Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-01-14
HIS THRONE IN DANGER
Ruler of Morocco Alarmed by
Disturbances.
THE CRITICAL STAGE
INABILITY OF THE GOVERNMENT
TO PRESERVE ORDER.
Restless Mountaineers Giving Trouble
in the Coast DEMONSTRATING
for Plumber.

Recent dispatches from Morocco indicate
revival of the internal disturbances which
have In the last twenty years repeatedly
caused grave apprehension for the SAFETY
of foreigners. A spirit OF lawlessness Is
becoming general over the whole country
and robberies and even murders are almost
of daily occurrence The present disturbed
condition has been developing for some
months. and 1t has now reached critical
stage Recently Sir Harry Maclean, an ex-
officer of the British army, who has been
In the employ of the Moorish government
for many years, was attacked and badly
bruised. Another British subject, Mr..
Harris, was also set upon and brutally
beaten near his home in Tangier These
are not the. only instances where disorder
has occurred, but they are sufficient to
show the temper of the Moorish natives
and the uncertain condition of Morocco.
To cope with any situation that might
arise in the future the French government
has taken cogniZance of the disorders and
the navy yard at Toulon is rapidly prepar
ing several battle ships and cruisers for
active service.
Main Cause Of Trouble.
The main cause of the present trouble is
the utter inability OF the Moorish govern
ment to preserve order. Never in the his
tory of Morocco have the restless Bcr-
bers or moantaineers been thoroughly con-
quered. and now they are as troublesome
as ever. They are beginning to realize their
own strength and are making frequent
fnroads upon the coast towns for plumber.
Realizing their independent condition, they
do not hesitate to commit any atrocity
whatever, and In the majority Of cases they
escape unpublished. If they happen to In
terfere with any foreigner in the course
NJ hall 1tv,or tI1
falls on the shoulders of the sultan, who
Is unable to punish them. This freedom
from punishment encourages them In their
career Of brfgandage and many criminal
excuses naturally result.
Moreover, the present ruler is in immi-
nent danger of losing his throne and pos
Sibly his life at any moment. He was
chosen for the sultanate In 1894 and as
he was supported by the powers. his access
sion was peaceful But his elder brother
was dsregarded in the choice of ruler
and is now exercising all his ability to en-
barrass his successful brother. The elder
brother was not totally neglected, however,
as he was given a position one of the
s1ltan's ministers. but he was naturally
disappointed with minor position. The
present sultan was selected not on ac-
count Of his great ability, but more be-
cause he was the favorite son of the previ-
Gus ruler This seems to be the usual rule
of succession in oriental countries, and 1t
has never met with even moderate success.
In Morocco the death of ruler was al
ways signal for a patriotic outburst on
the part Of the people and the new sue
cessor's first duty was to quell all disturb
ances. At the beginning of every reign
the Moors seem to chafe under the despotic
rule OF the sultan and to make vigorous
efforts for independence, but at all other
times they are Indifferent to governmental
affairs.
Rebellion Of 1878.
In 1878 the wild tribes of the mountain
Gus regions rebelied and caused consider
able destruction both Of life and of prop
erty. The sultan was unable to queI the
disorder and foreign help was required. A
number of European warshtps were mo-
bilized to guarantee the safety of the for
elgners and quiet was soon restored. Again,
In 1887, similar disturbance occurred, and
another naval demonstration was neces-
sary to settle the disorder. The present
trouble Is more dangerous. however, ON ac
count of the fact that even the larger cities,
such as Tangie-, Tetuan and Casabanca,
are in the sphere of lawlessness. In addi-
ton to the occasional marauding parties
of the restless Berbers, the sultan now has
to take into account general feeling OF
discomfort with the existing government.
The Moors are daily becoming more impa-
tient under autocratic rule of the sultan,
and how their ill-wfll toward the sultan
will manifest itself is unknown, and con-
SeQuently feared.
The present foreign colony In Morocco is
much smaller than IT has been in years
past. However. there is still a large num-
Der Of Europeans in the country. and the
majorfty of these are in the large coast
towns Only few are rash enough to ven
ture far intosthe Interior on account OF the
lack OF adequate protection from brigands.
Foreigners are especially liable to capture
because of the greater possibility Of obtain
ing g. ransom for their release. Europeans
have always had great influence IN mold
uleut but of late years France has assumed