CHAPTER XII 
THE REOCCUPATION OF NORTHERN AFRICA 
MOROCCO 
“THE devil ships of the Nazarene nations came again and 
again to the bay of Tanjah to see if the Prince of the Faithful 
were indeed dead, as rumor so often stated.” 
A Moorish tradition relates that Allah, when He created 
the world, called all the nations of the earth together and 
gave unto each the choice of one good thing for its kingdom. 
Some selected fertile lands; some delightful climate; others 
beautiful scenery; but the English alone asked for good 
government. The failure of Mohammedan states to solve 
the problem of self-rule has become a proverb; and Morocco 
is no exception to the rule. Indeed, the misgovernment, the 
corruption, and the lack of security and public order in this 
African state, extending through a long period of years, not 
only involved her sultans in frequent disputes with their 
European neighbors, but also made the “Morocco question” 
one of the chief sources of European diplomatic activity 
during the past quarter of a century.! 
Morocco, or Moghreb-el-Aksa, — the Key of the West, — 
is, by reason of its fertility, its natural resources, and its 
geographical position, the most desirable of the North Af- 
rican countries. It is slightly larger than France, being 
equal in area to the State of Pennsylvania plus Cuba, and 
has a population of about 5,000,000. The country is pro- 
tected by the Atlas ranges from the winds, storms, and heat 
I With a few emendations and some omissions, pages 279-322 of this 
chapter have been left as written in 1914 to preserve the pre-war atmo- 
sphere.