"The present decree shall be inserted in the acts of the assembly, and published by the press."
The military rabble outside then rushed in and dispersed the representatives of the Greek nation. No rhetorical Greek ever prepared this precious decree. It tells its own tale; it is too diplomatically laconic. It served its purpose in Europe: it looked so well suited to act as an annex to a protocol. Here, however, we have the source of half the evils of the Greek monarchy. King Otho's reign commenced with a violation of law, order, and common sense; and as this violation of every principle of justice had been openly countenanced by the political agents of the protecting powers, King Otho was misled into a belief that Great Britain, France, and Russia, wished to deliver Greece, bound hand and foot, and despoiled of every right, into his hands.
Various reasons, at the time, induced the Greeks to submit to these proceedings without a murmur, and even to turn away from those who endeavoured to raise a warning voice. The truth is, no sacrifice was too great, which held out a hope of putting an end to the existing anarchy. About thirteen thousand irregular troops were occupying the richest part of Greece, and destroying or consuming every thing that had escaped the Turks. The cattle and sheep of the peasantry were seized, the olive trees cut down for fuel; and while the people were dying of hunger, literally perishing for want of food, these banditti were feasting in abundance. The political Greeks, the jackals of diplomacy, cajolled the people and the soldiers, by declaring that the allied powers had furnished the king with money to pay the troops, and to indemnify every man for the losses sustained during the revolution.
King Otho and his regency did at last arrive, and they brought with them an army of Bavarians. The king was received with a degree of enthusiasm, and with proofs of devotion which would have touched any hearts not protected by an impenetrable padding of beer and sour crout. But it was, unfortunately for the young king, the fashion at the new court to despise and distrust the Greeks, to underrate their exploits, and to declaim against their honesty. The revolution was treated as a war of words, the defence of Missolonghi as a trifle, and the naval warfare as a farce. The Greeks have since, on the mountains of Maina, and on the plain of Phthiotis, shown themselves so far superior to the Bavarians when engaged in the field, that we shall say nothing on that subject. Their honesty has been generally considered more questionable than their courage; for though the names of Miaulis, Kanaris, Marco Botzaris, Niketas, Kolocotroni and Karaiskaki are known to all Europe, the only spotless statesman, in the opinion of the Greeks themselves, is the unknown Kanakaris. The arrival of the king, however, afforded singular proof of the strong feeling of patriotism and honesty which prevailed among the people.
The Bavarians arrived in Greece early in 1833, and the revenues for that year were estimated, by competent persons, at four millions of drachmas; but it was thought that the regency would not succeed in collecting more than three millions, as their recent arrival prevented their enforcing a strict system of control. It was necessary, therefore, to trust much to the honesty of the people, usually a poor guarantee for large payments into the exchequer of any country. But the Greeks felt that their national independence was connected with the stability of the new government, and they acted with true nobility of feeling on the occasion. The revenues received by the king's government in 1833, amounted to upwards of seven millions of drachmas, although two months elapsed before some of the provinces were relieved from the burden of maintaining the irregular soldiery at free quarters. We believe that there never was a government in the world which received the amount of the taxes imposed on the people with such perfect good faith, as the Greek government in 1833. The expenditure of the government for that year, amounted to something more than thirteen millions and a half, and if Greece had been governed with the honesty shown by the Greek people, the expenditure of future years would never have exceeded that sum.
[We subjoin a statement of the revenues and expenditure of Greece, for those in which the Greek government have condescended to publish their accounts.
REVENUE. EXPENDITURE. Drachmas. Drachmas. 1833, . . . . 7,042,653 1833, . . . . 13,630,467 1834, . . . . 9,455,410 1834, . . . . 20,150,657 1835, . . . . 10,737,011 1835, . . . . 16,851,070 1836, . . . . 12,381,000 1836, . . . . 16,447,126 1837, . . . . 13,313,393 1837, . . . . 16,190,527
After the king took the entire direction of public business into his own hands, he gave up publishing any accounts, and accordingly none have appeared in the Greek Gazette for the years 1838, 1839, 1840, and 1841. Financial difficulties pressing hard in 1842, his Majesty resumed the practice to a certain degree, by publishing a budget:—
REVENUE. EXPENDITURE.
Drachmas. Drachmas.
1842, estimated at 17,834,000 1842, . . . . 19,395,022
1843, . . . . 14,407,795 1843, . . . . 18,666,482
We may remark, that not the smallest reliance can be placed on these budgets for the years 1842 and 1843. We are informed that 1,000,000 drachmas of the revenue of 1842 were still unpaid in the month of May 1843.]