An account of the empire of Marocco, and the districts of Suse and Tafilelt; compiled from miscellaneous observations made during a long residence in, and various journies through, these countries. To which is added an account of shipwrecks on the western coast of Africa, and an interesting account of Timbuctoo, the great emporium of Central AfricaJackson, James Grey
History
An account of the empire of Marocco, and the districts of Suse and Tafilelt; compiled from miscellaneous observations made during a long residence in, and various journies through, these countries. To which is added an account of shipwrecks on the western coast of Africa, and an interesting account of Timbuctoo, the great emporium of Central Africa
Jackson, James Grey
Morocco
_River of Messa_, called Wed Messa, flows from Atlas; it is, as before
observed, a separate stream from the river Suse, and is drained off
by the (fulah) cultivators or farmers during its passage. It was
navigated by the Portugueze before they abandoned this place for
the New World. Leo Africanus has committed another error (which has
been copied by modern writers,[23] in calling the river of Messa the
river Suse,[24] which I ascertained to be quite a different stream
when I was at Messa, and thirty miles distant from the former,
though they both flow from E. to W. A bar of sand separates this
river entirely at low water from the ocean, but at flood tide it
is not fordable. Between the mouth of the river Messa and that of
Suse, is a road-stead called Tomée; the country is inhabited by the
Woled Abbusebah Arabs, who informed me, when I went there, during
the interregnum, with the (Khalif) Vice-regent Mohammed ben Delemy,
by order of the (Sherreef) Prince, that British and other vessels
often took in water there: it is called by the Arabs (Sebah biure)
the place of seven wells, of which wells three only remain, and these
we found to contain excellent water. After inspecting the place,
and the nature of the road-stead, we returned to the Vice-regent’s
castle in Shtuka. Concerning this remarkable sea-port it would be
inexpedient at present to disclose more.
_River Akassa._—This river is navigable to Noon, above which it
becomes a small stream, fordable in various places; it has been
called by some Wed Noon, i.e. the river of Noon, but the proper name
is Wed Akassa; the word Wedinoon is applied to the adjacent territory.
The Mountains of West and South Barbary are the Atlas and its
various branches, which receive different names, according to the
provinces in which they are situated. The greater Atlas, or main
chain of these mountains, extends from (Jibbel d’Zatute) Ape’s
Hill to Shtuka and Ait Bamaran, in Lower Suse, passing about thirty
miles eastward of the city of Marocco, where they are immensely high,
and covered with snow throughout the year. On a clear day, this part
of the Atlas appears at Mogodor, a distance of about a hundred and
forty miles, in the form of a saddle; and is visible at sea, several
leagues off the coast. These mountains are extremely fertile in many
places, and produce excellent fruits; having the advantage of various
climates, according to the ascent towards the snow, which, contrasted
with the verdure beneath, has a singular and picturesque effect.
[Illustration:_Plate 2._
_Drawn by J. G. Jackson._
_Engraved J. C. Stadler._
_A Distant View of the Atlas Mountains East of the City of Marocco
as they appear from Mogodor on a clear morning before the rising Sun
taken from the Terras of the British Vice Consuls House._
1 _Mosque of Seedy Usif._
2 _Atlas Mountains, distant 140 Miles._
3 _Genoese Consuls Tower._
4 _Sand Hills._
_London Published June 4. 1811. by W. & G. Nicholl Pall Mall._]
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