bee-keeper gets little more than 6 to 10 lb.

Locally produced beeswax is of fine quality with delicious aroma and of a bright yellow colour, said to be superior to that imported from Asia Minor and Egypt.

The industry is susceptible of considerable development and, when brought under more complete control, should be capable of establishing a good export trade of honey and possibly of beeswax.

_Basket-making_