In Morocco each official preys upon the one below him, and on all
others within his reach, till the poor oppressed and helpless villager
lives in terror of them all, not daring to display signs of prosperity
for fear of tempting plunder. Merit is no key to positions of trust
and authority, and few have such sufficient salary attached to render
them attractive to honest men. The holders are expected in most cases
to make a living out of the pickings, and are allowed an unquestioned
run of office till they are presumed to have amassed enough to make it
worth while treating them as they have treated others, when they are
called to account and relentlessly "squeezed." The only means of
staving off the fatal day is by frequent presents to those above them,
wrung from those below. A large proportion of Moorish officials end
their days in disgrace, if not in dungeons, and some meet their end
by being invited to corrosive sublimate tea, a favourite beverage in
Morocco--for others. Yet there is always a demand for office, and
large prices are paid for posts affording opportunities for plunder.

The Moorish financial system is of a piece with this method. When the
budget is made out, each tribe or district is assessed at the utmost
it is believed capable of yielding, and the candidate for its
governorship who undertakes to get most out of it probably has the
task allotted to him. His first duty is to repeat on a small scale
the operation of the Government, informing himself minutely as to the
resources under his jurisdiction, and assessing the sub-divisions
so as to bring in enough for himself, and to provide against
contingencies, in addition to the sum for which he is responsible. The
local sheïkhs or head-men similarly apportion their demands among the
individuals entrusted to their tender mercy. A fool is said to have
once presented the Sultan with a bowl of skimmed and watered milk, and
on being remonstrated with, to have declared that His Majesty received