MOROCCAN CRISIS CONTINUES.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 11111, 8 May 1911, Page 5

MOROCCAN CRISIS CONTINUES.

FEZ IN SORE STRAITS.

DEFENDERS' AMMUNITION Al END, A FAMINE THREATENING. By Tclceraph—Press AssoeiaUon-Oopyrieht (Eec. May 7, 5.5 p.m.) Tangier, May 0. Despite a scries of sorties, tho blockado of Fez continues. Tho prices of food have risen to an alarming extent, and a famino is threatening. Major Bremond's arrival left the northern tribes freo to besiego Fez, and tho moralo of Major Bremond's troops is reported to have degraded sinco their arrival. Tho artillery ammunition is nearly exhausted—Major Bremond exhausted his. during tho march—and tho Sultan is in want of money to pay tho troops. FRENCH ACTION CRITICISED. SPANISH NEWSPAPER'S VIEWS. (Kcc. May 7, 5.5 p.m.) Madrid, May 6. . The newspaper "El Imparcial" declare? that the conduct of France in Morocco has reached a stage requiring an immediate explanation in order to secure peaco and to reassure the Powers. The journal lays emphasis on tho Get-' man semi-official communique, showing' that no apprehension now exists for the eafety of Europeans at Fez, and that therefore France was deprived of a pro text for a continued mobilisation. A DECAYING CITY. Fez is situated about 130 miles south oi tho Strait of Gibraltar, in a valley eurrounded by high hills. The city lies on bath banks of a tributary of tho Sobu, which divides it into the two parts of Fer.-el.Bali (the old town) and Jeilid. It is a very ill-built town, with narrow, filthy streets, with no sanitary arrangements, which, logetlier with a humid climate and an iuadcqiiato water supply, mako it most unhealthful. In its flourishing days Fez had about 90,000 dwelling-houses nnd 800 mosques. Of tho latter only about 130 are left. Of these Die most important me Muley-Edris, containing tho tomb of Edris II (the re- ■ puled founder of Fez), nnd Jainu-Karn-' bin, to which is attached one of tho high-' est education institutions of tho Moham-; medan world, and which contains a large library of Arabian works on theology.' Fez has also a number of minor schools, nnd is still regarded as an important educational centre. The industries ave considerable, tho products including I leal her, rugs, shawls of silk, and tho red/ Fez caps. In point of commerce Fez 13 the most important city of north-western' Africa. It is tho distributing centre for European products from Marseilles andLondon, while its caravans travel as far as Timbuktu. )

French policy in Morocco has been causing some apprehension in Madrid for , ) some months past, nntl is regarded or being i>, violation, of that part of tho AcO) of Algcciras which concerns right;. In virtue of tho Act of Algeeiras it is the , first duty of both Franco nnd Spain to inci'oaso the authority of the Sultan over tho whole of his dominions, nnd ' consequently to diminish tho value, ot those zones'of influence, which would only have their full meaning in case of tho' collapse of the Shovcefinn power. There, appears to bo a contradiction between tho?e duties and the secret .■ißrecment of 1901, which defined those- zones in view of certain hypotheses. Franco bases her position or. 'tho Act of Algeciras, while Spain draws her conclusions from the secret Treaty prior to that Act. „