I shall now give some further details illustrative of the state of negro slavery. The Fniperor has an entire quarter of the city of Morocco appropriated for his own slaves, the number of whom, in different parts of the empire, amounts to upwards of sixty thousand. This is his, the lion’s share. His Imperial Highness, who was accepting presents from various governors, lately received five hundred slaves from the Sheikh of Taradant. The trading Moors, believing me to be sent by the British Government to purchase and liberate all their slaves, have calculated the whole of the slaves in Morocco to be worth twenty-seven millions of dollars.
A Moor observed, “I hope to see any calamity befall the country rather than that of the slaves being liberated,” He observed: “God shews his approbation of slavery by not permitting slaves to rise against their masters, or the free negroes to invade Morocco, who are infinitely more numerous. The reason why the English abolished slavery is because the Queen of England has a good heart, but Mussulmen treat their slaves well, and do not fear the anger of God.” When I mentioned that the Bey of Tunis and the Imaum of Muscat had entered into treaties for the suppression of Slavery, the traders observed, “Amongst the Mohammetans are four sects, but the only orthodox sect is that of Morocco.”
There is, however, one class of abolitionists in this country—the women, or Mooresses. The rumour that a Christian had come to purchase all the slaves of Mogador soon penetrated the harems. The wife of one of the most distinguished Moors of Mogador informed a Jewess of her acquaintance, that she was very happy to hear a Christian was come to purchase all her husband’s slaves, for she was tired of her life with them. The truth is, respectable Moorish females detest this system of domestic slavery, and wish to see it abolished, notwithstanding that they are bred in it, and are themselves little better than slaves. They see themselves gradually abandoned by the husbands of their youth for the most ignorant and degraded negress slaves, whom their husbands purchase one after another as their caprice or passion excites them, until their houses are filled with these slaves.
The artful negress absorbs all the affection of her master, whilst the legitimate wife is left as a widow, and is obliged to wait upon these pampered slaves, whose insolence knows no bounds. The negress slaves besides, when they bear sons, are treated with great respect; their children are free by the law, and cannot be disposed of, although the Moors do sell them when hard pressed for money. Yet even these negresses are beginning to chatter and clatter about the Anti-Slavery mission, expressing their satisfaction to our Jewish neighbours. A negress slave on hearing that a person had come from England to liberate all the slaves, jumped up and called on God to bless the English nation.