Sierra County advocate. [volume] (Kingston, N.M.) 1884-1960, 1892-10-28


expenses OF war should he he 40
unlucky as to become involved in
trouble with HIS European friends
The debt he owes Spain on account
of the unpleas entness between that
country and his own years ago not
paid yet, although the sum Is being
diminished rapidly, as Spain takes
one-half of the total customs duties
collected at Morocco ports.
Nobody knows how great the
sum of money is that is held in the
treasure boxes of Morocco, but 1t is
supposed to be enormous. Moroc-
co has a population OF about 5000.
600 people, and although most OF
them are very poor, the tax-gather-
ers contrive to squeeze a good deal
of money ont of them. Miknas
has been the royal treasury for
some centuries. The treasury
building is short distance out
side of the city. Its stone walls
are very high and thick. To get
inside these walls one has 70 pass
through three great iron doors. If
thieves could get inside all these
doors they yet might not be able
to secure the treasure. The inter-
ior is long, narrow hall, as dark as
pitch, which is the passageway to
the iron trapdoor, abundantly sup
piled with locks, which is led into
the stone flooring and leads to an
underground apartment, where the
treasure is kept in large room
called the treasure chamber The
building is guarded constantly by
300 negro slaves, who are part OF
the Sultan's army, and are never
permitted to leave the neighbor-
hood.
The treasure house is opened
only once a year. At that time
the Sultan either comes in person
or sends one of his most trusted
officials The purpose usually Is
not to take any treasure away, but
to add to the hoard, because the
Sultan retains from the taxes a
sufficient sum to meet all the ex-
penses of his court and govern
ment. As a rule, therefore, unless
the Sultan has had an unusually
unpleasant time with the Berbers.
who are in rebellion often, and
determined apparently to make the
Sultan's life burden to him, the
accumulations in the treasury are
not diminished.
The sub-treasuries, which have
existed within the last few years
only, are at Fex, the city OF
Morocco and in the oasis OF
Tafilaet, south of the Atlas noun
tains, among the Filali people.
The shrewd Sultan in hiding q
part of his revenue in the desert OF
Sahara is providing, undoubtedly,
for the possibility that he may be
compelled to leave his throne and
8 SEX safety in flight some day.
He proposes, il that unhappy event
occurs, to have money enough tor
a rainy day in region that is not
accessible easily. 1t is said that
the amount deposited in the oasis
is very much larger than the
amount deposited in the other sub
treasures and that the Sultan has
been considering seriously the ad-
visibility OF cartlng off most of
the money he keeps at Miknas 10
Tafilalet. Miknas is on the road
to the city of Morocco, and should
the Sultan be involved in war With
nm invading European power it IL
likely that one OF its first enter
prlses would be to Get possession
Df the treasure house at Miknas.
The soldier slaves that guard the
house are called the Black Guard.
A great niny fables aud rumors
about This treasure honse have
been recorded, but the foregoing
Farts ara unexaggerated, and very
little more Id known actually about
The treasure.