The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1896-11-04
PIRACY REVIVED.
RIF NATIVES OF MOROCCO
AGAIN PLYING THEIR TRADE.
They Bob Frenchmen and Fight the
Spanish-They Live In Inacces-
stble Moungains - Defiant
Foes Of Civilization.


Morocco are at their old
i tricks again. These pirates
look upon the whole world as
an intruder, if it ventures to knock at
their door, and they usually manage
to keep all outsiders out of their
mountains. Just now they are bolder
than ever, the cable dispatches say, in
their depredations upon vessels that
happen to skirt their coasts.
The other day they boarded the
French ship Corlnte off AIhucemas
Island, about half way between Glib.
raltar and the west border OF Algeria,
tied up the crew, and took what they
wanted OF the cargo. Then they had
fight with the Spanish steamer
Sevilla, which had come to the rescue
of the Corinte. They killed four of
the Sevilla's crew and one of the Cuban
exiles who was being carried to an
African prison, and then hurried back
to their mountains with their booty
and the Captain of the Corinte, whom
they doubtless hold for ransom.
Premier Csnovas has sent protest
to the Sultan OF Morocco against the
renewed depredations OF the Rifians,
and says he hopes France will JOIN
Spain in giving such drubbing to
these mountaineers that they will
have no taste for piracy for long
time to come.
This is easy enough said, but it is
another matter to give their quietus
to these freebooters, the most daring
and defiant in the world to-day. They
have never cared for Europe, and
much less for the Sultan, who pre-
sumes to call them his subjects. The
last time the Sultan of Morocco had
the temerity to send them a Governor,
they cut off the gentleman's head and
sent word to their sovereign that they
would pay taxes to his collectors in
whizzing bullets.
These gentry are the only specimens
left of the old pirates of the Barbary
coast who made such an evil name for
North Africa, and once involved Uncle
Sam in bit OF war in the Mediter.
ranean. 1t was they who gave Spain
such hard fight in the mountains
around Melilla three years ago, and
when, after months of hostilities they
grew tired of being targets for the
cannon of Martinez Campos, they re.
tired into their mountains again, and
that was the last of the campaign. Their
loving Sultan had to promise Spain
that he would pay good round sum
for the damage they had done, and he
still owes most of the money. It is
most heartless for them to get him
into hot water again before he has set
led up for their past iniquities.
Why are these mountaineers, living
almost within a stones throw of
Europe, still The most inaccessible and
hostile of all the people of Africa?
Nobody knows, unless it be that their
wild mountains have moulded their
character and that, breathing its free
mir, they cannot bear the thought of
subjection to any man or power. It
is not their religion that makes them
so lntolerant. They are Mohamme-
dams, but the worst in the world.
They murder Mussulman with as lit.
tie compunction as an in6del. They
get drunk on liquor of their own
brewing, smoke in Ramadsn, and do
many other things that the Koran
strictly forbids. They are such lad
and dangerous lot that their noun
tains, close to Europe as they are,
are still the least known part of Africa.
A few daring explorers, however, have
ventured among them in disguise and
have told US little about them.
Most newspapers call them the
"Rif" natives, but this spelling of
their name is not sanctioned by the
best usage. They live in the Riff
Mountains, and geographers, there
fore, call them the Riff natives. The
word means "the coast" and 80 these
ore the mountains and the natives of
the COAST.
In their small boats the Riff natives
make journeys far along the coast,
and even to, Algerian ports. They
have no fear before their eyes of the
Moorish Customs officers, and snug
gle into their mountains guns and q
lot of other material that is either in.
terdicted entirely or is supposed to be
admitted into Morocco only upon pay
ment of heavy duties.
They build watermllls to grind
their grain, and are skilful black
smiths and armorers. They are not
Arabs, as many seem to think, nor are
they Moors; but they are of Berber
or aboriginal stock, divided into
number of tribes who do not always
live in harmony, but have their civil
wars, now and then, that are never re-
ported in the newspapers. But when
their country is menaced by the Sui
tan's troops they always flock to the
common standard and drive back the
enemy every time.
There are at least three good rea-
sons why the R1f natives, living almost
within sight of civilized Nations. are
still the defiant and unconquerable
foes of civilization. First, the Gov
ernment of Morocco is utterly unable
to break their power. The Sultans
have tried, again and again, to crush
them, and have always failed. Sec
ond, Europe has never yet made up its
mind that it would really be worth the
large expenditure it would cost to re-
duce these wild hlghlnnders to q state
of suhiection. Third, the Leading Eu.