The Washington herald., 1907-11-03

/ his following established himself at la
Mecque in 1855. Ben Ghazi was his next
/ location then the oasis OF Djaghbaub
[ between TripOn and Egypt He died in
1859. but not until after he had prOmUi-
gated the belief that in time a Mahdi or
/ Master was To arise who should deliver
, the world out OF the hands OF the Chris
/ tians and into the hands Of the MOslems
/ lie designated his son and successor as
the one and true Mahdi, and he began the
collection Of arms, money. and provisions
/ for the prosecution Of the Jehad or holy
war which he was bound to inaUgurate
He also adjured his followers TO kill all
unbelievers found near the society's head
quarters, and the French tell Of many
who have peTished al the hands OF the
Sennussian guards
Hidden City in the Desert.
From Djaghbaub the son removed TO
the big and fertile oasis Of Kauffra,
where he established the hidden holy
city OF Joffo," The route to which is
known only to faithful guides. and runs
through a part OF the desert where the
wells are sixty to seventy miles apart.
Even the best informed Frenchmen de-
clare that they know only Of its location
and that It IS about 600 miles from the
Mediterranean and 800 from the Nile.
Despite HIS title OF Mahdi-perhaps be-
cause of 1.-THE second Sennussi declined
to help the Soudanese Mahdi in his wars
against the British, and, they say in Al
geria and Morocco, # was because the
Sennussi Mahdl withheld his hand that
the SOudanese NIahdl failed.
Notwithstanding the avowedly ultimate
warlike purpose Of the Sennussi Society.
! it has never thrown its influence in favor
Of violent resistance to the whites, save
in 1901-02, when it went to the assistance
of the Kanemites in their uprising against
the French. which was put down by
Capt JOalland of the French army. The
/ second Sennussi leader died while this
trouble was on. appointing his nephew as
the new Mahdi.
Like his uncle and his gradfathcr be
fore him, the present Sennussi Mahdi is
said 20 maintain "a regular organization.
much like a temporal government Of the
Oriental type with a grand vizier, many
ministers of state, and a court conducted
/ according to the most elaborate Cerc-
monials.
His policy. I was told by French Off
cials in Paris last summer, appears to be
not to inaugurate the proposed Jehad
until his followers are numerous enough
and there is money enough in his treas
urv to insure success. I was also told
that the members proper o. The society
and their followers already number To-
600 900. scattered all over Africa and that
Sennussi spies and propagandists are 10
be found not only in every African city
from Cape Town to Cairo and from the
Atlantic to the Indian Ocean. but also in
Turkey. Afghanstan, India, China, and
even the great islands southeast Of Asia.
Frenchman Sees "HOIy City"
There is a rumor that one Frenchman
succeeded, after many attempts. in
reaching Jof9 and returning with his
life. but 1t IS rumOr that cannot be
verified in Paris. although probably true
Whether true OF not. the French officials
will not say, and they discourage any de-
tailed inquiries into the history of the
Sennussi or its plans
They say that it did not mix M in the
Moroccan imbroglio solely because the
head of the order is not ready for the
Jehad as yet. Besides. it IS understood,
he thinks the provocatiOn In Morocco-the