FEZ, an extensive country of Africa, and at one time the most flourishing kingdom in the northern part of that continent. It now, however, forms one of the four provinces or kingdoms into which the empire of Morocco is divided. It is bounded on the north by the Straits of Gibraltar and the Mediterranean Sea, on the east by Algiers, on the south by Morocco, and on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Besides being bordered in one part by the chain of the Greater Atlas, a smaller one called the Lesser Atlas runs across it, extending from the Great Atlas to the sea near Tetuan, a considerable city situated on the Straits of Gibraltar. It is likewise traversed in various directions by other ranges of mountains, some of which are lofty, rugged, and barren, whilst others are adapted for pasture. The intervening plains and valleys, however, which are frequently many miles in extent, being finely watered, are in the highest degree fertile, and capable of producing all the luxuries of the eastern and western worlds. The soilorthe interior is a rich black loam, which, although but very slightly cultivated, is remarkably prolific. The mountainous parts also might, by suitable cultivation, be made to produce abundantly those fruits which thrive best in the nil y regions of warm climates; but they are for the most part utterly neglected. The Moors know little of agriculture, and, besides, they only cultivate in proportion to their im[7:9:529]mediate wants; so that a considerable portion of the country is allowed to lie untilled. The principal rivers are the Mulluwia or Mulvia, which separates Fez from Algiers; the Morbeya or Ommirabee, which separates Fez from the province of Tcdla; and the Seboo, which waters the interior of the country. Fez is estimated to contain about 89,000 square miles in superficial extent, and its territorial divisions are as follows:
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The government, statistics, and commerce of this region in every respect resemble those of Morocco, of which it is indeed a part, and they will accordingly be described under that article.

Fez, or Fas, the capital of the above kingdom, was built in 786, by a prince of the name of Edris, and having soon risen to be a city of the first magnitude, became the capital of the western Mahommedan states. In the twelfth century it is said to have contained seven hundred temples and nosques, a number of which were erected upon a magnificent scale, and adorned with a profusion of marble pillars. It was at one time held, in the highest veneration; and when the road to Mecca was shut up, in the fourth century of the Hegira, pilgrimages to Fez were performed by the western Moslemins, who considered it as a place nearly equally sacred with that where the Prophet had been born. It was also distinguished for its learning, at a time when the Saracens may be said ‘to have enjoyed a monopoly of all the knowledge which then existed. Its schools of philosophy, physic, and astronomy, were famous throughout the Mahommedan kingdoms of Spain and Africa, and were not only resorted to by the youth of these countries, but likewise by Christians. When the Moors were driven out of Spain, Fez became the resort of numerous refugees, who, being superior in knowledge and civilization to their original countrymen, introduced several of the arts, the practice of which for a time retrieved the decaying fortunes of the city. But it gradually sunk with the declension of arts and wealth in Northern Africa; and when the lringdom of which it was the capital became incorporated with the empire of Morocco, it ceased to possess almost any political importance.

Fez is situated upon the slope of several hills, which surround it on every side except the north and north-cast. As the town is built on inclined planes, and the ground is unpaved, the streets are very dirty, especially in rainy weather. They are, besides, ső narrow, that two horsemen cannot ride together abreast in them; and the gloom thus produced is deepened by the houses (which are very high) having a projection on the first floor. The light is also intercepted by a sort of galleries or passages which connect the upper parts of the houses, and by the high walls which are raised at certain distances from one side of the street to the other, as if to support the buildings. These walls have arched passages, which are shut at night, and all communication between one part of the city and another is by this means cut off. The houses have a mean and ruinous appearance; they are either altogether destitute of windows, or possess but a few which are seldom larger than a common sheet of paper, and being placed very high, are generally covered with blinds. Behind the high walls there are some buildings which in the inside present something of comfort; but it is the general taste of the country to ave a mansion composed of a court-yard, surrounded with a colonnade, which forms a kind of gallery both above and below. By these galleries the adjoining rooms are reached, and these commonly receive their light only from the door, which, on this account, is necessarily large. The rooms are long and narrow; the ceiling, composed of planks, is lofty, and sometimes ornamented; and the floors are paved with bricks, Dutch tiles, or marble, according to the wealth of the occupant. The roofs are covered with stamped earth, about one foot thick; and this singular casing, on account of its weight, bulges the walls outwards, and rends them into fissures, whilst it does not protect the houses from rain.

Fez properly consists of two distinct towns, Fas el Bâlee, or Old Fez, and Fas el Jedid, or New Fez. The latter, which was founded in the thirteenth century, stands on an eminence commanding the old city, and is surrounded with gardens, which abound in all sorts of delicious fruits and odoriferous flowers. This portion of Fez is principally inhabited by Jews. At the bottom of the valley, which is formed by the surrounding hills into a sort of funnel, runs the river Wed el Juhor, the river of pearls, so called on account of its value. Besides refreshing vegetation as it passes along, and plentifully supplying the city with water, it is made to turn several water-mills. Fez possesses a vast number of mosques, the finest of which is called El Cαrou-bin. It was built during the flourishing period of the city, and is described by Leo Africanus as being a mile and a half in circumference. It is constructed of bricks, stones, and lime, but the architecture is said to be mean. It possesses, however, a great number of gates and arches, and two handsome fountains in the court. There are two other celebrated mosques, one of which (namely, that dedicated to Edris, the founder of the city), is the most frequented in Fez. The palace of the sultan is composed of a great number of court-yards, which serve as entrances to apartments. These consist, besides those for domestic uses, of rooms in which the business of government is transacted. The palace is situated upon an elevation in New Fez. None of the other buildings are in any respect remarkable. There are a great number of shops, to which the inhabitants of the surrounding country daily resort as to a fair, for the purchase of commodities, as they have neither shops nor working-places amongst themselves. Provision-markets are numerous, and the city contains about two hundred caravanserais or inns. The various trades, and the different articles sold, arc divided into classes in separate streets, so that a whole street is occupied by those pursuing one species of traffic or art. Fez contains a vast number of public baths, some of which are good, and consist of several rooms heated to different degrees of temperature. There is an hospital richly endowed, but it is occupied solely by lunatics. There are also a great number of schools, the most distinguished of which are established at the mosques of Carou-bin and of Muley Edris, in a small house or mosque called Emdarsa or academy. In these philosophy is taught, but of course very imperfectly.

The manufactures of Fez consist of woollen hhaïks, sashes, and silk handkerchiefs, slippers of good leather, which they tan remarkably well, red felt caps, some coarse linen cloth, fine carpets, a curious kind of earthenware, weapons of several kinds, saddlers’ ware, and copper utensils. There are .a few goldsmiths; but the adorning of the person with gold and silver being considered as a sin, this branch of industry is not much patronized. The arts here find little encouragement, and are indeed far inferior to those of Europe, except in the preparation of leather, and in the fabrication of carpets and of hhaiks, which the manufacturers know how to weave as fine and as transparent as gauze. They are also expert in wax-works, weapons, and harness. The heat during the summer is very great; but in other seasons of [7:9:530]the year, particularly winter, the climate is agreeable. With regard to the number of inhabitants, much difference of opinion prevails amongst travellers. Mr Jackson estimates the population of the old and new city at 380,000 souls, which is certainly an exaggeration; whilst other authorities reduce the number as low as 60,000 and even 30,000 individuals, which is probably below the mark. The traveller who assumed the fictitious name of Ali Bey was told, whilst he remained there, that Fez contained 100,000 souls, and that before the last plague the inhabitants were double that number. Of this population about 2000 are Jews, who live in the most abject state, on account of the sovereign contempt with which they are treated by the Moors. They are almost all either artisans or merchants, and they have several synagogues, and a market-place, which is well provided. According to Ali Bey, the city is situated in long. 4. 58. 15. W. lat. 34. 6. 3. N. It is 160 miles south of Gibraltar, and 200 north-north-east of Morocco.