Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1908-03-03
MULAI HAFID's TREASURE.
Financing of the Moroccan Pretender's
Rebellion,

the pretender, or sultan Vi the Soulii
rs he is called, got the money t(
finance his revolt against his brother
Abdul Aziz. Germany has leen a
pains to give assurances that she die
not give him any, and it is certain
that neither France nor her allie
furnished it.
! The mystery appears TO be solved
by a story which NJ. Vaffier-Pollet
an old time French naval officer, ha!
brought out from Marrakesh, ant
which reads like a tale out of thu
arabian Nights" According to this
narrative, Mulai Hafid found or rather
had revealed to him hidden treasure
amounting to 20,000,00O franc:
about $4,OO0,OOO, just as the sheik:
proclaimed him sultan and decreet
the deposition of his brother.
There was a room in the old pal
ace in Marrakesh which had remain
ed bolted and barred since the deatf
in 1894 of Mulai Hassan, the father
of the present rivals for the throne
1t was in a remote, unfrequentet
corner of the rambling structure ant
sort of superstitious awe had growr
up regarding it.
| 1t was in the harem, so it was eff
fectually protected from masculine
enterprise Female curiosity was re-
pressed by the vague tradition OF
curses that would fall upon any one
who violated the precincts before the
appointed day and hour, for on the
| great oaken door studded with iror
nails was the inscriptions: KAHN e
Kebrit Alaniat el Jehad." which be.
ing translated means magazine oi
sulphur for the Holy War
When Mulai Hassar died Abdul
AZiz was about l6. foolish and sens.
ual. The grim old Grand ViZer Ba.
Hamed made him sultan. AMI ruled
for him for some years.
The boy sultan had access to the
harem, but he never seems to have
troubled his head about the sulphur
chamber. Ba-Hamed couldn't gel
into the harem, and If he had ever
heard of the room which his dead
master had closed up years before he
attached no importance to it.
But Abdul Aziz spent hardly any
time in Marrakesh after his accession
He took up his quarters for good ir
| 1902 in FeZ, where it was much easier
to get pianos, music boxes, bicycles
and other expensive European toys
The palace at Marrakesh fell into the
hands of Mulai Hafid, whom Abdul
Azz first tried to make prisoner and
then appointed governor of the south
ern part of the country.
Now Mulai had for a long time
been slated for the sultanate. He
was only the second son, but his elder
brother, the lame Mulai Mohammed
had incurred the anger of their faith.
er and the undying hostility Of the
thereabouts he was entrusted with
several expeditions against warlike
tribes, which he carried out with sue.
cess. At one time he almost seemed
to share the rulership with his father
but the old mans favorite wife, the
mother of Abdul AziZ, extracted from
him a promise that her son should
reign.
When Mulai Hassan died somewhat
suddenly, Ba-Hamed picked the
younger prince not merely because
he had sworn to support him but be-
cause he knew that his own power
would be greater than if the Older
and capable Mulai Hafid came to the
throne.
| To every ones surprise, Mulai Haflt
accepted the situation without a mur'
mur. He was the first to kiss hi:
brothers hand and swear allegiance
Until recently he kept the oath rigid
ly. In fact, despite his capacity fol
war and business he is by preference
scholar and a dreamer.
| At the present minute he has on the
point of publication a volume ot
verses in Arabic, and an Arabic gram
mar of which he is the author is or
the press in Cairo. 1t will be hi!
thirteenth published work. He didn
want to be sultan.
| He has kept the south in subjec
ton, it is true, since he was made
Caid of Marrakesh, but he has done
it almost without taking up arms
Through his emissalies he has TO-
mented the quarrels and jealous
les of the tribes and their chieftain:
and so has secured the peace ant
ease for himself which he so much
desired.
| When the sheiks and ulemas a
last compelled him to accept the title
of sultan and to declare war on Abdu
AZiz he enrolled the most powerful
of the southern chiefs in his cabinet
and asked them what they were 60
ing to do. He put this question up tC
Si-Taieb-Tazi, whom he made minis
ter o. finance. There seemed to bt
no answer in sight when the miracu'
lous happened.
| One evening as he entered his har'
EN- after discouraging session OF
his councillors Mulai was intercepted
by an aged woman. She had beer
one of the favorites of his father and
she now occupied the nigh position
of Arifa, or grand mistress Of the
harem.
| She excitedly declared that the da!
and the hour had come. Anyway
she was old and soon going to die;
she could kecr a great secret OF staty
no longer.
She led the wondering Mulai to the
barred door of the sulphur chamber
and told him to go boldly in, assuring
him that he would find more
than sulphur for the holy war sui
phur being only an Oriental metaphor
for the real fighting material.
Mulai opened the door and went in
There were thirty ironbOund chests
arranged along the walls, all covered