Page:Africa by Élisée Reclus, Volume 2.djvu/474

 888 NORTH-WEST AFRICA. through Gibraltar to Alexandria. Notwithstanding its unhealthy climate, a small European colony, chiefly French, is settled at Casablanca, which, owing to the total absence of vegetation, presents an extremely dreary aspect. In the upper Um-er-E,bia basin, the chief centre of population is Bu-el-Jad a village of about two thousand inhabitants, ruled over by a sid, or religious sovereign, whose power is recognised by all the surrounding tribes — such as the Tadlas on the south and east, the Ait-Seri on the west, and the Shawia on the north-west. The " saint " and his kindred, nearly all of mixed blood, live on the " voluntary contributions " of the faithful. No traveller can visit the country except under the protection of Ben Daud, " Son of David," lord spiritual of Bu- el-Jad. At the end of the eighth century the whole of this region, now a hotbed of Moslem fanaticism, is said by Edrisi to have been peopled by Christians and Jews, and rumour speaks of the ruins of a church still bearing a Latin inscription. The Tadla territory, occupied by nine nomad tribes, with a collective force of about twenty thousand horse, possesses a sort of common capital in the kasbah of Et- Tadla, which stands on the Um-er-Rbia, at the foot of one of the best-constructed fortresses in Marocco. The river, here nearly 135 feet wide, is spanned by a ten- arched bridge : " the largest in the world," say the natives. The produce of the neighbouring salt-mines is exported far and wide. The fortress of Beni-Mellal, or Bel Knsh, lying in the Beni-Mellal territory to the south-cast, leads to the more important town of Demnata, which is situated in a fertile and highly productive district on one of the southern affluents of the Um- cr-Rbia. Formerly a flourishing trading place, Demnata has suffered much from its fatal proximity to Mtirrakesh, from which it is distant not more than 60 miles. The (exorbitant dues levied by the Imperial Government on all merchandise entering the town have compelled caravans to seek other markets. A third of the inhabitants are Jews, who live intermingled with the Mohammedans, but who were recently subjected to much oppressive treatment, calling for the intervention of European diplomacy. AZEMMUR — MaZAGAX. After collecting all the waters descending from the Atlas, the Um-er-Rbia flows north-westwards, between the territory of the Shawia Berbers on the north and the Dukkalas, mainly Arabs, on the south. The ancient town oiAzemmur (Azamor), that is, " the Olives," which stands on the left bank of the estuary, is often described as a ruin, probably because seldom visited by Europeans. Nevertheless, its fisheries and industries are sufficiently productive to support an export trade at least with the inland districts. The dangerous bar at the river mouth prevents all access to shipping, which is obliged to cast anchor 4 miles to the south-west, at the port of Miizagan, by the natives indifferently called El-Jcdida, " the New," or El-Bnja, " the Fort." Although smaller than Azemmur, Mazagan has more importance for Europeans, and especially the inhabitants of the Canary Islands, who draw their supplies of cereals, haricots, and other provisions through this out- port of the fertile Dukkala plains. On the cliff above Aaemmur stand the still