The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1890-02-03
TEN DAYS IN MOROCCO.
Mrs. WooIson's Lecture In the First
Parish Course.

"Ten Days in Morocco" was the subject
of Mrs. Abba Goold Woolson's lecture de-
livered in the course given at the First Par
ish church, Saturday afternoon, to large
audience. DR.. Hill introduced the speaker,
aud for an hour and half she held the close
attention of the audience. Mrs. Woolson
said:
1t was on the 10Th day of December. 1888,
warm and lovely day. that l was allowed
to carry out my dream Of seeing Africa.
There were five ladies In the party and one
young gentleman. When in the north of
Europe, we said to ourselves, we shall see
Spain, and after that we want to visit Afri-
ca, and If 1t was only little corner of Africa
that we saw, yet we saw 1t very We'll we
wished to see the land where so much OF his
tory and romance cluster. Here were the
home of Hannibal the remains Of the an
cent Carthaginians; where Livingstone
picked his way in the trackless WIGS, when
he discoved the great lakes in Central Atrl-
ca, and later when civilized man held his
breath for news of Stanley; the land which
the poetry of "L. E. L." and Mrs Sigourney
immortalized, and where Letitia E Landon
found her final resting place.
Africa is the new world for civilized ma
tions, and Stanley has penetrated into the
interior of the dark continent. and there in
Morocco you come to MOhammedan civil
zaton. You leave In the year 1888 aud fluid
yourself in the year 1901, dating your letters
thus. You find people speaking Arabic,
graceful language, with its interlacing letters
to the eye, but to the ear lackin the grace
and charm that 1t has when pictured on
the walls of old Moorish palaces.
IL takes two or three hours to pass through
the straits from the town of Gibraltar to the
seaport town of Tangier or Tangiers. as we
used to call 1t. 1t Is the main seapor; of
Morocco, on high ground overlooking the
bay, and surrounded by wall. 1t was an
important city under the Romans. 1t has
passed through various hands and had the
English government had the forethought to
have held on to it, it would now be consid-
cred priceless possession, because it is the
basis for the supplies of the English garri-
son at Gibraltar.
We speak of the little kingdom of Moroc-
co, yet i is larger than the realm of france
In this little corner of Africa-Morccco-
there are 100000 people, gathered mostly
in five or six cities. Fec, the home OF the
Sultan, is associated in our minds with the
red caps which are exported and bear the
name of that city.
| climate; 1t was connected in my mind with
burning, though golden sands. But the
| Atlas Mountains, which divide Morocco into
| two great slopes contain some of the most
| elevated peaks in Northern Africa, many of
which are covered with snow the greater
1
Mrs. Woolson then graphically described
the varied races and costumes to be met
| with in Tangier, the baZaarS with theiI
brilliant and attractive goods, etc. She then
| gave humorous account Of wedding to
| which the party were invited. On beDi
| told that the wedding would last three day
they said they wished to go on the day wher
the ceremony was performed. 'But there
is no ceremony" swell, we shall surely
see the BRIDE" "Oh, no, the bride won't b
there" "But the bridegroom" "Well, the
last thing the bridegroom would attemp,
| would be to attend his own wedding" But
all the wealth and beauty of Tangler We're
there.
In their everyday life simplicity is the key
note, and Mr.. Woolson questioned if civil
cation had not brought too much work and
care on woman. The furnishing of house
| Is an easy matter-a rug or two, few
| cushions, and the house is furnished
sometimes we wished that life was on
| higher level there, not mentally or spiritual
seeing cups of tea on the floor, or lighted
| candles, with feminine draperies rustling be-
| tween"
They went down to villa on the Atlantic
| coast, and though the waves lacked the
| green and violet tint of the waters of the
bay, yet it looked more beautiful to them be
cause on the otner shore was home. Here
the speaker gave a vivid account of the
wrecking of an English ship which they wit
messed, though only two were lost out of a
crew of eleven-the captain, who died OF
heart disease when he found that the ship
was sinking, and boy who was washed
overheard. And watching the angry sea
sweep over the ship they almost thought they
would rather stay IN Africa than trust them.
| selves on the sea which looked so terrible II
them then, with the tragedy embodied in it,
waters.