THE MOORS.

Colonist, Volume LI, Issue 12420, 9 December 1908, Page 4

THE MOORS.

■.■S™ >■' . ' ' — ' ♦ 7— - ..'..■.. Count Sternburg has recently published a book about the French in Morocco. * Beligious fanaticism is a salient characteristic of the Moors, and "it is one of the reasons why Morocco, is a source of such great airxiety to, both France and Great Britain, which have under their control a large- part of the Moslem population of Northern Africa. Sometimes this fanatism assumes especially large grotesque forms. When Count Sternburg was at Tangier the feast of Mouled was celebrated. Pro- . minerit iii. the proceedings were the dances- of two peculiar Moslem sects, the Aiss'ani and the Hamadshas. The Aissaui are "the present day 'adherents [of a sainted descendant of the Protphefc',''who lived in Mekinez, at the beginning of. the 16th century. They wear their liair lorig 3 like a mane. : Self mortification was a practice of their founder, and in his followers it has developed into horrible customs: "They tear -open the stomach of living animals with their nails, and eat. the smoking flesh, of the still trembling body. - It' is even more „ frightful to see them eat the fruit of the cactuß,-.~if6r-^the--sharp- thorns tear the; flesh of the mouth, and, by piercing the intestines, often lead to death." Eating poisonous snakes in public is another of their loathsome accomplishments. In ' the dance at the feast of Mouled the Aissaui first take some stimulating drug. Then as the musicians begin to play a weird "melody men, women and children form a circle of dances round their oriost. , They fling their limbs andVi^arfc .".".'•'-■* i- wildly for hours until th*y fall to' the ground with exhaustion. The Hamadshas also form a circle round their priest. Firstly the priest dances, slashing himself on the head with a chopper till the blood streams down his face. Afterwards the Hamadshas advance two by. two into the same circle, and go through the same performance till they iaint. Some of them wound themselves with great balls, which they throw in the air, and let fall on their heads. Even children take part in the orgy '"£ ;6f blood. ■.'."• -."■; : , ,In spite; of his sympathy with the .-Moors, in, their opposiion to foreign influences, ■ Count "Sternburg relates \S with frankness of defects, of the native system of government. He tells how,, in -ike-days -'of Mtilai el;Hassen I the father 'ttf Abdul Aziz and Mulai Hafid; the Sultanate was strong; because the sovereign was . a thorough despot; If -a pasha ; pr other member of the Maghzen— which really means the whole official class— had been ap-. propriating too freely he was invited to' take cofFee with the Sultan. A few hours later the culprit was in the lap of Allah, and his wealth ■went back to the State coffers from which it had been filched, j Sometimes ihe more regular proced--lire, of "lofTtHmatc ■ iinprisoiimciir or r-j!}-»it:il. piiii.isitpjf-jit. was resorted r.o. i