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They introduce the Arabic numerals and arithmetic, and catalogue and give names to the stars. They lay the foundation of modern astronomy, chemistry, and physics, and introduce great improvements in agriculture and manufactures. "IN the course of my long life," said the Khalif Ali, "I have often observed that men are more like the times they live in than they are like their fathers."
Jesuiabbas, their pontiff, concluded treaties both with the Prophet and with Omar, and subsequently the Khalif Haroun-al-Raschid placed all his public schools under the superintendence of John Masue, a Nestorian. To the influence of the Nestorians that of the Jews was added.
Who is this that hath guarded my honour and whose honour I have violated, and who hath protected my harem, whilst I have enslaved his? 'Ghanim ben Eyoub, replied she; 'for by thy munificence, O Commander of the Faithful, he never approached me by way of lewdness nor with evil intent! Then said the Khalif, 'There is no power and no virtue but in God!
Amrou, therefore, sent to the khalif to ascertain his pleasure. "If," replied the khalif, "the books agree with the Koran, the Word of God, they are useless, and need not be preserved; if they disagree with it, they are pernicious. Let them be destroyed." Accordingly, they were distributed among the baths of Alexandria, and it is said that six months were barely sufficient to consume them.
As soon as he was gone, Gaffer Ibrahim fumed to the Khalif and said to him, 'O vilest of fishermen, thou hast brought us a couple of fish, worth a score of paras, and hast gotten three dinars for them; and thinkest thou to take the damsel also? When the Khalif heard this, he cried out at him and made a sign to Mesrour, who discovered himself and rushed upon him.
And her weeping redoubled; when lo, the Khalif opened the door and entering the chamber, found her in tears. When she saw him, she fell to the earth and kissing his feet three times, repeated the following verses: O thou pure of royal lineage and exalted in thy birth! O thou tree of fruitful branches, thou the all unstained of race!
After the third Khalif, Othman, had been murdered by his political opponents, Ali became his successor; but he was more remote than any of his predecessors from enjoying general sympathy. At that time the Shi'ah, the "Party" of the House of the Prophet, gradually arose, which maintained that Ali should have been the first Khalif, and that his descendants should succeed him.
Under the Arab dynasties of the east, the vizir was exclusively an officer of the pen: and Makrizi expressly mentions that Bedr-al-Jemali, who became vizir to the Fatimite khalif Al-Mostanssor in 1074, was the first in whom the sword and the pen were united. See Sale's Koran. Preliminary Discourse. Sect. 8. The royal revenue was derived from a variety of sources.
In the early days of the conquest of Egypt the Khalif 'Omar wrote to his general and asked him what the sea was like, to which 'Amr made answer: "The Sea is a huge beast which silly folk ride like worms on logs;" whereupon, much distressed, the prudent Khalif gave orders that no Moslem should voyage on so unruly an element without his leave.
It is said that when the embassy from Constantinople came bearing a letter to the Khalif, the courtier whose duty it was to read it was so awed by all this splendor that he fainted!
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