sea-port town, and the island of _Erythia_, now also called Mogedor,
which island contains a castle of considerable strength, defended by a
strong garrison, stationed there chiefly, as I have been told, to
protect the gold-mines in the neighbourhood; but the distance was very
great, and my time so limited, that I could not spare a fortnight,
which it would at least have required to get there and back again. I
have been returned here two days, and, as I observed before, not so
much gratified as I expected.
As I passed one of the courts of the palace yesterday, a fellow was
receiving punishment for a robbery. The right hand and foot were
severed at the articulation, by a single blow of a large axe; the
stumps were immediately immersed in a vessel of boiling pitch; and in
this miserable condition he was turned about his business. I once
attended a man who had suffered these amputations; he soon recovered,
and, to my great surprise, instead of sorrowing for his loss, he
skipped about as nimbly as possible, and afterwards enlisted in the
police. After the fellow was turned away yesterday, a peasant, who had
walked nearly two hundred miles, presented himself before the Emperor,
to complain of the Governor of his province, for not having done him
justice in assisting him to recover a debt of about six shillings. The
Emperor listened to his grievance, issued an order to enforce the
payment of the debt, and gave the poor man a sum of money to enable
him to return home.
LETTER XVIII.
_Moorish Character--Form of Devotion--Meals--Revenue--Poll-tax on the
Jews--Royal Carriages--Ostrich-riding--Public Schools--Watch-dogs._
Mequinez.
The established religion of the Moors is Mahometan. Formerly, as well
as at present, women were considered by the Moors as the mere objects
of sensuality, and only esteemed while in full bloom. At the age of
thirty, or at most forty, they were looked upon as an inferior order
of beings, and doomed to the most abject and insupportable slavery:
indeed, the latter circumstance still exists, though considerably
mitigated. No wonder then that the doctrine of Mahomet should be
cordially embraced by a people with whose inclinations it so exactly
coincided. But that part only was adopted, which indulged them in the
gratification of their wishes; that which imposed restraint was
renounced, or only nominally acceded to. And fortunate it certainly is
for the security of the neighbouring countries that they did so; as,
when formerly they were inured from infancy to all the hardships of a
warlike life, and possessed much skill in war, they were undoubtedly
very formidable; but since their conversion to Mahometanism, they have
gradually become inactive, and their natural passion for war and
conquest has changed to absolute effeminacy. The illiterate system of
the Moors has also completely shut the door against the arts and
sciences, and all knowledge of the value of a free and secure
commerce. Yet, notwithstanding this people are no longer either in
appearance or reality those fierce barbarians they once were, nor can
their actions in point of valour bear any comparison with those of
their ancestors, like them they retain a most inveterate antipathy to
all Christians; and a propensity towards cruelty, revenge, rapine, and
murder, still continues to form one of the most prominent features of
their character. However, under the comparatively mild government of
the present Emperor, their behaviour towards Christians has visibly
undergone a favourable change, which would almost persuade some to
indulge a hope of the entire annihilation of their aversion; but I am
sorry to add, that I am not so sanguine, as from accurate observation
I have been led to conclude, that nothing but an immense length of
time can overcome their habitual prejudices and constitutional
inclinations.
The male inhabitants of these states are obliged to attend their
places of public worship four times in the course of twenty-four
hours. The first prayer begins about half an hour before sun-rising,
and is so regulated that they may, just as the sun rises, finish eight
adorations. They pray again at noon, at sun-set, and at midnight: they
are very fervent in their devotions, and always turn their faces
towards the east: they fast three times in a year; the first time
thirty days, the next nine, and the last seven: during these fasts
they abstain from beans, garlic, and some other pulse and
vegetables. They call the Almighty, _God of Gods_, and _Lord of
Lords_; and they all believe that the souls of wicked men will be
punished till a certain period, when they will be received to mercy.
In the morning, after prayer, they drink strong tea, which they prefer
to coffee. At eleven o'clock they, go to dinner, which consists of
fruits, sweetmeats, and their favourite _cous-ca-sou_, piled up in a
large wooden bowl. Their chief meal is after their return from
evening prayer. They eat cakes made of fine wheaten flour; and as they
consider it a crime to cut bread or meat of any kind after it is
dressed, these cakes are made so thin that they may be easily broken
with the hands; and their meat, which is generally mutton or fowls, is
so prepared that they can without difficulty separate it from the
bones with their fingers. They sit cross-legged upon cushions, and
devour their food very greedily and without the least
ceremony. Although sobriety is strictly enjoined by the Mahometan law,
yet the Moorish inhabitants of the principal towns in Barbary make
free with most excellent wines and spirits of their own manufacture.
The revenues of the Emperor have of late augmented prodigiously. He
receives a tenth part of all the property of his Mahometan subjects;
and he compels every Jew residing in his dominions to pay a poll-tax
of six crowns annually. The number of Israelites subject to the
Emperor of Morocco exceeds one hundred thousand. They are strictly
guarded, and cruelly oppressed, and are not permitted to quit the
states without a special leave from the Emperor, to obtain which they
are obliged to pay down a large sum of money.
The authority of the Emperor is unlimited, as is that of his
Governors, who possess a power of life and death. No rank nor
condition of Moors is exempt from taxation, excepting the immediate
princes of the blood, and the _Xeriffes_, which are the only degrees
of nobility the Moors have. The Xeriffes are the descendants of their
monarchs, and their titles are hereditary: but the title of _Sheik_ is
temporary; so that the respect paid to the Sheiks on account of their
high situations expires with them.
Coaches, carriages, and palanquins are used only by the Emperor. I
have seen some, both here and at Fez, which are really elegant; they
are for the use of his ladies when they go to spend the day in any of
the Imperial gardens. The Emperor has several very handsome chariots,
in one of which he usually rides, drawn by six mules. The Moors ride
on horseback, attended by a number of slaves or soldiers, according to
their rank and wealth.
The princes of the blood and Xeriffes are not allowed to interfere in
any political or public business, and are never consulted in state
affairs. They are generally provided for, with sinecure places to
support their rank, but many of these are too small to enable them to
do so. The several Governors of provinces have each a large tract of
land; and the tax collected from the venders and buyers in the weekly
markets in their districts is also appropriated by them to defray the
charges of their retinue and troops. From the vast crown lands in this
country, the Emperor obtains sufficient for the expenses of the court,
household, and great officers of state; from which circumstance, and
what I have before said of his revenues, it is evident that his
coffers must be most abundantly supplied, and his annual saving in
ordinary cases very great. A detachment of troops from each province
is sent every three months to collect the tributes, which are levied
with the most unrelenting rigour. There are some vestiges of the
Caliphate government still remaining; for in places where no military
officer resides, the Mufti, or high-priest, is the fountain of all
justice; he collects the tributes, and under him the Cadis or civil
officers act in the same manner as our justices of the peace.
The general language of the country is Arabic; but in the inland
countries, in the provinces of Suz, Tafilet, and Gessula, the ancient
African language is still spoken. Those remote districts are now under
the sovereignty of the Emperor of Morocco; but I am told they contain
nothing particularly curious, except an immense number of pelicans and
ostriches, the latter so strong as to be able to carry a man upon
their backs. I one day saw a Moor riding in a court here upon one,
which he had got from those parts, and tamed for. show.
The Moors write in the manner of the Hebrew language, from right to
left; they are wonderfully expeditious in it, and their seals are very
neat. Public schools have lately been established in all the towns and
villages of these states; but, as the children are taught by their
priests, a set of superstitious and fanatic people, no great benefit,
to change or improve their manners, can accrue from such an
institution.
I believe, in a former letter I told you that the peasantry reside in
tents; I have however observed a few huts built of clay, but very
few. In the centre of both the huts and tents, there is a hole dug in
the ground, where they make a fire, with an outlet in the roof to vent
the smoke. They generally burn wood, or a species of charcoal, in the
preparation of which they contrive to deprive it of the baneful
effects usually experienced from the use of it in England. They have
mats spread round the fire, upon which they sit in the day, and sleep
at night. They are so parsimonious, that they live the greater part of
the year on fruit, vegetables, and fish, though they supply the
markets with abundance of fowls (of which they rear immense numbers),
butter, &c. &c. Their chief defence at night is their dogs; each tent
is provided with one, and they are so vigilant, that they give instant
notice of the approach of intruders; and when the alarm is
communicated to the whole of them, it is scarcely possible to conceive
the effect. The habit of the peasantry is the same both winter and
summer, and consists of a thick garment (frequently old and tattered),
a short capote, a greasy turban, and a pair of yellow slippers. They
sometimes throw round them a coarse white _haik_, which also serves
for a bed and covering in the night, as many of them lie upon the bare
ground in the open air before their tents.
In my next I shall give you a short sketch of the produce of this
fertile country.
LETTER XIX.
_Face and Produce of the Empire, natural and artificial_.
Mequinez.
The mountains (the principal of which are Mount Diur, Mount Cotta,
near the city of Larache, the mountain commonly called _Ape's Hill_,
between Tangiers and Ceuta, and that remarkable ridge called Mount
Atlas) contain mines of gold, silver, copper, and tin.
The chief capes or promontories of these states are, Cape Cottes or
Ampelusia, known to our seafaring people by the name of Cape Spartel,
the _Promontorium Herculis_, and the _Promontorium Oleastrum_, so
called from the prodigious number of wild olives growing upon it.
All the bays round the coast furnish an abundance of the most
delicious fish of every kind; and the several rivers are equally
productive. The occasional overflow of the rivers greatly enriches
and fertilizes the soil, to which, more than to their own industry
(for they never manure their grounds, and are absolute strangers to
the art of husbandry), are the Moors indebted for their plentiful
crops of wheat, Turkey corn, rye, rice, oats, barley, and grain of all
kinds.
I have before told you that this country abounds in fine fruits. The
most esteemed are, oranges, grapes, pomegranates, lemons, citrons,
figs, almonds, and dates. The Moors also grow great quantities of
excellent hemp and flax. Medicinal herbs and roots are very plentiful
here. Vegetables of every kind, and melons, cucumbers, &c. thrive
exceedingly well. The grass grows spontaneously to an amazing height,
and in consequence of the fine pasturage the animals are very
prolific, cows and mares producing two at a birth, and the sheep
frequently four lambs in the year.
Among the botanical herbs, plants, and roots, are the colocynth, palma
Christi, wild and meadow saffron, the great mountain garlic, mountain
satyrion, senna, rhubarb, bastard rhubarb, balsam apple, horned poppy,
wild succory, recabilia peruviana, ipecacuanha, wild turnip, wild
radish, field mustard, Indian cress, dandelion, black winter cherry,
wild lily, hyacinth, violet, narcissus, wild rose, camomile, tulips,
and the _fleur de lis_, equal to that of Florence; with a variety of
others too numerous to describe.
The domestic animals of these states are, the horse, ass, mule, rumrah
(a beast of burden in the mountainous parts), camel, dromedary,
antelope, cow, dog, sheep, and large goat. The beasts of prey are,
lions, tigers, leopards, hyenas, and wolves. The apes are
innumerable. Deer, wild boars, hares, rabbits, ferrets, weazels,
moles, and camelions, are also found in great numbers. Horses and
cattle of all kinds are sold at very low prices.
Among the feathered tribe most common here, are, very large eagles,
hawks, partridges, quails, wild pigeons, and wild fowl of every kind,
turtle-doves, and a variety of small birds; among which the capsa
sparrow is remarkable for the elegance of its plumage and the
sweetness of its notes, in which it excels every other bird: this
beautiful little creature cannot live out of its native country. I
had almost forgotten to mention the storks and cranes, which are seen
here in great numbers, and so extremely tame, from being perfectly
unmolested, that they build their nests and rear their young in the
very centre of the towns and villages, and on the tops of the towers
of their mosques. Of the reptile kind, venomous spiders, scorpions,
vipers, and enormously large serpents, are common in Barbary.
The greatest natural curiosities of this country are the salt-pits
(which in some places are immensely large), and several hot springs,
possessing such a great degree of heat, that an egg being put in for a
short time will become quite hard. The face of the country itself is a
natural curiosity; the vallies, which are several leagues in extent,
and the mountains, which reach as far as the deserts of Suz, Tafilet,
and Gessula, interspersed with forests or corn-fields, and rich
meadows, are remarkably curious.
The artificial curiosities are very numerous, and claim the attention
of all who may visit this country. They ought properly to be divided
into two classes; in the first of which may be placed the
subterraneous cavern and passage near Tangiers; the ruins of the
amphitheatres, triumphal arches, temples, &c. erected by the
Carthaginians, Romans, and Arabs, at Fez and the several other towns
of Barbary. The country is besides all over scattered with the remains
of ditches and ramparts, evidently designed for the defence of camps,
forts, and castles, no other vestiges of which, however, can be
found. Besides these, I have observed a number of round towers, which
appear to have belonged, some to houses of religion, and others to the
palaces or residences of former rulers in this country.
In the second class, we may place the efforts of the architectural and
mechanical genius of the present inhabitants, exemplified in the
wonderful aqueducts at Morocco, which commence in Mount Atlas (by the
natives called _Gibbel-el-Hadith_), and convey water in the greatest
abundance to all the houses of the city and its environs. Nor is the
wheel at Fez, which I mentioned in a former letter, less worthy of
remark; and several mausoleums in their burial-places have been
constructed in a very costly style, the stucco of the walls being
remarkably smooth and beautiful, and as hard as marble; but these
tombs are exceptions to the general rule; for, as I have before
observed, the greater part are but rude buildings. There are many
other curiosities, which to describe minutely would fill a volume.
LETTER XX.
_Practice of Physic--Astrology--Poetry--Entertainment given by the
Author to the Moors--Their Astonishment at the Effects of
Electricity_.
Mequinez.
I shall now speak of their principal or rather only studies, which
are, physic, astrology, and poetry. First then of physic, to give you
an accurate idea of the extent of their knowledge in which, it will be
sufficient to describe their practice of it; and I am sure you, my
dear D----, and every other friend to humanity, will agree with me,
that it would have been better for their countrymen if they had never
attempted it at all, as unassisted nature would do more, for those
afflicted with disease, than such bunglers.
The general practice adopted by the Moorish physicians, or _Tweebs_,
is, bleeding _ad deliquium_ in all fevers; administering excessive
doses of drastic medicines, plenty of emulsions, and a watery
diet. They order vinegar in cases of quinsies and ardent fevers, and
garlic in those of a putrid, malignant, and pestilential kind. They
prescribe alum in cases of hemorrhage and dysentery; hot spices and
long abstinences in chronic diseases; recent ox-gall to kill worms and
cure dropsies; castor and myrrh in all hysteric affections; asses milk
in slow fevers and consumptions; oranges, honey, eggs, mint, and
myrrh, in cases of typhus; poppy-juice in convulsive disorders and
fluxes of the bowels; pitch or tar water and pennyroyal in common
fevers; rose-leaves in cases of diabetes; and sulphur in all cutaneous
disorders. This is the whole of the Moorish _materia medica_. In
simple diseases, where little medical ability is necessary, and the
good habit of body of these people in general contributes to their
success, they may effect a cure; but in desperate cases, where nothing
but the skill of the physician can relieve oppressed nature, it is not
astonishing that they should fail. These men are in some measure
astrologers: most probably, being gifted with a greater degree of
cunning than their neighbours, they have discovered the weak side of
their countrymen, together with their own insufficiency, to cover
which they pretend to a knowledge of the stars, which has the greatest
weight with the superstitious Moors; consequently, when a patient,
either by their improper treatment, or the violence of his disease,
evinces symptoms of approaching dissolution, the doctor, with infinite
gravity, points out to the surrounding relations the star which, he
positively asserts, appears to summon the dying man to the bosom of
his Prophet. By this means he avoids reproach, since he has made it so
evident, that the poor man's time was come, and that nothing could
ward off the shafts of destiny. This apparently wonderful faculty of
prognostication, added to their exemplary mode of living, and liberal
donations to the poor and afflicted, operating upon the minds of the
blind and fanatic Moors, induces _them_ to consider their physicians
next to their saints, and to worship _them_ with nearly as much
reverence.
The Tweebs have each from two to six disciples, whom they instruct and
initiate in their secrets of the healing art. In their regular visits
to any town, they parade the streets with great pomp and gravity,
followed by a train of miserable objects, who pretend to have been
recently recovered from a long and dangerous illness by the
extraordinary skill of the doctor; while, in fact, their cadaverous
countenances and emaciated bodies seem to contradict their assertions,
and bear ample testimony that they are hurrying fast to that country,
"from whose bourne no traveller returns." Under the pretence of
charity, these poor wretches are supported by this Moorish
AEsculapius, while his views in so doing are entirely selfish; that
by their means he may better impose on the credulous, and obtain
considerable sums of money. When any one of them (by chance) effects
what he considers a great cure, it is communicated in a circular
letter to all the doctors in Barbary.
They select one of their elders every year, and appoint him to preside
over them. His business, for the time being, is to settle all their
controversies: he is the fountain of all justice among them; for as
they are looked upon to be petty saints, they are a privileged set of
men, and not in the least subject to either civil or military
jurisdiction. They possess the art of taming the monstrous serpents of
the country, and rendering them perfectly harmless: in short, their
profession is nothing but a system of the grossest empiricism.
Formerly the country could boast of having scientific astronomers;
for, like the ancient Egyptians, the inhabitants of Barbary cultivated
the science of astronomy with great success; but as it was
communicated from generation to generation by tradition only, it is
not surprising that the increasing indolence of the Moors should have
made them relinquish the more abstruse parts, and that now it is
dwindled into mere astrology. Their habitual mode of living,
frequently exposed at night, during all weathers, in the open air,
enables them without difficulty to observe the fixed stars, and their
influence on the weather, and they have thence ascribed to every one
some peculiar property, by which the events of human life, good or
bad, are regulated.
In poetry I am told the Moors are very successful. The subjects of
their poems are mostly eulogies of the great men who have belonged to
the tribe of which the poet is a member: these compositions are all
extempore, like those of our ancient bards, or those of the Celts,
spoken of by Julius Cæsar, who wandered about in Gaul and other
parts of the continent with their harps. The poets of Barbary have no
settled home, but with an instrument somewhat resembling a mandolin
they wander from place to place, and house to house, composing and
singing pieces improviso, on the honour and antiquity of their
tribe. From persons acquainted with the language, I have heard, that
they are very happy in this species of poetry, which is far from
deficient in point of harmony. For myself I can say, that though
unable to enter into the spirit of it from the circumstance of not
perfectly understanding the language, yet I was much pleased with the
effect.