prosperous beyond its neighbours, and exporting hooded
cloaks to Spain and Italy,
A t the present time the most important place in the
Tadla district is perhaps Bu Ja'd, somewhat nearer the
coast than these kasbahs, in the centre of an
i J a ’d. . *
immense plain, badly watered, and with few
gardens. It has no walls, but boasts two large mosques
and four mausoleums, for it is the home of one of the
great religious families of Morocco. The so-called shareef,
Sidi Ben Daud, is not, however, a shareef in reality,
but a descendant of the Khalifa ‘Omar bin el Khattab,
whose family came to Morocco three and a half centuries
ago,— twelve generations ^|in the fourth of which they
founded Bu Ja'd.1 Not only is the representative of the
Bu Ja‘d family in as great repute for the adjustment of
quarrels as are the shareefs of Wazzan and Tazirwalt
in their respective districts, but he does no inconsiderable
import trade by way of Casablanca, to say nothing of
his vast receipts from tribute. Thursday is the local
market day, when most of the men go armed, and carry
bayonets on their shoulder-straps.
4.—DAMNAT.
Few towns in Morocco are so beautifully situated as
Damnat, which occupies a lovely valley of the Atlas,
two days’ north-east of Marrakesh, * with a
uaiton.
halt for the night at the small town of Sidi
Rahal. f Being abundantly watered from springs which
gush from the hill-side beneath a natural arch known
as Imin-i-firi,— “ the mouth of the r iv er”— a short walk
from the gates, the valley is highly cultivated, countless
olive-trees forming a prominent feature. For irrigating
* 90 11' IS" W. (De F.)
t 9° 33' 45” w - (De F-); 310 38' 45" N- (De F-)
1 D e F o u c a u l d , pp. 52-6.