The Sun.
London, England, 1860-09-08 00:00:00

Till TURKS IN YR2IIEIV.

At the present moment, when the Syrian mas-
sacres are still fresh in our minds, and when men
are beginning to ask themselves the question how
long the Turks shall be permitted to turn into a
wilderness that which the Creator declared " very
good," it may interest our readers to know how our
ancient allies govern the provinces more remote
from the observation of European statesmen.
The position of Mokha is well known ; it is popu-
larly supposed still to be the great emporium of
Arabian coffee, and the steamer passengers who ob-
serve in the distance a goodly array of tall minarets
and white houses, fill up the canvas with their own
ideas of a thriving seaport town. But the city is a
miserable ruin, the superior advantages of Aden,
and the blighting effects of- Turkish misrule, have
combined to withdraw to the British settlement the
entire trade of the surrounding country.
Outside the city of Mokha there are several Arab
tribes who own the Turkish sway
j• of these, the
most important are the Mushlahi ( ushalaha)
and the Mozal, or people of Moza. long ago a
feud broke out between these clans, and several were
killed on either side. The Pasha of Yemen, who is
at Bait-el-Fukih, with a considerable force, sum-
moned ten of the chief men of each to appear before
him and answer for their misdeeds. The result of
the investigation was, that each of the tribes was
fined an enormous sum, far more than could possibly
be paid, and the chiefs were sent back to Mokha
under charge of one Saffer Bey, and a troop of
Turkish cavalry.
On their arrival at Mokha, Saffer Bey, to whom
the enforcement of the award was entrusted, threw
the chiefs into gaol, ironed the legs of each, and
chained them together by the neck. The poor Be-
douins brought all the money they could collect to
meet the fine, but it fell far short of what was re-
quired ; and the Bey had the chiefs publicly flogged
at the gates of the city. Among these vas the head
man of each tribe, and several of their near relatives.
Their clansmen in vain implored for mercy on their
behalf, offering to pay all that was demanded if a lit-
tle time were only allowed ; but the Bey was obdu-
rate, and threatened if the entire sum was not forth-
coming on the morrow (Aug. 1), again to administer
the stick, hinting that this time he would not
desist while life remained in the bodies of his un-
happy victims. This was more than the Bedouins
could stand, and they determined to release their
chiefs vi et arms*. Several hundreds of them met
at night and attacked the town, or rather they
scaled the walls unopposed, broke open the gaol,
freed all the prisoners—upwards of sixty in num-
ber—and having effected their object without
bloodshed, were retiring to their villages they were
met and opposed by the Aghan. Saffer and his
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ceeding their opponents in number, were urged to
recklessness by grievous wrong and oppression.
Twelve Turks and several horses were left dead on
the field, while the Arabs quietly retired, with a
considerable number of captured horses, and only
one casualty. The entire Mushlahi tribe has de-
serted its villages and sought refuge in the hill
country, where they have blockaded all the roads
leading to Mokha. Some have gone to their
neighbours the Hakami ; others have fled to Aden ;
but the main body remains near Moza, determined
not to permit a camel load of provisions to enter
Mokha.

A precisely similar affair has taken place in the
more western province of Yemen, the particulars of
which have not as yet reached us ; but it is
rumoured that not less than 40 Turks have been
killed by the Zanareet tribe, and that Hodaida is
in nearly as bad a plight as Mokha.
The revenues of Yemen have this year been
farmed to a company of Christian merchants at
Constantinople for 400,000 dollars, and they are
likely to make a bad speculation, especially in the
eastern parts, where trade is absolutely at a stand-
still.—homeward Mail, Sept. 4.