The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-08-05

Washington, D. c., Aug. 4.-The
outbreak OF Raisuli, the Moroccan
Robin Hood which Spain is rushing
troops through Tangier to check. re-
calls a famous episode during the adj
! ministration of President Roosevelt.
land a story Of how a veteran Wash
ington newspaper nan helped make
history say a bulletin from the
National Geographic society.
TT was In 1904. following his cap
iture Of an English correspondent. for
whose ransom the Sultan of Morocco
had to pay $4,000, that the irrepress-
ible bandit vent after bigger game
and kidnapped>a wealthy American.
Ion P~erdicaris, INT his son, Cromwell,
Varley.
when Raisuli paid no attention to
! eminent for the release of the two
men, President Roosevelt promptly
dispatched a fleet of American war
ships to Morocco. and sent the famous
ultimatum to the sultan. Perdicaris
alive or Raisuli dead
ut was In connection with the
framing Of that ultimatum that a
trusted correspondent Of the Asso-
ciated Press Is concerned. according
to a classic story among the Washing
ton newspaper men. Being entrusted
with preparing a message for Presi-,
dent Roosevelt to sign. Mr.. Hay. then
secretary Of state, did so. and. az many
a public official has done. submitted
it to his friend. the newspaper man.
for his opinion. -
Well, It may he diplomatic but
the Sultan never will get you In the
midst Of all those words was, In ef-
feet. the newspaper mans verdict.
Then flashed the bright idea. Why not
say what you NEAR and no more, Mr..
Secretary, 'Perdicaris alive or Raisult
dead
The secretary agreed. President
Roosevelt approved. And so II hap
pened that the sultan so far got this
succinct American demand, that he
ton, and the result. while helpful to
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
bandit friends and imprisonment of
some OF his enemies"
The bulletin then quotes from Mr..
Perdicuris' own story OF his capture.
as related In a communication sent to
Z Ntit Z 80 oV>N%'s -
him shortly after his release. Mr..
Perdicaris' own story OF his capture.
I'm 1894 Umlai Ell Hassan died.
This sultan was perhaps the ablest
ruler Morocco ever enjoyed. His
young son, Add FL Aziz. nominally sue
ceeded to the throne upon his father's
death, but did not assume the reins
of power until the decease. in 1900. OF
the Great Vizier. Ben Hamed Ben
lNfosra year or fwo later a n adyen-
lturer known as Bilali FL Zarhmni, an
ialleged elder brother Of Add Ell Aziz.
and many OF the Berbers in the neigh
borhood OF Fec rallied around this
Pretender and even threatened Fee
itself. For a short time the Sultan's
troops wore so aroused hat many Of
them deserted with their arms to the
ESCAPED capture
The weakening of the sultan's hold
upon power was followed by a marked
alteration in the attitude Of the ma
itives toward NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. or
Americans.
II was at the time president OF an
international commission charged
with the administration OF the town
Of Tangier; nor did l imagine that I
myself would be exposed to any i'm
mediate danger. much less that I
stLOuiu Ut i oI as q ttVSNaSS W
the Berbers, or that the s~quadrons Of
our navy and the orders OF my release
In Washington would become factors
In the immemorial struggle between
the Berbers OF FL Moghereb and the
sultan OF Fee and Morocco.
I'VE had move UP two days before
this startling event to Aidonfa, our
summer residence. on the Spartello
iheadland about five miles from Tan
t-y&~ rh> ~,c ~rH{rh -A kaI haYn
erected is an u~npretentious villa over
Hooking the entrance to the Straits Of
Gibraltar and surrounded by grounds
some 800 acres in extent. embracing
many varied features of woodland and
of precipitous rock.
lone evening we had gathered in
the drawing-room directly after din
iner, when We were startled by loud
screams from the servants. quarters.
Followed by my stepson, Mr.. Cromwell
Marley. whose wife and two daughters.
Just home from school at Geneva. com-
.pleted, with Mrs. Perdicaris. our fam
lily circle. I rushed down a passag &c
leading to the servants hall, where I
came upon a crowd of armed natives.
Even then we did not realize our
danger. but thought these intruders
might be 81 party from a neighboring
villa ge. Our night guards were sup
] EtiCu tt0it IA lux "hd w sap
posed that they. like ourselves. had
rushed in to learn the cause OF the
uproar.
las I turned to inquire Of these ma
tives who crowded about me as to
what had occurred, I saw some OF our
European servants already bound and
helpless and. at the same moment. we
ourselves were assailed ~ these In
truders. who struck us with their rifes,
At the same instant our hands were
roughly twisted and bound behind our
backs with stout palmetto cords that
cut like knives.
"Varley. who made a fierce resistance,
was handled with more violence. In
deed thought the rifle blows would
split his head. while his hand was cut
to make him let go his hold upon one
of the gang. whom he almost strangled.
AT this moment the housekeeper.
hearing our voices, rushed across the
hall from her dininS-room. where she
had locked herself in. and. just ~ we
were driven out Of doors. we saw a
blow aimed at her head and she fell
to the moor. This was the last we
saw. then. of any one In the house
where I never since set foot.
"Once outside. Our assAilAnts on
deavored to drive us down TO the
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