The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1907-05-17

The occupation of the Moroccan
town of Ujda by the French, under
the command of Gen. Lyautey, may
very likely prove an event of the ut
most importance to the future of the
Shereefian empire. Moorish fanaticism
and arrogance have INDUCED, during
the past few months, in perfect orgy
of outrage at the expense of the
French. One Frenchman has been
shot dead on the beach at Tangier,
others have been attacked and nearly
murdered, and now the stoning and
stabbing to death of DR.. Mauchamp at
Marakesh has brought matters to
climax. In view of the fact that the
authors of these outrages have never
been punished, and that the Mayhem
evidently disbelieves in the determin-
alton of France to exact punishment
and compensation, the French govern
ment have decided not merely to re-
sort to the futile method of a naval
demonstration at Tangier, but to send
troops across the Algerian frontier
and occupy Ujda until such time as
their demands shall have been fully
complied with.
It has been said of the northern
coast of Africa that the farther west
you go along it, the farther east you
get That sounds like paradox, but
it is perfectly true: Suez is infinitely
less primitively oriental than is Cape
Spartel. Whereas we use the term
western" as equivalent to civilized"
Moghreb-el-Acksa, "the far west" as
the Moors call Morocco, is the COM
plete negation of everything that we
mean by civilization. The tourist who
crosses from Gibraltar or Cadiz to
land at Tangier, is apt, in his inno-
cence, to imagine that he is going to
see Morocco He will see nothing of
Morocco in Tangier. He may climb
up the long street past the mosque,
may watch the Cadi administering
what is factetiously termed justice in
the open air, may stare at the wretch
ed prisoners in the gaol (Which gaol is
extremely Moorish), and may marvel
at the picturesque crowd of buyers
and sellers in the great Sioux, or mar
ket place, at the top of the town; but
all the time he is in cosmopolitan
center, filed with the social fiotsam
and jetsam of the Mediterranean lit
toral, and reeking with the diplomatic
intrigues of the powers whose repre-
sentatives abide under the forest of
flags which waves over the various le-
cations. To your true Moor Tangier
is an infidelridden place, a veritable
gate of Gehenna, polluted by the pres
ence of the "Nazarenes," whom Allah
in his good time will surely sweep to
perdition. No; we must go further
afield to find the real Morocco: it is
not to be met with in Tangier.
Where, then, shall we find the real
Moghreb-elAcksa? If things were
fairly quiet, and the road to Fee were
open to tourists, we should only have
to hire horses, tents and, perhaps,
ragged escort of Moorish soldiers, and
ride across country to the northern
capital. Fee is called the northern
capital because there is another in the
south, which is Marakesh, otherwise
called Morocco city. There are, fur
thermore, two other cities which claim
the dignity of capital, Mequinez and
Rabat; but these are really only halt
ing places for the sultan in the course
of his peregrinations. Fez-or Fas-
was founded as long ago as the eighth
century of our era by the son of Mu-
lai Idrees, a "Shereef'' or lineal de-
scendant of the prophet, and one of
the first Arabian missionaries to ar
rive in Morocco. The founder of the
city lies buried in the great mosque of
the city-a spot so sacred that the
"NaZarene" or Jew who should at
tempt to enter it would inevitably
share the fate of poor Dr. Mauchamp
at Marakesh. The population of Fee,
which belongs to the old Berber, or
aboriginal, stock, rather than, as at
Marakesh, to the Arab race, is exceed
ingly fierce and fanatical.
Marakesh, the southern capital, lies,
az our illustration shows, in an oasis
of date-palms at the foot of the range
of the Atlas. High above the dark
green of the palms and the white
walls of the houses rises, like tall
lily from a garden bed, the minaret
of a mosque of the Koutoubia-th
glory of Marakesh. The city covers
larse area with its network of narrow
lanes, and the Jaws, as is customary
in Morocco, dwell exclusively in their
"Mellah," or Ghetto, which Is COM
peately walled off from the quarters of
me true believers. 1t was within the
walls Of the "Mellah" that some
French resideh.s took shelter on the
occasion of the murder OF DR.. Maui
nha