Life in Morocco and Glimpses Beyond | Page 9

merchant was not
only tolerated, but was at times supplied with capital by the Moorish
sultans, to whom he was allowed to go deeply in debt for custom's dues,
and half a century later the British Consul at Mogador was not
permitted to embark to escape a bombardment of the town, because of
his debt to the Sultan. Many of the restrictions complained of to-day
are the outcome of the almost enslaved condition of the merchants of
those times in consequence of such customs. Indeed, the position of the
European in Morocco is still a series of anomalies, and so it is likely to
continue until it passes under foreign rule.
The same old spirit of independence reigns in the Berber breast to-day
as when he conquered Spain, and though he has forgotten his past and
cares naught for his future, he still considers himself a superior being,
and feels that no country can rival his home. In his eyes the embassies
from Europe and America come only to pay the tribute which is the
price of peace with his lord, and when he sees a foreign minister in all
his black and gold stand in the sun bareheaded to address the mounted
Sultan beneath his parasol, he feels more proud than ever of his
greatness, and is more decided to be pleasant to the stranger, but to
keep him out.
Instead of increased relations between Moors and foreigners tending to
friendship, the average foreign settler or tourist is far too bigoted and
narrow-minded to see any good in the native, much less to
acknowledge his superiority on certain points. Wherever the Sultan's
authority is recognized the European is free to travel and live, though
past experience has led officials not to welcome him. At the same time,
he remains entirely under the jurisdiction of his own authorities, except
in cases of murder or grave crime, when he must be at once handed
over to the nearest consul of his country. Not only are he and his
household thus protected, but also his native employees, and, to a
certain extent, his commercial and agricultural agents.
Thus foreigners in Morocco enjoy within the limits of the central power
the security of their own lands, and the justice of their own laws. They
do not even find in Morocco that immunity from justice which some

ignorant writers of fiction have supposed; for unless a foreigner
abandons his own nationality and creed, and buries himself in the
interior under a native name, he cannot escape the writs of foreign
courts. In any case, the Moorish authorities will arrest him on demand,
and hand him over to his consul to be dealt with according to law. The
colony of refugees which has been pictured by imaginative raconteurs
is therefore non-existent. Instead there are growing colonies of business
men, officials, missionaries, and a few retired residents, quite above the
average of such colonies in the Levant, for instance.
For many years past, though the actual business done has shown a
fairly steady increase, the commercial outlook in Morocco has gone
from bad to worse. Yet more of its products are now exported, and
there are more European articles in demand, than were thought of
twenty years ago. This anomalous and almost paradoxical condition is
due to the increase of competition and the increasing weakness of the
Government. Men who had hope a few years ago, now struggle on
because they have staked too much to be able to leave for more
promising fields. This has been especially the case since the late
Sultan's death. The disturbances which followed that event
impoverished many tribes, and left behind a sense of uncertainty and
dread. No European Bourse is more readily or lastingly affected by
local political troubles than the general trade of a land like Morocco, in
which men live so much from hand to mouth.
It is a noteworthy feature of Moorish diplomatic history that to the
Moors' love of foreign trade we owe almost every step that has led to
our present relations with the Empire. Even while their rovers were the
terror of our merchantmen, as has been pointed out, foreign traders
were permitted to reside in their ports, the facilities granted to them
forming the basis of all subsequent negotiations. Now that concession
after concession has been wrung from their unwilling Government, and
in spite of freedom of residence, travel, and trade in the most important
parts of the Empire, it is disheartening to see the foreign merchant in a
worse condition than ever.
The previous generation, fewer in number, enjoying far less privileges,

and subjected to restrictions and indignities that would not be suffered
to-day, were able to make their fortunes and retire, while their
successors find it hard to hold their own. The