The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1909-10-17
GERMANY WANTS
IRON FROM SPAIN
Reason Spain Is Fighting Moor
ish Tribes
MINES BEHIND TROUBLE
1t All Began When krupp Firm Failed
To Obtain Grant of the Rich
Mines Over Heads of
the Spaniards.
MINES BEHIND TROUBLE
From the New York Evening Post.


Everyone knows that Spain hassunder-
taken her war against the Moorish
tribes of the Riff and rslled unawares
her domestic peace, because spaniards
were disturbed in the working of iron
mines. People who interest themselves
more particularly in the matter have
heard that trouble began when the great
German company Of Krupp failed to OBJ.
tain the grant of the mines over the
heads Of the Spaniards. This is said to
explain the abundance of arms and am
munition and other effective encourage
ment furnished from somewhere to the
Riffans.
No one makes much account of the
legality of the mine grant In Morocco
you have to trust to de facto governments
without bothering de jure. The roghl.
who made the grant. was the only au-
thority within reach at the time. Another
valid argument for the Spaniards was
that the iron mountain in dispute is all
but part of Spanish Melilla. The roghi
has disappeared, and the disappointed
German company is perhaps too late in
the field to justify its government In in
terfering. Mulai Hafd counts for little
with the wild tribes of the Riff-and per-
haps Germany has had enough of Mo-
rocco
Spanish Syndicate.
This does not make the underground
history of the mines and the war about
them any less interesting On the con-
trary, Spanish Mell1a is on the east side
of triangle which advances into tho
sea- On the land side at the base of the
triangle, southwest from Melflla and not
20 miles away, rises Djebel Yuksen at an
altitude of 2500 feet. 1t Is a sort of iron
mountain, like that which has been such
a source of riches in the United States.
The ore gives 60 per cent pure iron.
The Spanlards who are on the spot
have long been tinkering at mines on
this mountain. A first syndicate of Riff
mines was constituted out of four COM
panies. headed by names well known in
Spain's acknowledgements Fernandez.
Enrique Macpherson, Count Romanones.
and Juan Antonio Guell. It was capital
lied in equal shares. and a working COM
pany was organized-under condition that
Its capital of 100000 pesetas should be
drawn exclusively from Spain. The
board of managers was also limited to
opduldruS, ana comprised such names
former Minister of Marine Villanueva
and the Duke de las Torres. The prac-
teal direction was given to the Spanish
government engineer, who is in charge Of
| the works of the port of Melilla-
The First Step.
| All this was Spanish enough and official
enough. The contradictory insinuations
which have been made-now that Ger
man and now that French inf1unce was
behind this exclusively Spanish syndi-
cate-are mere guesses, which the ensu-
ing facts have rendered baseless.
The first step to be taken was to Sc
cure legal cover for working the Mines
At that time the roghi had his camp
not five miles distant from the iron noun
tain. The tribes of the neighborhood.
each independent of the other, had also
each its own caid. And there was yet a
third local authority, called the caid of
the mines; his warriors occupied the min
inig territory and agreed to supervise the
mine working and to collect a third of all
receipts for the roghi OF course, the
caid of the mines was not to do this for
nothing; and, of all the outstretched
paws. his was the first to be creased by
the Spaniards. Mulai Hafid, far away in
Fee, and without a single official on the
spot. was passed over by the Spanish
company.
This was a first and fatal error At
Fee there were-and still are-Germans
in search of iron for Krupp. They are
only too ready to profit by the nominal
position of Mulai Hafid in Moorish law
and European diplomacy.
Paying the Moors.
The Spanish company set to work I'M
der auspices which have started up all
sorts of anti-Semite accusations particu-
larry in France. Anyone who is CONVEX
SAINT with the necessary part played by
Jews in all European business in Morocco
will do prompt justice to such accusa-
tions Enrique Macpherson is an Israel
tie of English origin; David Charbit is a
French Israelite. These two with the
Spaniard, Clemente Fernandez, counted
out 100000 pesetas to the roghi, and cor
responding sums to the caids, and the
mining began.
The caid of the mines took charge of
the workmen, who were Riffans to man
at the start. There soon drifted in Alger-
ian Kabyls, who were at odds with
French Justice across the frontier; de-
serters from the French and even from
the Spanish troops nearby and escaped
Spanish convicts. The company and the
caid received all impartially, and there
has never been any trouble with these
miners The caid when pay day came
identified each man.
The next step was to substitute some
kind of a railway for the mule track by |
which the ore had to be brought to port |
This has been made the pretext of the |
war. So far 1t has cost 100000 pesetas, |
and 100000 more were distributed between |
roghi and cads. In this the Spanish mill |
itary authorities, that is, the Spanish |
government undoubtedly co-operated 1t |
Is Spains peaceful penetration into Mo- |
rocco. 1t is not mining company, 1t is |
her own right to work In Morocco that |
Spain is maintaining.
Meanwhile Herr Mannesmann repre- |
sents Krupp at Fee. He demands, in the |
name of Germany, the mining grant of |
the Iron Mountain. Because Spain was |
working a grant from the roghi pretender |
he had the Spanish mission of Merry del |
Val expelled from Fee. For Mulai Hafd |
he will build railway and port on Moor |
ish sofl-and transport the ore to Ger |
many.
What Could She Have Heard
From Success Magazine.
Mt I'LL