Home life in Hellas, Greece and the Greeks - eBooks4Greeks.gr

62 HOME LIFE IN HELLASto the houses. The sea might be hundreds ofmiles away. There is not a suspicion of "themighty wave that ill winds roll without." It isone of the snuggest, and certainly one of themost beautiful harbours in the world. We landon a well-made quay, with an excellent roadwayrunning round the port—a relic of the Britishoccupation.An Englishman will not have much troublein Ithaca with regard to language. English isalmost as much the common tongue of the sea asFrench is of diplomacy, and the Ithacans, likethe Companions of Ulysses, are seafarers. TheGreeks are boatmen, but not as a rule deep-seasailors. These latter only come from certainspots ; Andros is one, Ithaca is another, and theIthacans have the genuine salt in their blood.The little island owns a goodly number ofsteamers. They come to Vathy once only, tobe registered, then trade all over the world, butmainly to British ports. They are commanded,officered, and manned exclusively by Ithacans,who furnish more seamen than they require, andthe surplus sail in British ships. But all arefaithful to Ithaca, and between those who haveretired and those who are having a spell ashore,there is always a contingent at Vathy who hail anEnglishman with delight. They are familiar withhim on the Thames, the Mersey, or the Hooghly.They have often met him on the Apollo Bunderat Bombay or the Circular Quay at Sydney, but