Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1919-08-05
RAISUII and PERDICARIS
Romantic Page From Comparatively
Recent History.
A GENTLEMANIY MOROCCAN BANDIT

Messaae-capture Of Perdicaris Wa.
for Political Purpose, and the Pur'
pose Was Accomplished.
"The outbreak Of Raisuli, the Nor.
ocean Robin Hood which Spain is
rushing troops through Tangier tt
check, recalls famous episode during
the administration Of President Roose'
> velt, and a story Of how a veteran
Washington newspaper helped make
history" says bulletin from the Nat
ional Geographic Society.
'It was in 1914, following his cap.
ture Of an English correspondent, fol
whose ransom the Sultan Of Morocco
had to pay $4,000, that the irrepres
sible bandit went after bigger game
and kidnapped a wealthy American
Ion Perdicaris. and his son. Cornwel
Varley.
when Raisuh paid no attention tt
the demand of the United States gov
ernment for the release Of the two
men, President Roosevelt prompt!
dispatched a fleet Of American wal
ships to Morocco, and sent the famou!
ultimatum to the sultan, Perdicarii
alise or Raisuli dead
"It was in connection with the fran
ing Of that ultimatum that a trusted
correspondent Of the Associated Press
Is concerned, according to a classic
story among the Washington newspap'
; er men. Being entrusted with prepar.
ing a raessage FOR President Roosevelt
to sign, Mr.. Hay, then secretary OF
state, did so and as many a public Of
ficial has done, submitted it to his
friend, the newspaper man, for his
opinion.
"'well, 1t may be diplomatic but the
sultan never win get you in the midst
of all those words was, in effect. the
newspaper mans verdict. Then fash
ed the bright idea, why not say what
you mean and no more, Mr.. secretary
Perdicaris alive or Raisuli dead
"The secretary agreed. President
Roosevelt approved. And so 1t hap
pened that the sultan so far got this
succinct American demand. that he
abandoned the usual oriental Indirect
ion, and the result, while helpful tc
the victims, was exceedingly hard on
the sultan. For to deliver the two
Americans Raisuli had to be appeased
with payment Of about five times the
ransom he demanded for the London
correspondent, with appointment Of
himself as governor Of certain areas
about Tangier and release Of his BAN
dit friends and imprisonment Of some
of his enemies"
The bulletin then quoted from Mr.
Perdicaris' own story Of his capture
as related in a communication sent te
The National Geographic Society by
him shortly after his release. Mr.
Perdicaris wrote, in part:
TN 1894 Umlai FL Hassan died. Thii
sultan was perhaps the ablest ruler
Morocco ever enjoyed. His young son
Add El Aziz, nominally succeeded Il
the throne upon his fathers death bu
did not assume the reins Of power until
the decease, in 1900, Of the Great Viz
ier, Ben Hamed Ben Mousa. yeal
later an adventurer known as Gilali r
Zarhmni, an alleged elder brother o.
Add FL Aziz, and many Of the Berber'
in the Ifeighborhool Of Fee rallied
around this Pretender and even threat
ened Fee itself. For short time TIT
sultan's troops we're SO aroused tina
many Of them deserted with their ARM
to the enemy, and the sultan himsel
barely escaped capture.
"The weakening of the sultan's holt
upon power was followed by a marked
alteration in the attitude Of the native
toward foreigners-Europea o
Americans.
81 was at the time president Of an in
ternational commission charged will
the administration of the town Of Tan
gier; nor did / imagine that I mysel
would be exposed to any immediat
danger, much less that I should b
carried off as hostage Of the Berbers
or that the squadrons Of our navy an
the orders of my release in Washing
ton would become factors in the i'm
memorial struggle between the Ber
bers of Ell Moghereb and the sultan o
Fee and Morocco.
"We had moved up two days befor
this startling event to Aidonia, ou
summer residence, on the Spartell
headland about miles from Tangiel
The house which we had here erecte
is an unpretentious villa overlookin
the entrance to the Straits Of Gibralta
and surrounded by grounds some 40
acres in extent, embracing many varle
features of woodland and Of precipi
tous rock.
"One evening we had gathered in tn
drawing-room directly after dinnel
when we were startled by loud scream
from the servants quarters. Follow
ed by my stepson, Mr.. Cromwell Var
lev. whose wife and two daughter:
lust home from school at Geneva
completed, with Mrs. Perdicaris. ou
family circle, l rushed down a passas
leading to the servants hall, where
came upon a crowd of armed natives.
Even then we did not realize ou
danger, but thought these intruder
might be a party from neighborin
village. Our guards were supplies
from this hamlet, and we suppose
that they, like ourselves. had rushe
in to learn the cause of the uproar.
"As / turned to inquire Of these ma
tives who crowded about me as
what had occurred, saw some OF ou
European servants bound and helples
and, at the same moment, we ourselve
were assailed by these intruders, VIII
struck US with their rifles. At the sam
instant our hands were roughly twiste
and bound behind our backs with stou
palmetto cords that cut like knives.
"varley, who made a fierce resis
tance, was handled with more violence
Indeed thought the rife blows woul
split his head, while his hand was Gu