C H A P T E R T H E T W E N T I E T H
MOROCCO BEYOND THE ATLAS
s u s
AS the terra incognita nearest to Europe, the so-called
“ Kingdom of Sus ” has always had an especial
attraction for Englishmen, and in view of the fabulous
natural riches so freely declared to exist there—an assertion
which, from ignorance, few can dispute— ^ Temping
it is not strange that for over a century past Province, *
a succession of venturesome traders and hardy
exploiters have essayed to open up relations with its
people, but all in vain. The difficulty is, and always
has been, that the Berbers of Sus, who accept the
religious supremacy of the Moorish sultans as the descendants
and successors of Mohammed, while fretting
under such additional authority as has been gained from
time to time by force of arms, have never known the
power of combination to resist them; in the long run
they have always been compelled to yield.
Between the family of the Hamed u Musa Shareefs,
whose stronghold is at Iligh, and that of the reigning
*- The following historical references to S6s will be found in The
Mooiish Empire: Its Berbers, p. 6; Phoenicians there, 8; Berber rebels, 28;
Sulaimin migrates thither, 39; abandoned by the Lamtuna, 50, 65; in revolt,
94: conquered by Ahmad el A‘araj, 118; separate administration under
Ali es-Simldli, 134-5; Mulai es-Shareef supported, 137; captured by er-
Rasheed II., 138; fishing-station on coast granted to Spam, 177; first
invasion by El Hasan in., 183-4; second, 187-9; third, 191-2; piracy on
the coast, 271; sugar exported, 399; adventurers on the coast, 412, 413.