Morocco, the Land of the Extreme West 157 



midnight, grasped me by the arm, and 

 thus was I literally restored to my family 

 by the gallant officer in command of the 

 fleet which the United States government 

 had so generously sent to my rescue. But 

 for this strenuous and successful inter- 

 vention I might still be detained among 

 those mountains. Upon this point I in- 

 sist the more, since it has been suggested 

 that we owed our rescue to other 

 agencies. 



To the joint exertions of my friends, 

 Minister Gummere, and to the British 

 Minister, Sir Arthur Nicolson, I am 

 deeply indebted — indeed, I can find no 



NOTES ON MOROCCO 



MOROCCO in the early days of the 

 Christian era was one of the gran- 

 aries of the Roman Empire. Her lands 

 today are no less rich ; but, owing 

 to the lawlessness of a weak govern- 

 ment and a strict prohibition of the ex- 

 portation of grain and cattle, they are 

 now for the most part abandoned and 

 have been unfilled for many centuries. 

 Morocco contains about 250,000 square 

 miles, one-half of which, or an area al- 

 most equal to that of North and South 

 Dakota combined, is covered to a depth 

 of six to nine feet with a black loam 

 which rivals in fertility the soil of our 

 prairie states. Her location makes her 

 too valuable to leave undeveloped. Mo- 

 rocco at present exports annually only 

 $5,000,000 worth of beans, skins, hides, 

 fruits, olive oil, and wood. Her imports 

 amount to about $6,000,000 worth of cot- 

 ton goods, sugar, tea, and hardware. The 

 country is rich in the deposits of copper, 

 iron ore, antimony, and rock-salt, and 

 gold and silver are reported. 



The country is generally mountainous, 

 the Atlas range, which attains an eleva- 

 tion of nearly 15,000 feet, traversing it in 

 several parallel chains from southwest to 

 northwest and sending out numerous 

 cross spurs. The climate in many sec- 

 tions is delightful and very healthful. 



In no country in the world probably 

 does woman have such a low status as in 



words adequate to describe what I owe to 

 them, as well as to Admiral Chadwick, 

 not merely for their untiring efforts on 

 behalf of Varley and myself, but for the 

 sympathy and solicitude of which my 

 wife was the recipient throughout these 

 long six weeks, so much more trying to 

 her even than to ourselves, since she in- 

 deed was the greater sufferer. 



With this expression of my gratitude 

 to the government and to the people of 

 the United States, I conclude this account 

 and beg to thank you also for the indul- 

 gent patience with which you have lis- 

 tened to so long a narrative. 



Morocco. The usual practice of the Mo- 

 hammedan of Morocco is to divorce his 

 wife after he has lived with her six or 

 seven years, even though she may have 

 borne him children. He then takes a 

 younger and more comely partner, while 

 his former wife must be satisfied with any 

 husband she can get. After several years 

 with her second husband, she is once 

 more discarded, and marries again ; and 

 so the process goes on, each marriage be- 

 ing lower in scale, until she dies in pov- 

 erty and wretchedness of the meanest 

 description. 



GOOD BOOKS ON MOROCCO 



"The Land of the Moors" : A comprehensive 

 geographical description. Budgett Meakin. 

 Macmillan Co. Illustrated. $5.00. 



"The Moorish Empire" : A historical epit- 

 ome. Budgett Meakin. Macmillan Co. Il- 

 lustrated. $5.00. 



"The Moors." Budgett Meakin. Macmillan 

 Co. Illustrated. $5.00. 



"Morocco As It Is." Stephen Bonsai. Har- 

 pers. $2.00. 



"A Ride in Morocco" : Travel on the "beaten 

 highway," with interesting incidental expe- 

 riences of the author. Frances MacNab. Long- 

 mans, Green & Co. $5.00. 



"Things Seen in Morocco" : Being a bundle 

 of jottings, notes, impressions, and tales. A. T. 

 Dawson. Funk and Wagnalls. $2.50. 



"In the Tail of the Peacock." Isabel Savory. 

 James Post. New York. $3.50. 



"Into Morocco." Burton Holmes. With 

 many illustrations from photographs by the 

 author. The volume is one of the series of 

 Burton Holmes' Lectures and is not sold sepa- 

 rately. McClure, Phillips & Co. 



