Morocco
2 of the 7 encyclopedias on this shelf carry an entry for Morocco. Both are reproduced below, so you can see where they agree and where they differ.
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
2026 Editor's Note: This page uses language about race that was commonplace when the book was published and is offensive by today's standards. The text has been left exactly as it was printed, rather than cut or softened, so that the historical record — including how ordinary such language once was — is preserved. (Ed: ET 2026-07-22) or MAROCCO, known to the natives as Maghreb-el-Aksa, "the farthest West," is a former empire or sultanate which, though at one time comprising a portion of Algeria in one direction, and exercising in the other a modified jurisdiction as far as Timbuktu, is now confined to that part of northwest Africa bounded on the E. (at the Wad Kiss) by Algeria, and on the S. by Cape Nun and the Wad Draa, though both here and on the Sahara side of the Atlas the limits of the empire are rather indeterminate. Area, about 219,000 square miles; pop. estimated at 6,000,000. Politically, Morocco comprises at present the old kingdoms of Fez and Morocco and the territories of Tafilet (Tafilalet) and Sus; but the two latter are almost independent, recognizing the Sultan only as the Prince of True Believers, an office which he holds as the most powerful of the Shereefs or descendants of Mohammed. These four principal governments are divided into 17 primary provinces or "amalats," each presided over by a Kaïd or "Bashaw," as the Europeans call him. Topography.- Morocco is, as a rule, mountainous, the Atlas traversing it in several chains from S. W. to N. E., and by various spurs both to the coast country and to the desert. There are, however, numerous level plains, some of which are of great extent, and very rich, the soil being in many places a deep, black loam, evidently the bed of an ancient lake or of a primeval forest. There are also numerous more or less level plateaus similar to those of Algeria. But with the exception of parts of the Atlas, the forest of Mamora, the date and argan groves of the S., and a few straggling copses around the burial places of saints, Morocco has, in the course of the last thousand years, been almost denuded of timber, the palmetto scrub being about the most common representative of woodland. Climate. The climate of Morocco varies much, though the W. slope, being tempered by the sea breezes and protected from the hot desert winds by the Atlas, is temperate, the thermometer seldom falling below 40° or rising above 90°. But in summer the interior valleys and in winter snow often are very hot, falls in Fez and Mequinez, where ice an inch thick is by no means uncommon. Farther S. extremes of heat and drought are more common, though as a rule the climate is equable. In the Sus country and the region of Tafilet rain is scarce and in places almost unknown. But farther N., and on the Atlantic and Mediterranean slopes, it falls with tolerable regularity every year between October and April. Trade. The total value of imports in 1918 was $73,706,922, and for the exports, $24,654,973. The imports were chiefly cotton goods, sugar, tea, and wine. The exports consisted of eggs, breadstuffs, hides and skins, seeds, and vegetables. Agriculture. The principal products of the country are cattle, eggs, barley, corn, hides, vegetables. Among the fruits grown in quantities are figs, lemons, olives, oranges, and dates. Cotton growing was introduced in 1911. The soil is capable of extensive cultivation. Education. - In 1918 there were 191 schools open to the public. There were 21,520 pupils, with 668 teachers. Finance. The public debt of the French protectorate is about $80,000,000. The estimated annual income is about $17,000,000, and the expenditure is about the same. Transportation. - The French have spent large sums of money in the development of roads. There are about 1,300 miles of first-class roads in the protectorate and about 400 miles of secondary roads. Transportation is carried on to a considerable degree by motor trucks. A large number of railroads have been built, chiefly for military purposes. In 1919 a line from Taza to Fez, linking the eastern and the western systems, was in the process of construction. There are about 3,000 miles of telegraph lines in Morocco. The most important ports are Tetuan and Tangier, Tangier, El Arish, Casa Blanca, and Mogador. People. The inhabitants consist of six principal groups. (1) The Berbers (Braber) or Kabyles, of whom the Amazigh, Shelluh, and Tuareg are only branches, are the aborigines. They inhabit for the most part the mountain regions, and are still only half subdued. (2) The Arabs are descendants of the invaders who came in the 7th century. (3) The Jews were very early settlers, semi-independent colonies still subsisting in the Atlas and the Sus country, though most of them in the towns are refugees driven out of Spain and Portugal. (4) A few thousands of Europeans, chiefly Spaniards, are almost entirely confined to the coast towns. (5) The "Moors," a term vaguely applied to all the Mohammedan inhabitants, are really Arabs with a large admixture of Spanish and other European bloods, and the name ought properly to be restricted to the inhabitants of the cities. (6) The Negroes, of whom there are large numbers, were brought from the Sudan as slaves. Government. The country is theoretically an absolute monarchy, but since the establishment of the French protectorate the Sultan is obliged to follow the policies of the French resident-general 1920 was in all matters. The Sultan in Mulai Yussuf. History. After being for more than four centuries a part of the Roman empire, and in the latter period of its sway veneered with a corrupt Christianity, "Mauritania Tingitana" fell (A. D. 429) into the hands of the Vandals, who held it till 533, when Belisarius having defeated them, it became subject once more to the Eastern empire. But in the year 680 the Arab invasion began, and with little intermission the Arabs have ever since been possessors of the country, and the entire population are now the most fanatical adherents of Mohammedanism. At first, with Spain, part of the caliphate of Bagdad, it became divided into several independent monarchies, and during this period the country enjoyed a prosperity to which it has ever since been a stranger. Morocco, though now more contracted than formerly, has at present, with the exception of the Spanish "presidios," no foreign strongholds on its coast, as there were up to the year 1769, when the Portuguese evacuated Mazagan; and since the unsuccessful war with Spain in 1859-1860 the country has not been disturbed by foreign hostilities. But it is still very backward. A passive resistance is offered to every improvement, and, though Christian slavery and piracy by government vessels have been abolished since 1817- 1822 and foreign traders have nominally had access to all parts of the empire, the interior is not much different from what it was a thousand years ago. In 1902 an anti-Christian and anti-European rebellion broke out, and during that year and through 1903 the Sultan's forces were engaged in suppressing the uprising. The direct cause of the discontent was the Sultan's tendencies toward European ideas and his extravagance, together with the popular objection to various reforms instituted by him. After the repeated defeat of the Government forces, the Sultan began dismissing the Europeans employed in his army and his court. In 1905 and 1906 Morocco was brought under a concerted action of the Powers, and intrusted chiefly to France and Spain as their agents. The German emperor strongly resented the domination of France in Morocco, and on March 31, 1906, arrived at Tangier and announced that German interests would be protected. War was at once threatened and was averted only by a conference of representatives of European countries, held at Algeciras, Spain, on June 16, 1906. By the terms of the agreement made by this conference, France was given wide powers in the regulation of Moroccan affairs, while to Spain was given the policing of several of the ports. During the first years of French domination there were several outbreaks, but the country was gradually restored to quietness under the wise and liberal French rule. France and Spain in 1911 entered into an agreement in regard to the administration of the country providing for co-operation. In the same year France and Germany signed an agreement concerning the French right to establish a protectorate, which was formally established in 1913. This defeat of German diplomacy resulted in the immediate increase of the German army and was one of the steps toward the World War in 1914. In the World War Moroccan troops fought with great bravery in France and elsewhere. The country under the French régime has steadily progressed. MOROCCO (Arabian, Marakesch, by which name it is usually known among European residents), the S. capital of the empire of the same name; between 4 and 5 miles from the left bank of the Tensift, at the N. end of an extensive and fertile plain; 1,447 feet above the sea. It is surrounded by a lime and earth wall, more than 5 miles in circumference, between 20 and 30 feet high, and pierced by seven gates. In the bazaar and merchants' quarter a considerable local trade is carried on with the country people, the mountaineers from the neighboring Atlas, and with Sus, Tafilet, Mazagan, Saffi, and Mogador. Morocco possesses many mosques, one of which, the Kutubia, has a tower 320 feet high. There are several tanning and leather-dyeing establish ments of considerable extent, though of late years European goods have been gradually displacing native manufactures. Morocco was founded in 1072 by the Emir Jusef ben Tachefyn, and reached the summit of its prosperity in prosperity the 13th century. Population between 50,000 and 80,000. MORÓN, town in Andalusia, Spain, on the Guadaira river, 32 miles S. E. of Seville. Region rich in cattle, olives, chalk, and marble quarries. Moorish quarries. castle in vicinity. Pop. about 18,000.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
an empire of northwestern Africa, bordering on the Mediterranean Ocean. The name is Arabic, meaning the "extreme west." The interior boundary is rather indefinite, somewhere in the Sahara Desert. The area is about 219,000 square miles. The ruler, known as the sultan, has three residences or capitals, the principal of which is Fez. The backbone of the country is the Atlas range. There are stretches of sand, of grassy table lands, and of plains well watered, and of great fertility. The temperature of oceanic Morocco, west of the Atlas Mountains, ranges from 40 deg. to 95 deg. The heat of the interior is insufferable. There is mineral wealth in the Atlas Mountains, but its extent is little known. Small quantities of copper, iron, and lead are mined. The cork oak, the cedar, pine, juniper, and date palm are the principal trees. The lion, panther, wild boar, and gazelle are still found in the wilder parts of the country. The cultivators of the soil are much plagued by hordes of locusts. Supplies of ostrich feathers are obtained from the Sahara border. Though, as stated, portions of the country are naturally fertile, agriculture is in a deplorable condition. Wheat, barley, corn, millet, beans, and grapes grow well, but there is little security for property. The chief wealth of the country consists in sheep and goats. The hides of the latter furnish the well known Morocco leather of commerce. Tangier is the principal port. There are exports of almonds, goat skins, wool, wax, ostrich feathers, asafoetida, coal dust, ivory, beans, and peas. The country is without roads, railways, or canals. The people are, for the most part, Mohammedans. The ancient populace, known as Berbers, are largely agricultural. The Berbers constitute two-thirds of the population. They are a white people, possibly the oldest known, antedating, it is thought, the Phoenicians, the Carthaginians, and the Romans. The dominant or Arabic element is largely nomadic, and is concerned chiefly in stock-raising. The education offered in the cities themselves goes little beyond a study of the Koran. Commerce is in the hands largely of the Jews and of the descendants of the Moors who were expelled from Spain. An extensive caravan trade is conducted with the oases of the Sahara and with Timbuctoo. The mountainous portions of the country are overrun by brigands. The sultan extorts $2,500,000 annually from his wretched people, but he leads a frivolous life. Quite recently he sent $17,000 to Hamburg for a lot of wild animals, including a polar bear. At the present time (1909) the various governments of Europe, especially France and Germany, are quarreling over the future disposition of Moroccan territory. The following statistics are the latest to be had from trustworthy sources: Land area, square miles 219,000 Population (estimated 1908) 5,000,000 Fez 140,000 Tangier 35,000 Property customs revenue $2,000,000 Bonded indebtedness to France $14,000,000 Annual Exports $9,000,000 Hides $1,600,000 Wool 650,000 Oxen 1,000,000 Slippers 550,000 Almonds 450,000 Barley 1,800,000 Canary seed 190,000 Annual Imports $14,000,000 Cotton cloth $4,500,000 Sugar 2,800,000 Tea 350,000 Flour 800,000 Iron and hardware 500,000 Wines and spirits 350,000 Candles 300,000 See Fez ; Timbuctoo 2026 Editor's Note: Morocco was the tripwire of Europe when this was written — the crises of 1905 and 1911 (the Kaiser's gunboat at Agadir) nearly started the World War early. France took the protectorate in 1912. See the Moroccan crises . (Ed: BR 2026-06-02)