Thomas Patrick Hughes

“ The two former subjects have been treated of in this Dictionary in their proper places ; the third institution, which laid the foundation to the marvellous successes of the Muslim arms under this and the succeeding Governments, is ably explained in the following extract from Sir Muir's Annals of the Early Caliphate : —
" The Arabian nation was the champion of Islam, and to fight its battles every Arab was jealously reserved. He must be the soldier, and nothing else. He might not settle down in any conquered province as cultivator of the soil ”

“ As the original asperity of 'Umar's cha- racter had been mellowed in the school of life and in close communion with Muham- mad and Abu Bakr, so the same infliiences, together with the responsibilities of his posi- tion, tended to blend his natural boldness and impetuosity with prudenre and cautiousness. While his captains in Syria and the 'Iraq were continually urging him to push on his conquests to the north and east, he would not allow any advance to be ventured upon, before the Muslim rule in the occupied j^ro- vinces was well established and firmly conso- lidated. ”

“ When the wily 'Amr wished to raise his people in the estimation of the Egyptians, he had a feast prepared of slaughtered camels, after the Bedouin fashion; and the Egyptians looked on with wonder, while the army satisfied themselves with the rude repast. ”

“ Avho succeeded Abu Bakr, a.h. 13 (a.d. (J34) , and was assassinated by Firoz, a Persian slave, a.h. 23 (a.d. 644) , after a prosperous reign of ten years. His conversion to Islam took place in the sixth year of Muhammad's mission, and the Prophet took 'Umar's daughter Hafsah as his third wife.
'Umar is eminent amongst the early Khalifahs for having chiefly contributed to the spread of Islam. Under him the great generals, Abu 'Ubaidah, Khalid ibn al-Walid, Yazid, drove the Greeks out of Syria and Phoenicia ”

“ But it was equally natural and wise on the part of Abu Bakr, when the time had come, to fix the choice of his own successor upon 'Umar. It is related that, feeling his end to be near, and willing to fortify his own conviction by the sense of others, he first consulted 'Abdu 'r- Ilahmrai, the son of 'Auf, who jjraised 'Umar " as the fittest man, but withal inclined to be severe." ”

“ And the fanatic intolerance of some of the Muslim captains is favourably contrasted with "Umar's treatment of the Christianised Arab tribe of the Banu Tagh- lib. They had tendered their submission to Walld ibn 'Uqbah. who, solicitous for the adhesion to Islam of this great and famous race, pressed them with some rigour to ab- jure their ancient faith. -Umar was much displeased at this — '■ Leave them," he wrote, " in the profession of the Gospel. It is onlj' within the bounds of the peninsula, where are the H0I3' Places, that no polytheist tribe is permitted to remain." ”

“ Every soul was entered under the stock and tribe and class whose lineage it claimed. And to this exhaustive classification we owe in great measure the elaborate genealogies and tribal traditions of Arabia before Islam. The Register itself, as well as the office for its maintenance and for pensionary account was called the Dewan (Dlwdn) , or Department of the Exchequer." (Sir W. Muir, Aiutn/s of thi' Early Caliphate, London, 188:3, p. 228.)
It was fortunate for Lsh'iiii, that the reign of Abu Bakr, sliorl in duration, l) ut pregnant with decisive issues, should precede that of 'Umar. ”