Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1892-05-13
MOROCCO'S TREASURE HOUSE.
boarding Gold and silver Under Ground
with 800 Black Soldiers to Guard 1t.

Hoarding Gold and Silver Under Ground
with 800 Black Soldiers to Guard 1t.
Morocco has famous treasure house
which, although not so important as
1t was once. still contains large part
OF the Sultan's accommodations from the
heavy taxes imposed on his people.
There are at present three sub-treas-
uries where considerable part of the
country's revenue is kept. The chief
repository, however. and the only one
which is we'll known, is st Miknas. on
the road between Fee and the city of
Morocco.
In the course of time an immense
amount of money has been kept in that
strongly guarded receptacle. The
treasure is in the form of gold and
silver, good deal of it coined and .
great deal in the form of bar metal.
Morocco is not very expensive Gov
eminent to carry on, although the peo-
pie are burdened with heavy taxes.
The sultan's outgo is chiefly for the
expenses of his court, for the payment
of his pension roll, which amounts to
a considerable sum, for theological
schools, for the entertainment of his
guests, and for his army, which, how
ever. is not heavy drain on the treas
ury.
The officers of the State cost the
Government comparatively little, for
they are expected, in their own prov
inces, to bleed the people for their
personal advantage, and they live
right up to their privileges. Very lit
tie is expended for streets, roads,
bridges, prisons, and other things
which cost most governments a great
deal OF money. The Sultan boards a
large part of the sums be receives from
taxes to add to his personal fortune
and to pay the expenses of war, should
he be so unlucky as to become in
volved in trouble with his European
friends. The debt he owes Spain on
account of the unpleasantness between
that country and his own years ago is
not paid yet, although the sum is be-
ing 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 TIE treasure
boxes of Morocco, but il is supposed
to be enormous. Morocco has popu-
lation Of about 8,000,000 people, and
although most of them are very poor,
the tax Iatherers cOntriye to squeeze q
good deal of money out Of them.
Miknas has been the royal treasury
for some centuries. The treasury
building is short distance outside OF
the city. It's stone walls are very
high and thick. To get inside these
walls one has to pass through two or
three great iron doors. If thieves
could get inside all these doors they
yet might not be able to secure the
treasure. The interior is long, mar
row hall, as dark as pitch, which is
the passageway to the iron trap door,
abundantly supplied with locks, which
is let into the stone flooring, and leads
to an underground apartment, where
the treasure is kept in large room
called the treasure chamber. The build
ing is guarded constantly by 80 negro
slaves, who are never permitted to
leave the neighborhood.
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 pur.
pose, usually, is not to take any treas.
ure away, but to add to the hoard, be.
cause the Sultan retains from the
taxes sufficient sum to meet ell the
expenses Of his court and government.
AS q rule, therefore, unless Che Sui
tan has had an unusually unpleasant
time with the Berbers, who are in re.
beIIion often, and determined, APP
parently, to make the Sultan'S life a
burden to him, the accommodations in
the treasury are not diminished.
The sub-treasuries, which have ex-
listed within the past few years only,
are at Fee, the city of Morocco, and III
the oasis of Tatilalet, south of the At.
lns Mountains, among the Filai PEG.
pie. The shrewd Sultan, in hiding q
part of his revenue in the desert Of
Sahara, is providing, undoubtedly. fol
the posi- bility that he may be com
PEELED to leave his throne and seek
safety IN flight some day. He pro
poses, if this unhappy event occurs
to have money enough for a rainy day
in a region that is not accessible easily
1t is said that the treasure kept in the
| oasis is very much larger than The
amount deposited in the other sub
treasures, and that the Sultan ha'
been considering seriously the advis
ability of carting off most Of the mon
ely he keeps at Miknas to Tafilalct
Miknas is on the road to the city 0
| Morocco, and should the Sultan be in
volved in war with an invading Eu
ropean power it is likely that one o
its first enterprises would be to ge
| possession of the treasure house a
Miknas. The soldier slaves who guart
! the house are called the black guard
A great many fables and rumors abou
| this treasure house have been record
ed, but the foregoing facts are unex
aggerated, and very little more i
known actually about the treasure