Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1912-07-08
BARBARY PIRATES
These FientS Terrorized the Sea
For Five Centuries.

Those pests OF the sea. the Barbary
pirates. who defied the civilized world
for 500 years. had at one time 10000
Christian slaves IN bondage in Algeria.
The methods by which they were OBJ
tained and how treated are described
by Sir Hcnry Norman in Scribner's
Magazine:
-'Ships were seized in all European
waters. even off the coast OF Ireland.
and Their crews taken into slavery.
So were the crews Of vessels which
came 10 trade When any state at
tempted punishment the consul OF that
country was sent To the galleys. and
Sir Lambert Playfnir British consul
general and erudite author Of Muir.
rays Handbook tells MS that in one
instance on the approach Of French
feet their representative was blown
toward them from a mortar Ger
vaDtes himself was a slave there in
l:-i-t
In the seventeenth century the
Algerine pirates held prizes worth 30
100000 frames Again and again the
Christian powers OF that and the next
century failed TO infict a lasting de-
feat upon this 'scourge OF Christen-
dom The British parliament passed
an act 10 undertake the Christian
work Of the redemption OF the cap
tives from the cruel thralldom they
lay under hut its intention exceeded
It's power. for not long afterward 80
English ships were captured and 5000
English slaves brought into Algiers In
the space Of seven years. and when
after five years war between England
and the pirate state a peace was sign
ed the dey refused 10 surrender sin.
gle English slave. and the treaty had
a clause 70 the effect that the king OF
Great Britain shall not be obliged By
virtue Of this treaty 10 redeem any OF
his subjects now in slavery probably
the most degrading treaty. as Sir Lam
bert Playfair remarks. ever signed be
tween England and a foreign power.
AT one time 10000 Christian slaves
were in bondage in Algeria. OF all the
nations OF Europe. many OF them men
OF rank learning and piety and all OF
them suffering daily the most cruel
hardships. starvation and torture. One
would have expected the Christian ma.
lions TO join forces for one object al
least and wipe this puny pirate state
off the earth. yet for 500 years Bar
barry held them Mt bay.
"Just rs the Old sailors chantry about
the coast OF the wild Barbaree' took
It's origin IN the terrors OF that coast
so the religious order Of the Fathers OF
the Redemption was originally founded
TO collect aims for the ransom of the
Algerian slaves. and many OF its mem
bers. with perhaps the noblest Chris
tiHn charity on record. voluntaril!
shared the lot Of the captives for tn,
comfort they could give and the serv
ices they could render in negotiation
OF ransom
"One ghost Of all these unhappy thou
sands fakes literally concrete shape
An Arab Christian named Geroni
mo. taken as baby by Spanish sol
diers and educated by the vicar gen
eral. was captured by the pirates dur
ing raid As "A renegade he was. o
course. the subject of the utmost per
secutiOn. and when NO inducement o
suffering could make him apostatiz
he was at length offered by the de
the choice OF being thrown alive int
a mold Of concrete which formed par
OF the foundation OF new bastion o
OF embracing Islam. He chose III
martyrdom and was flung into tn
mold with his hands tied behind hir
and the concrete poured over him. Thi
was in 1869
In 1872 Spanish Beuedictine IA
Their wrote history Of Algiers in tn
course OF which he narrated at leugt
the Inartyriom OF Geronimo and d.
scribed particularly the situation of th
bustlon in which his body lay. In lS4
translation OF this passage was pull
lished I'm an Algerian newspaper. BU
IN 1888. when the oi1 fortress was d.
sUroyed. search was made. Exactly 9
had been described the skeleton wa
discovered. and on plaster OF par
being poured into the impression
the cement the figure OF the marry
emerged. the hands tied behind 1
much as he had been three centuT1s
before. This plaster cast is today
the BibliotheQue musee."
PlINNINE AM0K