Affairs in Morocco make little progress, and no observer on
the spot permits himself more than the mildest optimism. After the first excitement produced by the arrival of the Sultan at Rabat, it became clear that the transference of the Court from Fez to that port had had no effect on public opinion. The merchants of Rabat refused a loan which the Sultan demanded. The Sultan, for his part, is said to have sent all his jewels to the security of a bank in Paris. The co-operation between France and Spain, although not admittedly a cause of friction, is far from satisfactory. The Times correspondent at Rabat learns that on Friday week the Sultan received fresh letters from Mulai Hafid calling upon him to abdicate, and announcing the early departure of Mulai Hafid's army from Marakesh. The Viziers of Abd-ul-Aziz thereupon embarked upon the usual round of recriminations, and, as usual, reached no decision. On Sunday morning M. Regnault, the French Minister, arrived at Rabat, and was received by the Sultan in a manner that encouraged the Temps corre- spondent to think that considerable progress had been made in the difficult task of convincing the Makbzan that co-opera- tion with France is necessary. We fancy, however, that new Viziers are more necessary than new convictions in the old Viziers. At a subsequent interview M. Regnault conferred on the Sultan the grand cordon of the Legion of Honour. A Reuter telegram from Gibraltar says that Mulii Hafid's envoys have started for England. They hope to obtain the King's recognition of Mulai Hafid as Sultan.
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