JOURNEY] IN: MOROCCO 
caravan had been captured and four of 
their comrades killed. 
A GLIMPSE OF DOMESTIC LIFE 
Such incidents lend rather disagreeable 
zest to Moroccan travel, in spite of the 
fact that we knew that our caravan of- 
fered but slight inducement for an at- 
tack. Those inclined to attack us knew 
that we carried only sufficient money to 
suffice for the journey from one principal 
town to another, having orders on Jew- 
ish money-lenders in the various towns 
for any cash needed. 
On the night before we reached La- 
rache we had just seated ourselves for 
dinner when we were startled by a con- 
fusion of shrieks, cries, and ejaculations. 
Rushing out we were confronted by a 
ludicrous sight. A portly Moroccan gen- 
tleman, turbanless and with disordered 
garments, was sitting astride a confused 
mass of drapery and of kicking and 
scratching arms and legs, and dealing 
with both hands wild but solid blows 
upon it. On nearer examination the 
dusky members and piercing cries re- 
solved themselves into three helpmeets, 
who had seemingly rashly revolted 
against the scepter of their liege lord. A 
number of the men of the village looked 
on in calm indifference for a while and 
finally pulled the enraged husband off. 
The eloquent glances cast back at him by 
his three irate wives, as they betook 
themselves homeward, did not augur 
well for his evening meal that night. 
There is little to interest the traveler 
in Larasche. It is a small, poorly built 
coast town, lacking a good harbor. Did 
it have the latter it would soon supersede 
Tangier in importance, as it is much 
penecce’ 
Gras Sy 
iii 
~I 
closer to the cities of the interior. We 
spent but one night there, pressing on 
toward Tangier. Toward noon on the 
second day we came in sight of the 
mountains of Andalusia, on the other side 
of the Strait of Gibraltar, and soon after- 
ward the blue water of the Bay of Tan- 
gier came in view. It was with a feeling 
of relief, tinged with regret, that we 
found ourselves once again in civiliza- 
tion, for after the days spent in the heart 
of Morocco, Tangier, with its narrow 
streets, its snake-charmers, its bazars and 
Arab cafés, seemed civilized indeed. 
As we bade our men farewell in front 
of the hotel and patted our horses for the 
last time, a feeling of sadness came over 
us. Railroad travel has its advantages, 
caravan life its discomforts. But let no 
one judge between them who has not felt, 
day after day, the exhilaration of breath- 
ing in the bracing air of sunrise in the 
saddle, anticipating a day sure to be filled 
with strange, new scenes, or who has not 
experienced the keen pleasure of canter- 
ing toward an inviting camp when the 
setting sun is throwing fairy tints on 
earth and sky; or who has not tasted the 
enjoyment, after the evening meal, of 
giving one’s self over to the romance of 
the Orient while the moon climbs high 
behind the palms! 
For him whose heart is open to the 
poetry of such a life, who shuns not its 
risks and discomforts, who desires to 
understand and appreciate more thor- 
oughly the history of the Moorish as- 
cendancy in Spain, who cares to realize 
what life was and meant two thousand 
years ago, for him is awaiting “the Land 
of the Moors.” 
WEP RSS 
jin WAI SNR Wake B94 oa, 
SP. 
poorer) 
