Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1877-06-02
PROGRESS OF MOHAMMEDANISM.
Frank Leslie,s Popular Monthly.

/ "A
ed and insignificant, gained follow.
ers rapidly during the closing years
of his life, and still more rapidly
after his death, when rival sects
claiming sole orthodoxy, rivaled
each other in proselytism East
North, South, and West. Like a
circle in water, the progress was
consistent on every side; and while
some planted the green banner in
Ispahan and India, and carried ii
forward so effectually against China
| that its influence has to be reckoned
in all later history of the empire
while growing in Northern Turkey
to the grand conquest of Constanti-
nople and the overthrow of the By
zantine Empire in 1900, and dispOs-
sessing ThOth and Sesostris in
Egypt by Amru, Lieutenant of Cal
Jpn Omar in $40, it flashed across the
whole Mediterranean Iittoral of At
rica, and penetrated above the Cat
aracts and beyond the Sahara, and
remains in the ascendant there to
this day.
The most brilliant chapter of the
new creed was written in Spain.
There it conquered a sturdier, ifnot a
finer civilization than the one itover-
threw in Turkey; the Gothic EN-
pire contrasting with the later Greek
as unadOrned strength with effete
beauty and languOr. The successive
stages by which the MOSlem creed
won its way through Tripoli, Tunis,
Algiers and Morocco to the Atlantic,
are scarcely worth describing, and
indeed present few salient features.
The people had no common creed
or political policy; had no culture
or zeal or energy. They comprised
races that united and dissipated ac-
cording to caprice; and though
fierce and Warlike, and as determin-
ed to resist invasion as in the times
of Scipio and Hannibal, had no
bond of union and no great resour-
ces. Their hot blood was fired by
the sensuOus indictments and en-
thusiasm which Overran Arabia,
and MOhammed's creed rather flash
ed along their way than fought for
its victory. The Fatimito Caliphs
of Northern Africa were strong
enough to vaunt their superiority
over the Caliphs of Bagdad, by
whom, when the Shiite and Sunnite
controversy arose, precedency was
claimed over the central authority,
recognized by most of the MOslem
world, at Damascus. The root of
the FatimitO power was purely
Saracenic. 1t included the blood of
the best races of Northern Africa
men fiery in love and war, but pa
tient to study and capable of sus-
tanned efforts. They were learned
beyond the nations of Europe, then
plunged in the intellectual night of
the Middle Ages, and preserved
law, medicine, and the arts and
sciences from grave loss.
Having no vital creed, these races
accepted that of Islam so soon as
they were convinced that it was
prOpagated by strong swords as well
as by perceptible allurements, and
carried the crusade successfully on
ward to the Spanish province of
Mauritania. MuZa, the Arab COM
mander, was then approached by
the emissaries of Count Julian with
proposals to enter Spain and de-
throne ROderic the Goth, ON account
of indignitieS suffered by the Counts
daughter. The story is apOcryphal
perhaps; but there is no doubt that |
when the CaIiph Valid had author
lied MuZa to agree with the Count |
in 10, Muza dispatched a force
across the Strait of Gibraltar under |
his lieutenant, Taric, and began the !
great epOpee that lasted, with con-
tinuous and brilliant acts, to the |
reign of Ferdinand and Isabella
The Government of Spain at that |
time was Gothic and divided. There |
was little concentration of authOri-
ity, little knowledge of any kind, |
and little industry or patriotism or
faith to atone for general decay from |
the period of C@sar's rule. Taric |
found almost no resistance when he |
landed, and was able to recruit and |
his men unOppOSed. He |
won his first great victory after three |
days of hard fighting, near Cadiz,
between Ill and ia. |
AS soon as a secure lOdgment was
made, Muza himself arrived with |
and Overran the |
country with slight show of resist
ance.
The Cloths had weakened in an
alien climate, and the SpaniardS |
We're so degenerate or careless that |
they refused to make the effort |
necessary; and when Muza's son,
married ROderic's |
widow, EgilOna, he was enabled to
draw many of the GOths and Span
iards under his banner. Two Ofthe |
new rulers, brothers, ruled in Africa
when he and Taric were both sum- |
mOned to Damascus by Caliph Wal |
id. But their removal had no last |
ing effect on their government.
There were discussions in the Sara
cenic ranks which helped the Gothic |
hero, PelagO, to gain renOwn. These
sprang from unWillingness to recog-
nize the authority of Damascus
rather than from intestine contrO-
VerSieS or fear; and the work Of |
went forward until Abb !
the eleventh Emir, was !
defeated by Charles Martel at Tours,
in 723.
Then some successes won by Alton
so, a Spanish ruler, occurring at the
instant when Abdul Abbas, the Alb
aside, overthrow the Ommeyade |
dynasty at Damascus, and when a
rebellion in Barbary threatened |
Moorish power there, in its imme=
diate fountain, the C0rdovan Walids |
made Abderrhaman, son of an Om- |
caliph, the head of an indie
pendent government that grew into |
the brilliant Moorish domain in |
Spain. Abdul rallied an army of !
twenty thousand men, defeated the |
faction, became real Caliph |
of CordOva, and made the King of |
Asturias and Galicia tributary to |
him. Charlemagne sinterfered to
protect Gothic power, and took the |
territory called the Spanish March,
in 778, but was signally defeated in
the memorable battle of ROncesVal- |
les, and all his conquests were re-
gained. Thereafter Abderrhaman
the Christians, built
grand mosques, consolidated his
power, and began the agricultural,
commercial, scientific and literary
power afterward attained.
Following Abderrhaman's death,
Al-Hakem put down an insurrec-
ton in Fezzan, that wished to be
independent of Spanish rule; de-
feated the Goth Alfonso, and waged
war with France along the Marches
with the Christians, that, if it had
ever paused after Tartaric's arrival,
l. - Il 90 Oh,