The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-01-22
THE WICKEDEST CITY.
NEST OF CUI'THROATS FROM ALL
OVER CHRISTENDOM.


Visible Improvements.
From the New Orleans Times Democrat.
Tangier, Morocco.-Most Americans get
their idea of Tangier from a popular story
which describes the life here of certain
fugitives from American justice, safe from
arrest because of the lack of an extradi-
ton treaty
It's pretty good story and might cas-
lily be true; but as there are only three
genuinely American families In Morocco
and these are of the highest respectable
ity, the traveller from the states can look
philosophically upon the wickedest and
the most picturesque city in the world
The lack of an extradition treaty Is con-
venient, but America is a long way off
Most of the cheerful cutthroats and anna
BILE embezzlers whose exploits cast a halo
of glory over Tangier society are from
the nearest countries; especially from
Spain which is only a few miles away
from Portugal, France and Italy
Tangier is as European in its govern
ment as Shanghai. 1t is ruled by a san
itary council, composed of all the foreign
ministers to Morocco, acting with the
shereefian, or Moorish, minister of foreign
affairs. The sultan himself almost never
comes to Tangier, though the one vessel
which is at once royal yacht and the en-
tire Moorish navy lies in its harbor, The
sultan regards Tangier as spoiled by the
presence of several thousand alleged
Christians. And no wonderl
Renegade Moors flock to Tangier to be
free from the sultan's eXactions, Most of
them are English, Spanish. Portuguese
French or American citizens, though how
4l,,xv Aha9- Igsv,.
dim Oriental mystery. These people are
constantly appealing to their respective
ministers to protect them. and constitute
first-class nuisance to every one CON
cerned. 1t is not wonderful that they val
ne their citizenship papers so highly,
since his Sheereeflan majesty has playful
way of throwing rich men into jail until
they arrange "A satisfactory division of
their wealth. A sultan having absolute
power of life and death is no joke Many
a wealthy Moor goes clad i'm rags to avoid
his pantatas with their assessment lists.
Here as elsewhere I'm the east, the poor
Jews get the worst treatment They arc
Obliged to wear distinctive garment,
long blue or black caftan, and to live in
a special quarter of the city reserved for
them. In the interior towns they are COM
PEELED to go barefoot all the year round.
II is not at all strange that the Jews of
Tangier are mostly citizens of Great Brit
ain, France or Spain, though they may
never have set foot in those countries.
A renegade Moor is not a Christian, no
matter of what country he may be citi-
zen. No Christian may 4ter mosque,
| even in Tangier, though the door stands
open all day long A Spanlard tried it
| not long ago. In a moment the fierce Mo-
| hammedans were upon him with daggers
| whipped from beneath their flowing robes,
| and a few days thereafter there was
| first-class Spanish funeral in Tangier. one
cannot even enter a school where the Mt
| tie Moorish boys sit rocking back and
| forth all day long, singing the Koran in
| chorus; but as the whole performance is
visible through the door, the deprivation
| is endurable.
Those twin relics of barbarism slavery
| and polygamy, exist in Tangier under the
| benign rule of the Sanitary Council OF
Christian powers, whereof British Min
| lister Nicolson is president. Slaves cannot
| be bought and sold in Tangier, except Dy
private agreement. There is no slave mart,
| as at Bogador and other interior towns;
but long caravans of slaves pass through,
! and their rags jostle the stirrups OF the
/ august foreign ministers as they ride
| horseback through the vile and narrow
| streets. They drive the camels in the cara
vans from the Soudon which halt outside
| the CITY gates They do much of the hard
| and heavy work. They are exclusively
| employed in the harems of the wealthy
/ Moors. They are even owned by Euro
/ peans. There is no adniXture of blood in
| these slaves. They are as black as coal,
| and as ragged as beggars, while the Moors,
| especially the wealthy ones who live IN
! DOORS are no more swarthy than many
| Englshmen, and are often beautifully
! clad
The rule of the Sanitary Council ex-
| tends three miles beyond the walls of
| Tangier Further than that European
| is not permitted to go without Moorish
/ soldier as an escort. Sometimes people
| try it. A while ago a Spaniard was muir
| dered in this way. His government Sc
cured a money payment from the Sultan,
| but the murderers were never punished.
| Piracy is still an occasional pleasantly OF
| Moorish life The Prosper Corin, vessel
| engaged in the French-Spanish trade. was
| recently looted by Reetian pirates ana the
foreign ministers went in body, accom-
panied by their dragomans, 20 demand
restitution on behalf Of France and Spain
| from Mohammed Eel Torres, the Shereefian
Minister OF State. They will get 1t some
day.
These dragomans are splendid crea-
| lures i'm robes and turbaus, looking as II
they had just stepped out of the Arabian
| Nights. They squat on their heels in the
| ministerial ante chambers, run errands
/
| When | got past the particular Yusef
who guards the door of the United States
representative. l found in Mr. Burke the
| ex-principal az the village school which
| once attended. After swapping remlnis-
cences of deacon this and squire that, Mr.
Burke, who is a veteran diplomatlst
though not long in Tangier. talked low
| ingly of the country.
''There is no telegraph here, except to
| the Spanish possessions In Ceuta and Me-
! lila and to the country seats of the for
eIgn Minister'S" said Mr. Burke. Tine
| Moors have no use for 1t. Some day or
other l must go to Fee to pay my re-
| spects to the sultan. Just by way OF a
| Joke asked the minister OF foreign at
| fairs, whose establishment is here. what
railroad I should take for Fee. He held
up his hands in holy horror. There will
| never be a railroad in Morocco, he said.
u asked II Morocco was very popu.
| lous country.
ooh, yes said the minister, IL Is by
far the greatest and most populous coun-
| try In the world
3" About how many inhabitants do you
count in your census"