6 MOROCCO. 
faftured at Fez. The women have yellow flippers, and 
a cuftom of wearing a kind of flocking of fine cloth fome- 
what large, which is tied below the knee and at the ankle, 
over which it falls in folds. This flocking is lefs cal¬ 
culated to fliow what we call a handfome leg, than to 
make it appear thick; for to be fat is. one of the rules 
of beauty among the Moorifli women. To obtain this 
quality they take infinite pains, and feed when they become 
thin on a diet fomewhat like forced-meat balls, a certain 
quantity of which is given them daily; and in fine, the 
fame care is taken among the Moors to fatten young 
women as is in Europe to fatten fowls. 
Among the inhabitants of Morocco there is another 
clafs, of whom we mull not omit to make mention. Thefe 
are the Renegadoes, or foreigners who have renounced 
their religion for the faith of Mahomet. Of thefe there 
are a great number who have been originally Jews: they 
are held in little eftimation by the Moors; and would be 
held in abhorrence by the Jews, if they durft freely exprefs 
their averfion. The families of thefe apoftates are called 
toornadis: not having at any time married with the Moors, 
they ftill preferve their ancient charafteriftics, and are 
known almoft at fight to be the progeny of thofe who 
formerly embraced the Mahometan religion. The Chrif- 
tian renegadoes are but few; and generally are fugitive 
peculators of Spain, or men fallen from power, who be- 
caufe of their mifconduft, or in defpair, quit one un¬ 
fortunate fituation for another much more deplorable. 
The Jews were formerly very numerous in this empire. 
After being profcribed in Spain and Portugal, multitudes 
of them palled over to Morocco, and l'pread themfelves 
through the towns and over the country. By the re¬ 
lations they themfelves give, and by the extent of the 
places affigned them to dwell in, it would appear there 
were more than 30,000 families, of whom atprefent there 
is fcarcely a refidue of one-twelfth ; the remainder either 
having changed their religion, funk under their fuffer- 
ings, or fled from the vexations they . endured, and the 
arbitrary taxes and tolls impofed upon them. The Jews 
poflefs neither lands nor gardens, nor can they enjoy 
their fruits in tranquillity: they muft wear only black; 
and are obliged, when they pafs near mofques, or through 
ftreets in w’hich there are fanftuaries, to walk barefoot. 
The loweft among the Moors imagines he has a right to 
ill-treat a Jew; nor dares the latter defend himfelf, be- 
caufe the koran and the judge are always in favour of 
the Mahometan. Notwithftanding this ftate of oppreflion, 
the Jews have many advantages over the Moors: they 
better underftand the fpirit of trade ; they aft as agents 
and brokers, and profit by their own cunning and the 
ignorance of the Moors. 
The Moorifli manufaftures are—The haick, which, 
as was before obferved, is a long garment compofed of 
white wool and cotton, or cotton and filk woven toge¬ 
ther, and is ufed by the Moors for the purpofe of cover¬ 
ing their under drefs when they go abroad, which they 
do by totally wrapping themfelves in it in a carelefs but 
*afy manner; filk handkerchiefs of a particular kind, 
prepared only at Fez ; filks checkered with cotton ; car¬ 
peting, little inferior to that of Turkey; beautiful mat¬ 
ting, made of the palmetto or wild palm tree; paper of a 
coarfe kind ; cordovan, commonly called Morocco leather; 
gunpowder of an inferior nature; and long-barrelled 
mu(kets,madeofBifcayiron. The Moors are unacquainted 
with the mode of calling cannon : and therefore thofe few 
which are now in the country are obtained from Euro¬ 
peans. The manufacture of glafs is likewife unknown 
to them ; as indeed they make great ufe of earthen-ware, 
and have few or no windows to their houfes, this com¬ 
modity may be of lefs importance to them than many 
others. They make butter, by putting the milk into 
a goat-lkin, with its outward coat turned inwards, and 
lhaking it till the butter collefts on the fides, when it is 
taken out for ufe. From this operation it proves always 
full of hairs, and has an infipid flavour. Their cheefe 
confifls merely of curds hardened and dried, and has 
uniformly a difagreeable tafte. The bread in fome of 
the principal towns, particularly at Tangier and Sallee, 
is good ; but in many other places it is coarfe, black, 
and heavy. Their looms, forges, ploughs, carpenters’ 
tools, &c. are much tipon the fame conftruftion with 
the unimproved inllruments of the fame kind which are 
uled at this time in fome parts of Europe, only ftill more 
clumfily finifhed. In their work, they attend more to 
ftrength than neatnefs or convenience; and, like all other 
ignorant people, they have no idea that what they do is 
capable of improvement. It is probable, indeed, that 
the Moors have undergone no very material change fince 
the revolution in their arts and fciences, which took 
place foon after their expulfion from Spain. Previous 
to that period, it is well known they were an enlightened 
people, at a time when the greater part of Europe was 
involved in ignorance and barbarifm; but, owing to 
the weaknefs and tyrany of their princes, they gradually 
funk into the very oppofite extreme, and may now be 
confidered as but a few degrees removed from a favjgc 
ftate. 
They are now, as we have already faid, a paftoral 
people, and their wealth confifls in their flocks and herds. 
The wool of their fheep is partly employed in their own 
clothing and carpets, and partly fold to foreign nations. 
The w'ool is of various forts; fome kinds being very coarfe, 
and others very fine, and particularly that of Tedla. In 
the empire of Morocco there are few black Iheep. Oxen 
of a fmall breed are plentiful; for home-confumption, 
the Moors fait their beef and preferve it from year to 
year; their raw hides are lent in prodigious quantities to 
Marfeilles. The camel is an animal of great value and 
ufe to the Moors; as it is ufed for the purpoies of agri¬ 
culture, as well as for travelling ; and its flelh alfo ferves 
for food. Mr. Jackfon has given a very animated de- 
fcription of the heirie, or camel of the defert, which we 
ftiall here prefent to the reader: “ Nature, ever provident, 
and feeing the difficulty of communication, from the im- 
menfe trafts of defert country in Sahara, has afforded the 
Saharawans a means, upon any emergency, of eroding 
the great African defert in a few days. Mounted upon 
the defert-camel (which is in figure fimilar to the camel 
of burden, bat more elegantly formed), the Arab, with 
his loins, breaft, and ears, bound round, to prevent the 
precuffion of air proceeding from a quick motion, rapidly 
traverfes, upon the back of this abftemious animal, the 
fcorching defert, the fiery atmofphere of which parches 
and impedes refpiration, fo as almoft to produce fuffoca- 
tion. The motion of the heirie is violent, and can be 
endured only by thofe patient, abftemious, and hardy, 
Arabs, who are accuftomed to it. The molt inferior kind 
of heirie are called talatayee, a term exprelfive of their 
going the diftance of three days’ journey in one : the next 
kind is called Jebayec, a term appropriated to that which 
goes feven days’ journey in one, and this is the general 
charafter; there is alio one called tafayee, or the heirie 
of nine days ; thefe are extremely rare.” The fwiftnefs 
of this ufeful animal is thus deferibed by the Arabs, in 
their figurative manner : “ When thou ffialt meet a heirie^ 
and fay to the rider, Salem alich, (Peace be between us,) 
ere he ffiall have anfwered thee, A lick jaUm, (There is 
peace between us,) he will be afar off, and nearly out of 
fight; for his fwiftnefs is like the wind.” 
The horfes of Morocco are in general good; and they 
are taught to endure fatigue, heat, cold, hunger, and 
thirft. They are formed for fleetnefs and aftivity; but 
the breed is decreafed, except in Abda, and about Mo¬ 
rocco. Mules are much ufed, and the breed is encouraged. 
Poultry is abundant in Morocco; pigeons are excellent; 
partridges are plentiful; woodcocks are fcarce; butfnipes 
are numerous in the feafon; the oftrich is hunted both 
for fport and for profit, as its feathers are a confiderable 
article of traffic: hares are good; but rabbits are con¬ 
fined to the northern part of the empire from Laracha to 
Tetuan, 
