invincible antipathy to the Jews (indeed it was but too evident in the
horrible transaction I mentioned in a former letter). An unfortunate
Israelite, having incurred the displeasure of that prince, was
condemned to be devoured by a ferocious lion, which had been purposely
left without food for twenty-four hours: when the animal was raging
with hunger, the poor Jew had a rope fastened round his waist, and in
the presence of a great concourse of people was let down into the den;
his supplications for mercy, and screams of terror, availing him
nothing. The man gave himself up for lost, expecting every moment to
be torn in pieces by the almost famished beast, who was roaring most
hideously; he threw himself on the ground in an agony of mind, much
better conceived than described. While in this attitude, the animal
approached him, ceased roaring, smelt him two or three times, then
walked majestically round him, and gave him now and then a gentle
whisk with his tail, which seemed to signify that he might rise, as he
would not hurt him; finding the man still continue motionless with
fear, he retreated a few paces, and laid himself down like a
dog. After a short time had elapsed, the Jew, recovering from his
insensibility, and perceiving himself unmolested, ventured to raise
himself up, and observing the noble animal couched, and no symptom of
rage or anger in his countenance, he felt animated with confidence. In
short, they became quite friendly, the lion suffering himself to be
caressed by the Jew with the utmost tameness. It ended with the man
being drawn up again unhurt, to the great astonishment of the
spectators. A heifer was afterwards let down, and instantly devoured.
You may be sure this story was too great a triumph on the part of the
Israelites, to pass without a number of annotations and reflections
from the narrator, all tending to prove the victory of their nation
over the heathens. For my part, I could not help thinking that there
was too much of the miraculous in it. However, I have often heard it
asserted that the lion will never touch a man who is either dead, or
counterfeits death; indeed here they tell me, that, unless pressed by
hunger or rage, it never molests a man; and they assure me even that
upon no account will these animals injure a woman, but, on the
contrary, will protect her, when they meet her at a
watering-place. This country abounds with lions, tigers, leopards, and
hyenas, which sometimes make nocturnal visits to the villages, and
spread desolation among the sheep and cattle.
LETTER XV.
_Sudden Departure from Fez--Arrive at Mequinez--Attend the
Emperor--Melancholy Catastrophe--Expedition against wild
Beasts--Extensive Palaces--Seraglio--Visit a Haram--Founders of the
City--A fortified Town--Inhabitants--Jewish Town--Rich Attire of the
higher Orders--Numerous Market-places--Furniture--Saints'
Houses--Imperial Field Sports--Pack of Greyhounds--Abundance of Game._
Mequinez.
No doubt, my dear D----, you will be very much surprised to observe my
letter dated from this place. I assure you I had not the most distant
idea, when I wrote last, of removing so suddenly from Fez. On the
evening of the same day that I dispatched my letter to you, as I was
preparing for rest, an express arrived from the Emperor, begging me to
repair hither without delay. Concluding that nothing less than life or
death depended on my speedy arrival, I accordingly renounced the
pleasures of the drowsy god for a very uneasy seat on the back of a
mule, and at midnight set off for this place, leaving my baggage and
attendants to follow in the morning. I rode very fast all night, and
arrived here about nine o'clock the next day. When I dismounted, I was
so extremely stiff, that it was with the utmost difficulty I could
stand; I was most dreadfully fatigued, and stood in very great need of
repose; but waving all selfish considerations, I thought only of being
serviceable, and therefore lost no time in waiting on the Emperor. He
received me in the kindest and most flattering manner, and expressed
great pleasure at seeing me; but I found my patient's case not so very
urgent as I had imagined; a few hours delay would not have endangered
the life of any human being, and it would have saved _one_, some
aching bones. However, after dispatching the case in point as
expeditiously as possible, I soon made amends for my deprivation, by
indulging in a little longer repose than usual, and on awaking I felt
myself quite refreshed, and rather pleased than otherwise at finding
myself thus suddenly at Mequinez; for having before passed the road
more leisurely, and observed every thing worthy of remark, I did not
so much regret that my journey had been performed during the night.
I have been four days here, and yesterday I was called upon to attend
the captain of a band of huntsmen, who were that morning returned from
an expedition, in which they lost three of their companions, and only
succeeded in saving their chief, and bringing him to this place, by
little short of a miracle. He has been lacerated in a most dreadful
manner; his head is nearly scalped, and part of the integuments of his
arms and back inverted. His condition is certainly dangerous; but, as
he is a young and healthy subject, I do not despair of effecting his
recovery.
I have learned the following particulars of this melancholy
catastrophe. About fifty resolute young men marched hence, all armed
and well stocked with ammunition and provisions, and accompanied by a
mountaineer, who acted as guide. Their primary object was to destroy
six young lions, that had committed terrible devastation in one of
their villages; compelled the inhabitants to flee precipitately; and
themselves remained sole masters of the _citadel_. After a march of
three days, they arrived at the scene of action, and succeeded in
destroying those lions; but hearing that there were more in the
neighbourhood, they prepared to encounter them also. By order of this
young man, who was chief of the company, they separated in five
divisions, and repaired to different posts on the borders of the
forest, to wait the arrival of the lions. They had not remained long,
ere the terrific roar of these animals commenced, the sound approached
nearer and nearer to their place of concealment, and one of the lions
passed close to a party, and received the fire of their pieces; the
animal darted upon them in return, before they could charge again, and
three unfortunate men fell victims to his rage. The creature finding
he had more enemies to contend with, and his wounds beginning to
smart, retreated to a cover, where he sat licking them, and meditating
another attack. He was on the point of springing on the captain, who
had approached nearer to him than the rest, when the young man
discharged his musket, the contents of which entered, and dislocated,
the lower jaw of the enraged animal. The instant the youth had fired,
he retreated with the utmost precipitation towards his companions, but
his foot unfortunately slipping, he fell prostrate between two stones:
in which position the lion assailed him; and being unable to tear him
in pieces with his teeth, in consequence of the wound in his jaw, he
made use of his tremendous paws, and would undoubtedly have destroyed
him, but for the timely assistance of his comrades. The animal was so
intent on the destruction of his enemy, that he received a close fire
from two muskets, the muzzles of which nearly touched him. He no
sooner found himself mortally wounded, than, raising the almost
lifeless man in both paws, he dashed him on the ground, and fell dead
by his side.
The man received a very severe contusion on his bead, which deprived
him of sense for some time, and is what I dread the most in his
case. His wounds were dressed by his companions in the best manner
they could, and he was brought hither. The Emperor has very liberally
rewarded him and his party, and made a handsome provision for the
widows and children of those poor fellows who fell in the
expedition. I sincerely hope this man may recover to enjoy the
munificence of his Sovereign.
I have most excellent quarters here, contiguous to one of the palaces,
and am allowed to walk or ride in the Imperial gardens, which are very
extensive. The Emperor's palaces here, are much upon the same plan,
with those at Fez, but larger. One of them is about three miles in
circumference. All the apartments are on the ground floor, and are
large long rooms, about twenty feet in height, receiving air from two
folding doors which open into a square court, with a portico round,
embellished with colonnades. The walls of the rooms are faced with
glazed tiles, and the floors paved with the same, which gives an air
of coolness and neatness, so desirable in this warm climate.
The seraglio of the Emperor, and indeed the harams of men of less
rank, are sacred. No strangers are admitted, and it is profanation in
a man to enter; but as a _tweeb_, I am privileged, and enjoy a
liberty, never granted before. The day after my arrival, His
Excellency the _Sheik_ called upon me, and requested me to go home
with him. He informed me that he had been assured, in the most
positive manner, by all the doctors, and female attendants, that his
wife had a dead child in her, and that nothing less than a miracle of
their great Prophet could save her. The poor man was very much
agitated while giving me this account. I find she is his favourite
wife, and no wonder, for she is a very lovely woman. Upon
examination, I found that what they imagined to be a dead child, is a
protuberant hardness in the region of the liver, extending nearly all
over the abdomen. The tumefaction was considered as a case of
pregnancy; and she having considerably passed her time, the child was
thought to be dead within her. I have begun a course of medicine,
which I flatter myself will entirely eradicate the disorder.
My stay was so very short, when I was here before, that I could give
you no account of the town, &c. The city of Mequinez is in the
kingdom of Fez, and thirty miles from the capital of that name. The
dynasty of _Mequinez_ were the founders of this town, which they
erected upon the ruins of the old one. Stephanus takes notice of it,
by the name of _Gilda_, and says, that it was a place of great note.
Marmol also asserts, that the present Mequinez answers in every
respect to the ancient _Gilda_. It was considerably enlarged by Muley
Ishmael, who (as well as several other Moorish princes, successively)
defended himself in this place, against the attacks of the
mountaineers. Several lines of circumvallation and intrenchments are
still to be seen.
It is surrounded with walls, and fortified by two bastions; but has no
artillery. It contains about one hundred thousand inhabitants;
twenty-five thousand of whom are Jews, who have a town of their own,
irregularly fortified, and guarded by a strong force, under the
direction of an Alcaid, who is styled the Governor of the Jews.
There is not the smallest difference, in the construction of these
houses, from those of Fez; though the inhabitants differ very
materially. The men are of a short, thick, muscular make, and swarthy
complexion, with long black beards and black eyes. The women are
excessively handsome, and remarkably fair; nor are they devoid of
neatness and elegance in their dress. They improve the beauty of their
eyes with paint.
The Moorish inhabitants of this city are all militia-men, entirely at
the disposal of the Emperor. They are excellent horsemen, expert at
the sword and lance; and with fire-arms most admirable marksmen. They
are generally considered barbarous and ferocious.
The people of distinction go about richly attired, having much gold
and silver on their clothes. They take great pains in cleaning their
teeth, combing their long beards, and keeping their nails pared
extremely close.
The streets of this town are not paved; and the soil being clay, they
must be very disagreeable in winter; for, after a heavy shower of
rain, they are almost impassable from the accumulation of mud in every
quarter. The market-places, with which this place abounds, are long,
narrow, arched or covered streets, with small shops on each side,
superintended by a Cadi, and an officer under him, for the purpose of
collecting the duties on the sale of goods, &c. The chief furniture of
the houses consists of beautiful carpets, cushions, and mattresses,
upon which they sit and lie.
In and about the neighbourhood of this place are several saints'
houses, near which no Christian, nor Jew, is allowed to pass. The most
remarkable is the _hospitium_ of Sidi-el-Marti.
The Emperor's favourite diversions, while here, are shooting and
hunting, in both of which I am told he excels. He keeps a large pack
of greyhounds, as fine as any I have seen in England. His
pleasure-grounds, and park, in the vicinity of this town, abound in
all kinds of game, hares, rabbits, and deer, and in wild boars and
foxes.
LETTER XVI.
_Courtship_--_Marriage_--_Funerals_--_Sabbath_.
Mequinez.
I shall now give you an account of the manner in which the marriages
are invariably negotiated and conducted in this country. A female, the
confidential friend of the suitor, is dispatched to observe and report
the beauty and accomplishments of the young lady; and when those are
found to be perfectly adapted to the gentleman's taste, she is further
delegated to sound his eulogium, and by every means, such as
presenting her with valuable jewels, &c. to ingratiate him in the good
opinion of the fair one. When this curious courtship ends, by terms
being agreed upon, the destined bridegroom pays down a sum of money to
the bride, a license is taken out from the Cadi, and the parties are
married. I send you a description of a marriage-ceremony, at which I
was present the other day.
The bridegroom (who is one of the officers of the household) came out
of his house, attended by a vast number of his friends, and mounted
one of the best horses belonging to the Emperor, most curiously and
richly caparisoned. He carried his sword unsheathed, and was preceded
by a splendid standard, and a band of music; he was followed by a kind
of palanquin, supported on the shoulders of four stout black slaves, a
detachment of cavalry firing off their pieces every minute, and a
procession of relatives and friends, the whole moving with great mirth
and jollity,
Before they reached the house of the bride, the cavalcade halted, and
the bridegroom dismounted, assisted by his negro slaves, and knocked
loudly at the door three times. The lady was brought out in a covered
chair, attended by four women, completely muffled up. The whole party
of the bridegroom turned their backs, and she was smuggled into the
palanquin: they then returned in the same style to the house of her
lord, where, before she was allowed to enter, he placed himself at the
entrance, and extending his right arm across the door-way, she passed
under, as an indication of her voluntary and unconditional submission
to his will and pleasure.
After this ceremony, the bridegroom was obliged to retire to the house
of his nearest relation, where he continued three days and nights,
feasting, and receiving presents from all his male friends, while the
bride was paid the same compliments by her female acquaintance. At
the expiration of the appointed time, the gentleman returned to his
own house.
The Moors are not allowed by their law more than four wives, but they
may have as many concubines as they can maintain; accordingly, the
wealthy Moors, besides their wives, keep a kind of seraglio of women
of all colours.
From their marriages, I am insensibly led to the subject of the burial
of their dead. Not that any idea strikes me of an analogy between the
situations of a married person, and one consigned to the "_narrow
house_," as Ossian poetically styles the grave; but from a certain
succession of thought, for which one is at a loss to account. In the
burial of their dead, they are decent and pious, without pomp or
show. The corpse is attended by the relations and friends, chanting
passages from the Koran, to the mosque, where it is washed, and it is
afterwards interred in a place at some distance from the town, the
Iman, or priest, pronouncing an oration, containing the eulogy of the
deceased. The male relations express their regard by alms and prayers,
the women by ornamenting the tomb with flowers and green leaves. Their
term of mourning is the same as ours, twelve months, during which
period the widows divest themselves of every ornament, and appear
habited in the coarsest attire. Their burial-grounds are inclosed by
cypress and other dark lofty trees, the lower parts of which are
interwoven with odoriferous shrubs and creeping plants, forming an
almost impenetrable hedge. Some of their tombs are very curious,
though they exhibit specimens of the rudest architecture. There are
also several saints' houses in their burying-places, which render
them doubly sacred; and no Christian or Jew is suffered to enter, on
pain of death.
Friday being their Sabbath, the day is kept perfectly holy; all the
Moors are employed in prayer, reading the Koran, or visiting the tombs
of their departed friends.
Curiosity prompted me to go and see an assemblage of fanatics, at a
celebrated saint's house, in the neighbourhood of this town. They
were to perform many wonderful things, such as tearing a live sheep in
pieces, and devouring the flesh, fighting with wild beasts, and
several other barbarous exhibitions. These people, called in Barbary
_Free Masons_, are nothing more than a set of canting, roaring
companions, surcharged with wine and other liquors, and assembled in
this holy place, for the sole purpose of giving free vent to their
brutal passions. This society is peculiar to itself, having no
connexion with our ancient or modern Free Masons. I have however
obtained a free access to their saints' houses and secret meetings,
with permission to go any where unmolested; but I always take the
precaution to go well armed, and escorted by the Emperor's guards, as
nothing can exceed the barbarous acts of this fanatic set of people.
I am extremely happy to say, that my most sanguine expectations with
regard to the poor man, whose accident I mentioned in my last, are
realized; every unfavourable symptom has vanished, and I can safely
rely on his perfect recovery. The complaint of my female patient has
also given way to a proper course of medicine, and the Governor is one
of the happiest of men. When I announced the pleasing intelligence of
her disease being removed, he embraced me with such ecstacy that I
almost dreaded suffocation; in short, he has spared nothing that can
evince his gratitude and satisfaction, for what he terms the
inestimable benefit I have conferred upon him.
The country round this city is inexpressibly rich and beautiful, being
laid put for several miles in gardens, abounding in flowers and
fruit-trees; among the latter the vine sands pre-eminent, yielding
most delicious grapes. The air here, as in the other parts of
Barbary, is very pure and salubrious.
LETTER XVII.
_Depart for Morocco--Roads dreadfully infested, by Robbers--A Tribe of
aboriginal Freebooters--Description of Morocco--Filth of the common
People--Tobacco disallowed--Justice of the Emperor_.
Mequinez
Since I wrote last, I have taken a trip to Morocco and back again. As
I had a great deal of leisure time, and every thing here having lost
the attraction of novelty, I determined to go further up the interior
of the country; and accordingly applied to the Emperor for permission
to visit Morocco, which he granted, but with the injunction that I
should return as quickly as possible.
I set off, accompanied by my usual guard, which I assure you I never
found so necessary as on this journey; for the rapacious spirit of the
peasantry exposed us continually to the danger of being plundered, we
were therefore obliged to keep watch alternately, to prevent our
property, perhaps our lives, becoming a prey to these wretches. The
neighbourhood of Morocco is dreadfully infested by robbers and
assassins.
The inhabitants of the empire of Morocco, that are not in a military
capacity, or otherwise immediately in the service of the Emperor, are
miserably poor; and the natural indolence of their disposition
preventing them from making any laudable exertions towards gaining a
livelihood, they have recourse to every means of fraud and
violence. It is astonishing how frequently assassinations and
robberies are committed in this empire, notwithstanding the ruffians,
when detected, are punished in the most exemplary manner, by the right
hand and left foot being cut off, and the head afterwards being
severed from the body. The relations of the murderer are all fined
very heavily, and the judgment often extends to the whole village,
near which the crime had been perpetrated; yet seldom a day passes but
some daring robbery is committed, accompanied by the most wanton and
savage cruelty; the unhappy victim of the plunderer being frequently
left in the public roads in a most shocking state of mutilation.
Another ostensible cause of the dereliction of the peasantry from the
laws of humanity, may be the extreme oppression under which they
groan; as, on account of their former propensity to rebellion, they
are now ruled with a rod of iron, which in all probability has
rendered them callous, and deaf to the voice of nature. But,
independently of these occasional depredations, there is a band of
vagrants, who are actuated by no other motives, than what their own
black hearts suggest. They inhabit caves in the sides of enormous
rocky precipices, and go entirely naked: their principal food is the
flesh of wild beasts. This tribe of freebooters appears to be quite a
distinct set of people; they seem to have an invincible aversion to
the Mahometan religion, and worship the _sun_ and _fire_; they speak a
different language from the rest of the inhabitants, a mixture of
African and the _old_ Arabic; all which circumstances favour their own
report of themselves, which is, that they are the genuine descendants
of the original inhabitants. They look down upon the more civilized
Moors with contempt, and consider them as the real usurpers of their
country, and the plunderers of their property. They subsist chiefly
by rapine, and frequently throw a whole village into consternation by
their nocturnal visits; yet their cunning and dexterity are so great,
that they almost constantly elude the vigilance of justice: indeed,
they are never forced from their places of retreat (which are
inaccessible to all but themselves), but when taken, it is either in
the act of robbing, or when they venture to the markets or fairs; and
then the capture is not effected without a strong body of the
military.
I was much disappointed on my arrival at Morocco with the appearance
of the place; for, instead of finding it, as I expected, superior to
Fez and Mequinez, I found it a large ruinous town, almost without
inhabitants. It contains, indeed, a great many mosques, caravanseras,
public baths, marketplaces or squares, and palaces of the Xeriffes,
but all in almost deplorable state of ruin. Not many years since, this
city was the Imperial residence, and contained six hundred and fifty
thousand inhabitants; but the late civil wars, and the plague, which
raged with such violence, in the beginning of the present Emperor's
reign, nearly depopulated it. In consequence of the latter melancholy
event, the court was removed to Fez and Mequinez. To this account we
may place the present desolate appearance of Morocco. The Imperial
palace is, however, kept in repair, as the Emperor goes to Morocco
annually to spend the fast-days, which are during the months of
October and November; scarcely one fourth of the other palaces and
houses are inhabited; but though this city now exhibits evident
symptoms of rapid decay, we may still form a just idea of its former
grandeur and magnificence.
The plain of Morocco is bounded by that long ridge of mountains called
_Atlas_, which screen the town from the scorching heat of the easterly
winds, while the snow, with which their summits are covered, renders
the climate more temperate than in other parts of
Barbary. Notwithstanding the salubrity of the climate of Morocco, a
residence there is rendered miserable, by the multitudes of scorpions,
serpents, gnats, and bugs, which infest the town and its
neighbourhood.
His Imperial Majesty holds a court of justice here, previous to the
commencement of the holidays, and also issues orders for a general
ablution by men, women, and children, of every class: this, no doubt,
is very necessary, as the common people seldom change their linen, and
the greater part of them are covered with vermin. During the fast they
dare not touch any food while the sun is up, and when at night they
are allowed to break their fast, they absolutely make perfect beasts
of themselves. Smoking, or chewing tobacco, and taking snuff, are
strictly prohibited, by an edict from the Emperor: the vender is
punished with the bastinado, and a confiscation of all his goods and
cattle, and the buyer with six years imprisonment.
Owing to the intense heat of the weather lately, there is a great
scarcity of water: so that we were obliged to carry it up in bags made
of goat-skin, to supply us on the road; and coming back we took the
same precaution.