IN THE COURTS OF THE NATIONS - DataSpace - Princeton ...

dealt with cases by means other than convening the parties in trial. That is, Makhzan officials
“settled” cases involving foreigners, much in the same way they settled cases sent to the Ministry
of Complaints. If a foreign subject or protégé claimed that he was owed outstanding debts, the
Makhzan official would be asked to ensure that the debtors paid what they owed, using many of
the same techniques discussed in Chapter Five. 68 However, unlike with debts owed to Moroccan
subjects, consular officials periodically pressured the sultan into paying outstanding debts owed
to foreign subjects and protégés himself, directly out of the Makhzan’s treasury. 69 Given the
difficulty of recovering unpaid debts in nineteenth-century Morocco, this was undoubtedly one
of the greatest advantages of acquiring foreign protection or nationality.
In many cases involving foreign subjects or protégés and Moroccan subjects, the consul
concerned wrote a letter to a Makhzan official asking for his help in making sure the protégé
could successfully pursue his case. 70 For instance, on December 13, 1880, Charles A. Payton,
the British consul in Essaouira, wrote to al-Ḥājj ‘Amāra b. ‘Abd al-Sādiq, governor of Essaouira,
concerning debts owed to the Jews Yeshu‘a and Moshe Pinto, both British protégés. 71 Payton
informed ‘Amāra that the Pinto brothers were owed debts by their business associate in
Marrakesh, but that the governor of Marrakesh falsely claimed that the debtor had already paid.
Payton asked ‘Amāra to write to the governor of Marrakesh asking him to make sure that the
Pinto brothers were paid in full. In this instance, as in many others, Payton did not initiate a
68 These included imprisoning the debtors and confiscating their goods. See, e.g., DAR, Fez, Sa‘īd b. Farajī to
Mawlāy Ḥasan, 6 Ramaḍān 1301; 28800, ‘Abdallāh b. Aḥmad to Muḥammad b. al-‘Arabī, 21 Ramaḍān 1301; BH,
K 551, p. 52, 28 Jumādā II 1307; p. 58, 21 Rajab 1307; p. 82, 30 Ramaḍān 1307; p. 85, 11 Shawwāl 1307.
69 Kenbib, Les protégés, 96.
70 There were also instances in which individual foreign subjects or protégés wrote to the Makhzan asking for help
in settling their legal claims, but this was more infrequent. See, e.g., DAR, Marrakesh, Juan Damonte to Aḥmad b.
al-Ṭāhir, 28 Muḥarram 1282.
71 DAR, Marrakesh, 17247, Payton to al-Ḥājj ‘Amāra, 13 December 1880.
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