THE MASSACRE IN FEZ.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 95, 7 September 1912, Page 2 (Supplement)

THE MASSACRE IN FEZ.

BRITISH LADY'S EXPERIENCES. A vivid description of the recent massacre of Europeans in Fez by the native the British Consul in the Moorish capital, in a letter to a relative at Hove. Mrs, McLeod confirms in her letter the state> ment that the trouble arose through the reduction of the pay of the troops to fourpence a day. There wag a mutiny, and the soldiers began by murdering their officers. •'They entered houses," writes Mrs. McLeod, "where they knew Christians were living, and killed tliem. Afterwards they paraded the streets with the heads. The mob then joined in the fray, and thousands were let loose. The prisons were all flung open, and the prisoners escaped. The women, went mad, and were all dancing and yelling on their roofs for joys, and egging on the soldiers to do more. The noise was terrible. "Mr. Selous, our assistant, had a very narrow escape. He had just started up our street to lunch at the hotel when Mr. McLeod, at that moment hearing a rumor of bad news, called him back. At that time the soldiers had broken into the hotel and had killed several people. Everything in the place was stolen. The whole afternoon we did not know what was to happen to us. The riff-raff were outside our house bent on mischief, carrying huge sticks and guns —just mad. In a house close by they killed four people and wounded a fifth.

"The French troops are stationed two miles from the town, and fortunately the rebels had not cut the telegraph wires, so they arrived in the evening. They had had an awful time, lighting all the way to Fez. Many were killed, including some officers, and a great many were wounded. Our house was filled with them, and from our roof they afterwards did a great deal of firing, so you can imagine the noise. We were in great danger all Wednesday evening, for the town was only held by 300 French soldiers. They did wonders. "An English officer, Redmond, had a wonderful escape. He jumped over three flat Moorish roofs of houses, the mobs all the time calling to the inmates to hand him out. Finally he jumped from a storey into the court of a house belonging to a friendly Moor. The latter hid him for thirty-two hours. "The firing continued all Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The poor Jews have suffered just terribly. Their quarter is, in a way, wiped out. There are 12,000 .Jews, and all of them flew for their lives. The whole place has been pillaged, and great numbers killed. Most of our friends are living in our garden. We erected tents, and the wounded are being attended to.