Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1900-03-07
LIFE IN old MOROCCO
Mr.. Hill Talks Interestingly Of
That Distant Domain.
CIVILIZATION IS UTTERLY UNKNOWN

CIVILIZATION Is UTTERLY UNKNOWN
AIl Work Is Done By Aged Women,
camels and Doniseys-A God
Forsaken Country.
Attorney William P. Hill,. of At
lanta, who has just returned from a
flying trip to far.off Morocco, which
country he visited as the special rep
resentative of the Atlanta and West
Point Railroad company, for the pur-
pose of securing possession of Thomas
J. Hunter, the defaulting ex-auditor of
the company, and bringing him back
to be tried on the charge of embezzle-
ment, gives some interesting informa-
tion with reference to the country that
he visited and the manner in which the
people of Morocco live.
He was accompanied on the trip by
John w. Rodgers, one of Pinkerton's
best detectives, and they agree upon
one point, that Morocco is the widest
and most uncivilized country upon
the face of the earth. In answer to
volleys of questions fired at him by
group of friends. Mr.. Hill said:
Morocco looks as well as any 9TH
er country on the map, but the map is
as dumb as soap statue when it
comes to telling anything of this dis
tant land where the people know moth
ing whatever of liberty or what the
word implies. Morocco is neither an
empire or republic. It is simply q
great ignnciyilized country owned by
the sultan, who though only seven
teen years of age, has two wives and
according to the laws and customs of
the land can have as many more as he
desires. He lives at Fez, the capital,
but heswas at Morocco when I was
there, where he spends good deal of
his time"
Some member of the group .of lis
teners at this poiat1 remarked: swell,
you did not see, him?"
'.Oh. no, resumed Mr.. Hill. "Why,
it would have taken me six weeks to
have gone to where he was, as there is
no way of travelling in Morocco except
on the back of donkey or camel.
I don't believe that there is single
vehicle IN the whole of Morocco, not
even q wheelbarrow."
Glow big is the country" was
asked.
"Well, from what I could learn.
about the extent of its territory, I
would say that Morocco is about as
big as four or five of our states, but
when you get to going over it, it is
bigger than the United States, or at
least you will think soft you had to
rely on the speed of donkey or a
camel to take you over it. And the
country. Yop should see it to appre-
ciate what I say. There are no roads,
only paths running in every direction
cut out by donkeys, camels and people
travelling on foot. Outside OF the
cities the country is one dense forest
or jungle, and no one except native
could find his way through it. The
land is marYelously rich and grows ev-
erything In abundance without work
ing the soil at all. This generosity
upon the part of the soil has made the
people indolent and lazy, and none of
Z them will work unless compelled to do
something for themselves that nature
I will not do.
he land is also rich with minerals
3 Of every character, and coal abounds
in large quantities. With ell this,
however, Morocco gets her coal and
minerals from the outside world; not
that it is better than the home supply,
but because it is considered sacrile-
gious aud even criminal to disturb the
deposits of the earth. The heaviest
punishment, which is imprisonment,
is imposed upon any one who will ven-
ture to disturb the wealth that is hid
den in the soil. The people regard
anything Like this as crime of the
worst character, and if hanging was q
punishment in Morocco for crime any
man who would dig coal in that coun-
try would be hung without the for
malities of trial"
:What about the courts?"
'They have none. Here and there
!. you will find a lawyer, but he amounts
to nothing. Lawyers are not needed
there, as they can do nothing for a
man in trouble. The sultan of Moroc-
co is boss and his will is law. If he
decides that q man is guilty he is
sent to prison, and the only way that
he can get out is for his friends to get
up good purse and buy his pardon
with it. The country is divided up
into sections or states, and each of
these is presided over by pasha. He
is king of his domain and holds his Of
fee subject to removal by the sultan.
He purchases his Office from the sultan
with money and holds it by making
handsome presents to the sultan every
year. II he fails or refuses to send
the sultan present then he is fred
out of his Office and into prison,
where he is held until his friends come
forward and pay him out, and if his
friends fail to respond then the depos.
ed pasha is kept in prison until he
dies.
s'Until few years ago when man
was placed in prison he was starved to
death, unless his friends fed him, as
the government did not feed any one
III prison. Recently, however, border
ing countries have taken hold of this
matter and demanded that provision