Now comes the necessity for a second journey to Limasol, perhaps thirty
or forty miles distant, to petition for the government official to
measure the contents of the jars; without such an examination, no wine
can be removed from the stores.
This is another loss of time to the grower, and occasions an expense for
himself and mule for the journey.
The jars are at length measured; but before any wine can be removed a
general examination of the quality of the district produce must be
completed, and, an average value having been determined, the tax of 10
per cent. must be paid ad valorem.
After these necessary forms have been gone through, with the attendant
vexatious delays and expensive journeys, entailing loss of time for men
and mules, the vine-grower wishes to carry his wine to market.
Before a drop can be removed he must present himself at the official
quarters, either at Kilani or one other village, to obtain a teskeri, or
permit, for the quantity that he wishes to convey. After this trouble
and delay he returns to his home with the official permit to remove to a
specified place (generally Limasol) a fixed quantity of wine, which is
calculated by the load; one load equals 128 okes of 2.75 lbs.
avoirdupois, and, packed in goat-skins, is carried by two mules.
The vine-grower himself weighs his wine when the skins are filled, and
he starts upon his long journey over steep mountain rocky paths to
Limasol, where he will sell his load to the wine-merchant, who
subsequently will ship it to the various ports of the Mediteranean.
The sun is burning; and the wine, contained in tarry goat-skins, is,
after a few hours' exposure to the heat, about the temperature of the
hottest bath; thus absorbing the vile smells of the primitive but secure
package. The owner is well aware that the value of his wine will depend
upon the flavour, therefore he hurries his mules forward, in order to
deliver it as quickly as possible to the merchant, before it shall be
contaminated by the skins.
Upon arrival at Limasol it may be late, and nothing can be done. His
wine must be weighed by the government official at the public
weighing-place, specially assigned for the wine trade; and he drives his
laden and tired mules to the yard. Here he finds some hundreds of mules
and their proprietors in a similar position to himself; however, there
is no help for it, and they must be patient through the night while
their wine is imbibing the hateful flavour of the goat-skins. In the
meantime they must purchase food for their mules and seek quarters for
themselves.
When the morning appears the government official has enough to do, and
as a certain time must be occupied in weighing a given quantity, the day
wears away.
