The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-02-17
A Spanish Military Prison.

: = |
Melil,a itself is Spanish military
prison. There are 5000 soldiers sta
toned here and large number OF
them have come Ms punishment for de-
sertion, crime and for various trans
Eressions of military, discipline.
cannot imagine q worse place. 1t
makes one think Of the Inscription
over the door to Dante's he'll, which
read:
"All hope abandon We who enter
here"
The town is built upon a great bluff
which runs out into the sea. There are
thirsty hills all about. each with a
great white round fort upon 1t, and
large iron barred barracks in and
about the city. Outside these large build
ings the houses are one and two
story structures of brick and stucco.
planted all colors of the rainbow. They
are built Spanish fashion In blocks, ana
the iron barred windows are az prison.
| like as their surroundings.
| The inhabitants are chiefly Spanish
Jews and motley Moore The Jews
have little stores in the town. and the
Moors have bazaars just inside the
walls, where each turbaned merchant
stands in q sort OF hole. With his
goods piled around him. There is
Moonsh encampment nearby, and
| Western and Southern Morocco.
Stoned by the Spaniards.
I have not found the natives here
any too friendly, and I am glad to
be back on the little steamship Emir,
| far out In the harbor. where I am writ
| ing this letter. When We landed and
| showed our passports describing US as
Americans the soldiers scowled and
| tor v,1a oy,f5 n iuh 7
succeeded In getting some excellent
| photographs OF them during my stay.
\ In the town 1t became known that we
| were Americans. and the boys and
/ men gathered around US with no
friendly air One OF them threw a
l rock the size Of mans fist at the
! carriage and narrowly escaped hitting
me. Asit was it strck the door handle
1 and bent It, Our coachman jumped
4 down and ran after the boy. but we
concluded not to give the offender
over to the police. and, indeed, were
rather glad when we wero safe out
| of the town.
A Land of Pirates.
1t seems odd to think of pirates car
rying on their trade In this twentieth
century, but that is a regular business
wi,h certain OF the tribes OF the Riff
Mountains. near here. They do not go
out with large ships and al.ack the
vessels of the Mediterranean, as they
did at tho beginning Of tho last CEN
fury, but they rob and sometimes kill
the sailors of the smaller craft when
the bad seas drive them upon the
shore. Not long ago the whole of Mo-
rocco was filled with pirates. and
. there were pirates all the way from
the Strait Of Gibraltar to Trlpoli
Just before entering the strait one
sees on the north coast the town OF
Tarifa with It's old Moorish forts, from
where the Moors swooped down upor
all vessels going through the strai
and made them pay tribute From
, that town and custom came our word
tariff"
About that same time the Moors O
Morocco and Algeria were preying OF
! all the commerce Of the Mediterranean
; and nearly every great nation sub
United to theirfcXnctions. We did S,
? for Il time; but IN 1915 we declared
war upon these pirates and We're tn
first to bring them to time. We ha
trouble with the Dey of Algiers, an
sent Commodore Decatur over to tel
! him that Americans would pay hir
: tribute no longer. Tho dey inslste
J. until Decatur pointed his guns at til
Y city of Algiers. when no began I
Y weaken. He then sent out word I
n our commodore suggesting that II h
h would pretend to storm the tow
y using powder only, the tribute Nigh
h be omitted. Commodore Decatur re
: piled that cannon balls always wen
It with American powder, and that
d the dey received tho one he must TAX
tho other Soon nfterward Decatu
II captured some of the Algerian ship
II and the dey finally had to pay hi
'r damages to the amount of about 500
L. 600 and to conclude u treaty whic
i, renowned all tribute from American
4 for tho future.
y At this time they not only seize
~ tho ships, but they enslaved their cal
u tiyes. Cant John Smith served as sue
\ n slave, Shortly after our refusal I
II pay tribute the English did likeWis
l. and bombnrded Algiers, The Frenc
70 followed In a war with the pirate
l. and in 1890 they threw the dey fro