its of this prince would extend my letter to
a volume; suffice it therefore to say, that his reign was short, and
the remembrance of it never to be effaced. He died in 1672 of a
fractured skull, in consequence of a fall from his horse.

He was succeeded by his brother _Muley Ishmael_, who distinguished
himself by some brave actions; and his reign would have formed a grand
epoch in the history of this country, had he not stained it by a
succession of tyranny and cruelties, too shocking to dwell upon. He
died in 1727 at the advanced age of eighty-one, leaving behind him a
numerous offspring. This prince, in order to ensure his despotic and
arbitrary power, contrived to form a regular army of foreign soldiers,
which he effected, partly from the negro families, then settled in
Barbary, but principally from a vast number of blacks which he
obtained from the coast of Guinea.

_Muley-Achmet-Daiby_, one of the numerous sons of Ishmael, ascended
the throne of Morocco, and, after reigning two years, died of a
dropsy. His successor, _Muley Abdallah_, by far surpassed all his
predecessors in point of vices and cruelty. His conduct was so
flagrant, that he was deposed no less than six times, but as often
re-elected. Amidst civil wars, divisions, and devastations, the plague
again made its appearance, and committed the same dreadful ravages as
in the reign of _Ishmael_. Being reinstated for the sixth time,
_Abdallah_ took advantage of the troubles occasioned by this terrible
disease, to excite divisions among his negro soldiers, by whose power
alone he had suffered all his humiliations. Vast numbers of this
warlike race fell the victims of his treachery, and he succeeded in
reducing them so low, that they were no longer a subject of dread to
him. Having thus freed himself of all cause of restraint, he
recovered his power, and, if possible, plunged deeper than ever into
the gulf of iniquity; and each succeeding day was stained with crimes
of the blackest hue. The only sentiments with which he inspired his
unhappy people were those of terror and disgust. At length, worn out
with age, he died at Fez in 1757; and was succeeded by his son _Sidi
Mahomet_, who had begun to reform several abuses, during the latter
part of his father's reign, when he had been entrusted with the
government of Morocco.

This prince, the father of the present Emperor, was endowed with an
intelligent mind, and possessed nothing of the barbarian. His
politica