Daily Kennebec journal., 1906-01-18
The Moroccan Conference
Delegates Have Easy Day.
The Moorish Ideas as Express
ed by Mohammed E| Torres.
"Why Don't Powers Hold Conference on
Russia and Secure Order ?"

Algeciras, Jan. 1.-THE delegates OF
the Moroccan conference took a day of
leisure today in order to enable the
secretaries to get ready for their work
Some spent the time in preparing with
their junior colleagues for the discus
sion of the surveillance of contraband
arms in Morocco, the first question to
be discussed at the next meeting.
Ambassador White and Minister
Gunmere went over the present situs.-
ton in Morocco regarding Illicit trade
in arms. When the conference shall
have agreed on regulations for the
punishment of foreigners engaged in
smuggling arms into Morocco, some vi
the countries. including the United
States, will have to legislate on the
subject as only Great Britain and
Spain can by orders in council penal
iZe their subjects abroad.
While the talk among the ambassa-
dors is all Of conciliation and har-
mOny, Mohammed FL Torres, the
Moroccan foreign minister and head OF
the mission of Morocco and MOl;i, the
Sultan's principal agent do not be-
lieve that the conference will agree
I1uuSttl -Htdfli an tIilIltlll dutilOfl-
ty on Morocco, had prolonged con-
Versation today in Arabic with the
Mohammed Fl Torres and repeated to
The Associated Press the Moorish ideas
as follows:
"Mohammed FL Torres be n passive OBJ
server at the conference until it enters
the last stage. If the powers do not asre,
the conference will fall to pieces of itself
without the Moors lifting a finger. IT,
however. the powers accept a general
plan of control Of Morocco the Sultan
cannot submit to anything that will in
suit the father or provoke a rebellion
among his own people. Mohammed FL
Torres used the following sentence in
concluding the conversation, in pointing
out the Inconsistency of the powers.
''Why don't they hold n conference on
Russia and establish order there"
The powers will hesitate before facing
an international military occupation Of
Morocco to impose a scheme Of admins
tration. The MoorS expect some power
to take their view point even We're a gen.
eral agreement attained. They pray
much of the time for the Almighty to
protect His faithful and they trust that
the powers Of evil will fall in confusion.
The whole of the Islam world is some
what excited over the fate of Morocco as
it is the last independent Mcesulman
kingdom Of all Africa.
Mohammed FL Torres expresses citis-
faction at the fact that the conference
will begin with n discussion of contra
band arms. as this Is one question in
which Morocco is anxious to secure the
intervention Of the powers. The Moroc>
cans considered that while the French
and German governments nominally re-
strict contraband arms from entering
Morocco, the great manufacturers of
arms in France and Germany reap II
harvest by the Illicit introduction of
arms, thus fomenting anarchy and in
surrectiOn. Therefore MOROCCO is pre-
pared to have the powers dccisively stop
this contraband trade.
On the other hand some of the ambassa- =
tlors fear that the contraband question
may preci,itate a crisis over the main
Franco German controversy rs the sur
veillance of contraband arms involves
the determination whether France alone
shall patrol the coast or whether tho
powers shall establish an international
patrol. The determination Of who shall
establish the patrol may therefore bring
up the principal Tranco-Gcrman issue
over France having a special position
warranting her to direct the maintain
ance of order
All the delegates accepted with sats-
faction the election of NJ. Failorcs as
President of the French republic as an
indication that France will continue its
cOnciliatory policy.