INDEPENDENT MOUNTAINEEES. 



265 



semi -feudal rule of chiefs, and among whom intestine feuds 

 are rooted in immemorial tradition, is usually short-lived. 

 Our hope of getting further knowledge as to the 

 eastern extremity of the Sous valley, and the orographic 

 relations between the Atlas and Anti-Atlas ranges was 

 not to be satisfied. Djebel Tezah, as we found, stands 

 some way north of the axis of the chain, while the great 

 mass that rose over against us between ENE. and ESE., 

 extending to the head of the Ait Mesan valley, sends out 

 massive buttresses to the south, and by these our view 

 of Anti-Atlas was cut off to the SE. On one of these 

 western projecting buttresses, we could distinguish a large 

 village belonging to the district of Tifinout, and standing 

 at an elevation of nearly 7,000 feet. Turning our eyes to 

 the north of true east, many of the higher summits of the 



chain were seen rising above the intervening ranges, the 

 most distant probably belonging to the Glaoui group, east 

 of Tasseremout. Once more we came to the conclusion, 

 that throughout the portion of the Great Atlas chain visi- 

 ble from the city of Marocco, between the easternmost 

 feeders of the Oued Tensift and those of the Oued Nfys, 

 there are no prominent peaks notably surpassing the 

 average level. Many of them must surpass the limit of 

 13,000 feet above the sea, but it is not likely that any one 

 attains the level of 13,500 feet. The last object that at- 

 tracted our attention in the panorama, in a direction 

 about east by north, was an isolated mass, forming a bold 

 promontory on the northern side of the chain, of which a 

 rough outline is here given. 



