Travels in Morocco, Vol. 1. | Page 9

found to
be full of greasy paper. At Tetuan, the officer gave himself out as a
special envoy of the Emperor of the French.
My good friends, the Moors, continue to speculate upon the progress of
the French army in Algeria. I asked a Moorish officer what he thought
of the rumoured French invasion of Morocco. He put the backs of his
hands together, and locking together his fingers to represent the back of
a hedgehog, he observed emphatically; "Impossible! No Christians can
invade us. Our country is like a hedgehog, no one can touch us."

Tangier Christians will never permit the French to invade Morocco,
whatever may be the pretext. This is even the opinion of the foreign
consuls.
As a specimen of the commercial system of this country, I may
mention that the monopoly of exporting leeches was sold this week to a
Jew, at the rate of 25,000 dollars. Now the Jew refuses to buy leeches
except at his own price, whilst every unfortunate trader is obliged to
sell to him and to him only. In fact, the monopolist fixes the price, and
everybody who brings leeches to Tangier must accept it. This case of
leeches may be applied to nearly all the monopolies of the country. Can
anything be more ruinous to commerce?
All the Moors of Tangier, immediately on entering into conversation
with me, inquire if I am Engleez? Even Moorish children ask this
question: it appears to be a charm to them. The Ayd Kebir (great feast)
was celebrated to-day, being the first of the new year. It was ushered in
yesterday by prayer in the mosques. About 9 A.M. the governor, the
commandant of the troops, and other Tangier authorities, proceeded to
the open space of the market, attended with flags and music, and some
hundred individuals all dressed in their holiday clothes. The white flag,
typical of the sanctity of religion, floated over others of scarlet and
green; the music was of squeaking bagpipes, and rude tumtums, struck
like minute drums. The greater part were on horseback, the governor
being most conspicuous. This troop of individuals ascended a small hill
of the market-place, where they remained half an hour in solemn
prayer.
No Jew or Christian was allowed to approach the magic or sacred circle
which enclosed them. This being concluded, down ran a butcher with a
sheep on his back; just slaughtered, and bleeding profusely. A troop of
boys followed quickly at his heels pelting him with stones. The butcher
ran through the town to the seashore, and thence to the house of the
Kady--the boys still in hot and breathless pursuit, hard after him,
pelting him and the bleeding sheep. The Moors believe, if the man can
arrive at the house of the judge before the sheep dies, that the people of
Tangier will have good luck; but, if the sheep should be quite dead, and
not moving a muscle, then it will bring them bad luck, and the
Christians are likely to come and take away their country from them.
The drollest part of the ceremony is, that the boys should scamper after

the butcher, pelting the sheep, and trying to kill it outright, thus
endeavouring to bring ill-luck upon their city and themselves. But how
many of us really and knowingly seek our misfortunes? On the
occasion of this annual feast, every Moor, or head of a family, kills a
sheep. The rich give to the poor, but the poor usually save up their
earnings to be able to purchase a sheep to kill on this day. The streets
are in different parts covered with blood, making them look like so
many slaughter grounds. When the bashaw of the province is in
Tangier, thousands of the neighbouring Arabs come to pay him their
respects. With the Moors, the festivals of religion are bonâ fide
festivals. It may also be added, as characteristic of these North African
barbarians, that, whilst many a poor person in our merry Christian
England does not, and cannot, get his plum-pudding and roast-beef at
Christmas, there is not a poor man or even a slave, in Morocco who
does not eat his lamb on this great feast of the Mussulmans. It would be
a mortal sin for a rich man to refuse a poor man a mouthful of his lamb.
Of course there was a sensation among the native population, and even
among the consular corps, about my mission; but I have nothing very
particular to record. I had many Moorish visitors, some of whom were
officers of the imperial troops. I made the acquaintance of one, Sidi Ali,
with whom I had the following dialogue:--
Traveller.--"Sidi Ali, what can I do to impress Muley Abd Errahman in
my favour?"
Sidi Ali.--"Money!"
Traveller.--"But will the Emir