Travels in Morocco, Vol. 1. | Page 6

plain-spoken Moors, "We always
thought all Christians alike, though we often excepted the English from
the number of our enemies, now we are certain we were wrong; the
English are become as much our enemies as the French and the
Spaniards." The future alone can disclose what will be the particular
result of this unfavourable feeling; both with respect to France and
England, and to other European nations. However, we may look
forward without misgiving. Islamism will wear itself out--the Crescent
must wane.
In these preliminary observations, the commercial system of the
Maroquine Court deserves especial mention. The great object of Muley
Abd Errahman [3] is--nay, the pursuit of his whole life has been--to get
the whole of the trade of the empire into his own hands. In fact, he has
by this time virtually succeeded, though the thing is less ostentatiously
done than by the Egyptian viceroy, that equally celebrated
prince-merchant. In order to effect this, his Shereefian Majesty seeks to
involve in debt all the merchants, natives, or foreigners, tempting them
by the offer of profuse credit. As many of them as are needy and
speculative, this imperial boon is without scruple greedily accepted.
The Emperor likewise provides them with commodious houses and

stores; gives them at once ten or twenty thousand dollars worth of
credit, and is content to receive in return monthly instalments. These
instalments never are, never can be regularly paid up. The debt
progressively and indefinitely increases; and whilst they live like so
many merchant-princes, carrying on an immense trade, they are in
reality beggars and slaves of the Emperor. They are, however, styled
imperial merchants, and wear their golden chains with ostentatious
pride.
This credit costs his Shereetian Highness nothing; he gives no goods,
advances no moneys, whilst he most effectually impoverishes and
reduces to servitude the foreign merchant resident in his empire, never
allowing him to visit his native country without the guarantee of
leaving his wife and family behind as hostages for his return. The
native merchant is, in all cases, absolutely at the mercy of his imperial
lord. On the bombardment of Mogador, all the native and resident
traders, not excepting the English merchants, were found overwhelmed
with debt, and, therefore, were not allowed to leave the country; and
they were only saved from the pillage and massacre of the ferocious
Berber tribes by a miracle of good luck.
Since the bombardment of Mogador, the Emperor has more strongly
than ever set his face against the establishment of strangers in his
dominions. Now his Imperial Highness is anxious that all commerce
should be transacted by his own subjects. The Emperor's Jews are, in
future, to be the principal medium of commerce between Morocco and
Europe, which, indeed, is facilitated by many of the native Jews having
direct relations with European Jews, those of London and Marseilles. In
this way, the Maroquines will be relieved from the embarrassments
occasioned by the presence of Europeans, Jews, or Christians, under the
protection of foreign consuls. The Emperor, also, has a fair share of
trade, and gets a good return on what he exports; the balance of
commercial transactions is always in his favour.
I must add a word on the way of treating politically with the Court of
Morocco. The modes and maxims of this Court, not unlike those of the
Chinese, are procrastination, plausible delays, and voluminous
despatches and communications, which are carried on through the
hands of intermediaries and subordinate agents of every rank and
degree. You can never communicate directly with the Emperor, as with

other Barbary princes and pashas. This system has admirably and
invariably succeeded for the last two or three centuries; that is to say,
the empire of Morocco has remained intact by foreign influences, while
its system of commerce has been an exclusive native monopoly. The
Americans, however, have endeavoured to adopt a more expeditious
mode of treating with the Maroquine Court. They have something, in
the style and spirit of Lynch law, usually made their own demands and
their own terms, by threatening the immediate withdrawal of their
consul, or the bombardment of ports.
The Shereefs, thus intimidated, have yielded, though with a very bad
grace. Nevertheless, the Americans have received no favours, nor have
they obtained a nearer approach to the awful Shereefian presence than
other people; and it is not likely they ever will succeed beyond their
neighbours. The French and English have always negotiated and
corresponded, corresponded and negotiated, and been worsted once and
worsted again. Somehow or other, the Emperor has, in most cases, had
his own way. Neither the American nor our own European system is
the right or dignified course. And I am still of opinion, that the
Maroquine Court is so far enlightened respecting the actual state of the
barbarians