Sponge divers in Libya

Telegram of financial nature whereby the recipient (Verveniotis from Hydra, businessman and financier of sponge fishing) is informed by the sender about issues concerning the sponge fishing company in Libya. Sponge fishing was the main source of livelihood of the inhabitants of Hydra in the early 20th century. Especially after the ban on sponge fishing from the Ottoman Empire, the sponge fishing fleets of Hydra took the opportunity to move their business to the northern coast of Africa, especially the coast of Libya, where there were sponges of excellent quality. The telegram carries information on the development of the sponge fishing business: Daskalakis Kritikos came. Zotos took violently four divers. They seek instructions. He left machines Vigazi". The recipient of the telegram was Verveniotis, one of the most known shipowners of sponge fishing in Hydra. In an article of the newspaper "Empros" of 1908, Verveniotis is characterised as "fierce, terrible and keenly contested in advocacy and attack". Shipowners were accused of imposing unsustainable borrowing to the captains at the rate that stood at 30%. Overall it was a profitable but risky profession with often fatal accidents