by Dimitrios G. Prevas, Palaiopanagia, February 7, 2011
Published in The Faris Newsletter, Issue 54, July 2011, page 20
There’s a scientific principle that any gap that is created in nature is inevitably and typically filled by other elements of inferior quality. We all tend to forget this when old values are abandoned or lost.
The field guard is also one of the old values, who protected the land, the countryside, the outdoors that is now unguarded and where countless outlaws roam freely, terrorizing the elderly, taking their wages, stealing everything, whatever they can find: lambs, chickens, kettles, irrigation valves, with a great risk of killing you or, you killing them and going to jail.
Every village used to have a capable field guard, the protector of nature. Every day, alone but also with other field guards, he roamed the land, a vigilant sentinel, observing everything in his grey uniform with boots and a hat, like a constable.
And although before you saw him passing, in another part of the village you heard him whistling. He was a fickle person, an excellent tracker who could find any trace, even in the mud or dust. He investigated the tracks and acted accordingly. He knew the owner of every field, the flocks, and every estate whether it was sown, fallow or obstructed. He settled the villagers’ disputes and always made a proper assessment of their damages. At night he conducted raids, frequently patrolling and setting up several ambushes, and even staying up all night. So, no one would dare to break the law because the invisible guard would punish fairly. He did his job right and the farmers acknowledged him. Well done, they said to themselves, and they slept peacefully. The field guards guarded the outdoors which is now unguarded and countless outlaws roam freely. They terrorize, burn and loot. This phenomenon is in great need of the government to address it. When you guard yourself from all danger, then you will learn to guard ordinary citizens as well.
Aristotle had said that, when there are law-abiding citizens, there is no need for the state. For this reason, the real power must institute draconian laws to secure order.
Field guards I have known:
Anogeia: Petros Vivliotis, Leonidas Stathakos, Christos Menoutis.
Palaiopanagia: Vasilis Kourniotis, Dimos Giannopoulos, Giannos Smyrnios, Panagiotis Perentesis, Pavlos Mylonas.
Trapezonti: Evaggelos Asimakis; Achilleas Miridis, Dimitrios Roumeliotis.
Xirokampi: Georgios Kalogeras, Athanasios Vergados, Giannis Mpouzas.
Kaminia: Apostolos Kritikos.
Gorani: Evaggelos Katounas.
I am honored to receive permission from the Katsoulakos family to translate and share articles from The Faris. Translation verification and corrections have been made by GreekAncestry.net. This is the ninth article of the ongoing series. Previous articles can be viewed here.
Spartan Roots (Σπαρτιατικές Ρίζες) 