MEDEAH, PROVINCE OF ALGIERS, AFRICA, _Feb. 15, 1858_.
Medeah is built in amphitheatre form, upon an inclined plane beyond the
first chain of the Atlas Mountains, some twenty-three leagues south of
Algiers; it is some three thousand six hundred feet above the level
of the sea, and is rather difficult of ascent. It is the site of the
ancient kingdom of Tittery.
Medeah has been occupied four times by the French troops, since 1830,
and indefinitely in 1840. The hostilities of 1830 demonstrated that so
long as the Arabs were free to organize forces in the mountains and
make sudden attacks, there was no safety. The occupation of this point
with troops makes it perfectly tranquil. Abd-el Kader, whose prison I
visited at Amboise in France a few years since, and whose exploits are
often brought up in this country, gave the French much trouble.
One of the greatest achievements was in the zigzag road constructed
by the French army through the gorges of the river Chiffa, some four
leagues in length, which enabled them to conquer the country of the
warrior Arabs of the mountains. The points of view through these rocky
passes, with their precipices, towering masses of rock above, and deep
chasms below, in many places without parapets, look frightful in making
the ascent. I was reminded by it of a road constructed by the English
in the Island of Ceylon, which I once described to you, and which was
the only means of conquering the mountain King of Kandy. In one of
these mountains there are large numbers of monkeys, which may be seen
clambering up the rocks and branches of trees, and basking in the sun’s
rays. Gibraltar is the only point in Europe where they exist, and they
are supposed to have been introduced there from Africa. One passes
through several large towns on his way to this place. Douera, which
was a camp in 1830, is now quite a town, with a wall around it, and
gates for protection, and the imposition of octroi duties. The country
produces cotton, tobacco, cereal grains, and pasturage for animals.
When water is not abundant, as they are subject to drought on the
plains, wells are dug for irrigation.
Boufereck was the first post established on the plain of Misidza, in
1830, when the army advanced to Blidah for the first time. It was then
humid, surrounded with marshes and bad exhalations. It was known for
a long time as the cemetery for soldiers and colonists; but it is now
quite healthy. The weekly market of the Arabs, bringing in all the
tribes from the surrounding country, with horses, cattle, goats, &c.,
is a striking feature in that settlement. The inclosure of the grounds
is ample, with a mosque adjacent for the Mussulman to say his prayers
in. One often sees them by the road-side prostrating themselves towards
Mecca in the east. Often in towns and cities you pass from the bazaars
and densely-crowded streets directly into the mosques, with fountains
of water in the court, as in Constantinople, where they wash their feet
and trip in upon the matting and carpet rugs to pay their devotion,
while you hear the cry of the muezzin from the lofty minaret adjoining,
calling the faithful to prayers. The mosques are generally plain, with
whitewashed walls, and lamps suspended, as well as ostrich eggs strung
upon cords. Some, however, are of beautiful Moorish architecture, with
an infinity of columns, and a great variety of arabesque work. The
mausoleum or tomb of the Marabout is much venerated, being a sort of
pilgrimage for the devout believer.
An anecdote was related to me in visiting the edifice erected to the
memory of the Marabout; it is upon a hill, a beautiful position,
outside the walls of Algiers.
The Koran forbids the use of wine and all alcoholic drinks, still the
holy man indulged freely, being supplied by the persecuted Jews, who
took this way to obtain the favor of the chief of the sect. There being
a sort of veneration for idiots, this besotted individual was once
aroused by the cries of the people, that the enemy’s vessels were off
the port and approaching the city. With difficulty awakened from his
stupor he cried out, “Where are the infidel dogs? Give me a whip and
I will lash them off the surface of the great deep.” Reeling on the
seaside he slashed away upon the calm surface of the water, venting his
anathemas and imprecations. As fortune willed it, one of those sudden
tempests arose, not unfrequent in this latitude, and the vessels were
driven off or dashed to pieces. He was shrewd enough when he witnessed
this singular phenomenon to take advantage of it, and exhorted the
people to exhibit greater faith for the future. A temple was erected
over his tomb, and his memory perpetuated to posterity.
I passed a couple of days at Blidah, some twelve leagues from Algiers.
It is the chief place of the first military division, at the foot of
the Little Atlas mountain. It has a population of fifteen thousand
Arabs and foreigners; it is surrounded with a belt of foliage, forests
of orange, lemon, fig, olive, and palm trees, which give it the air of
a delicious garden. The Arabs call it The Voluptuous. In 1825 it was
visited by an earthquake, which entirely destroyed it, with one half
of its eighteen thousand inhabitants. On the 23d of July, 1830, after
the occupation of Algiers by the French, the General advanced to this
place, and was well received, but in returning was attacked by the
Kabyles.
The European part of the town is well built, with regular streets,
public squares, cafés, and a theatre; the Arab part has narrow streets,
low, one-story, whitewashed houses, with a single door or hole in the
wall for entrance, and little portholes or latticed windows for the
women to peep out. The women are rarely seen in the streets, and never
in the mosques; when they come out they are closely veiled in white
shawls, which show the eyes only.
The Arab market at Blidah exhibited horses, cattle, grain, dried
fruits, hog skins, or rather wild boar skins, filled with olive oil,
wool, charcoal, &c.; the Arabs buy iron, hardware, coffee, sugar,
thread, and such things as are actually necessary.
I visited the haras, or government stables of the Arabian, Persian,
and Syrian stallions, some eighty in number, one of which, El Haz,
presented by the emperor, cost forty-four hundred dollars.
The environs of Blidah are enchanting; the supply of water for
irrigation, from the mountains, is abundant, and the climate lovely
even at this season of the year. The Arab poet, Hamed Youssef, said,
“They call thee a little city, I call thee a charming little rose.”
I was reminded of a lovely little spot, called Soler, in the island
of Majorca, where one rides for miles through orange groves, which,
like those of Blidah, are exported to France. I noticed, in passing
through the village of Ben Mered, an obelisk erected to the memory
of twenty-two soldiers who were attacked by three hundred horsemen
of Ben Salem, in the year 1842, and all killed after the most
heroic resistance. Only one, a sergeant, who was wounded and left
for dead, could give the details. The young sergeant, in the midst
of the conflict, fell, mortally wounded, with the words upon his
lips, “Friends, remember that the French never surrender, but defend
themselves to the death.”
The Arabs in this part of the country are now turning their attention
to agriculture; the plough merely scratches the surface, and without
doubt, is the same used in the primitive days of Abraham. Herds of
sheep and goats are seen in the mountains with Arab boys and dogs.