The herald., 1917-08-23

zone of the events that rescued uu'
! ancestors Of Britain ana our neigh
hors of Gaul from the civil and ry
| ligious yoke of the Koran" Tough,
/ I'm the year 732 II broke the power
/ Of the Saracrn, who was then Tx" Ia
! overrun all Europe. Had not Charles
! Martel then and there won his vic
tory. a mosque might stand today
where stands Westminster abbey
The diScoyer"r of America might
have been n Barbary corSair. Check
ing the Arab conquest of western Eu-
rope at Tours Charles Marlci rescued
ChriSton1om from Islam.
The Tours engagement was fought
in the same country where RACES the
heavy fighting Of today. 1t was lost
To the TurkiSh-Arab couqucror
largely because his soldiery yielded
10 the same greed and passion for loot
aScrihed 70 the German troops of the
present.
The modern historians have been
forced 10 obtain their material for
discussion OF this battle from the
manuscripts Of the old Arab writer's
and from the Illuminated records of
the monkish chroniclerS. The fight
ended strangely. They all agree
upon that. But il is difficult to OBJ
tain reliable data as what took place
before the rOut.
Charles Martcl, duke Of the Aus
traInsian Franks. was Il man Of ex-
ccoding holiness and resolution. Hal
lam thinks he was rash In riSkfng the
fnte of Europe on n single battle.
but Charles was n tried and expert
enCed soldier. whose impetuOSity was
guided by military brilliancy and who |
doubtless relied in large measure upon |
the discipline and military order with |
which he had been able TO endow his /.
Frankish militia. He had no stand /
Ing army, but he knew the weakness. |
rs he knew the strength. of his enemy. |
In any case he won and won conyinc- |
lnCly.
The SaraCenS were led by Adder
of whom ii is recorded that
he came out of Spain with the
largest army the chroniClers had
aver seen. all his wives and all his
yea. even he and all that
we're with him. rs if they were hence
'orth ever To dwell in France. The
Arab writer's picture Abdcrrahman rs
model Of integrity and Justice The
'hrsStian monks relate that he burned
,nd murdered wherever hn went. that
/" was given over to all manner Of
ices. and that his Bcrher cavalry. a
orce of notable skill and valor, raw
ged the country until II was mere bar
enness. The rival historians agree
pom practically nothing. save that
he SdraCenS were defeated. The
Irahs say that the force Of Alb !
errahman numbered $4,000. The '
lonks do not hesitate TO increase this I
several hundreds of thousands. One I
I these latter recorders puts the loss
the invaders in dead at Tours nj
I5,oO. He adds that the number Of Il
christians killed was but 1,OO7. For h
MS disparity In losses he gives credit g
direct interpretation Of Providence. o
The Count EudO tried battle with II
bderrahman at the river GarOnne. bur 4
le Moslem shattered Eudo's army held b
nigh carnival of slaughter among the D
'isoners and swept on. 1t was then N
mt Charles Martel rallied every avail
he man. His first fortunes were like
oSe of EudO. Abderrahman drove
m back, taking large numbers of pris- 81
| -
y like a deSolating storm. The Ii,
rlters set IL down that "the men of 81
'derrahman were pulled up in spirit eI
their repeated successes and they &c
ere fuil of trust In the valor and war ca
nchce OF their emir." Charles Mar W
mad every reason to believe that the ar
ath which had been meted out TO nc
lido would soon be his own portion. te
the Franks were trembling at the
'rible army Of swarthy men which
all that faced ii.
Presently Charles taking stand along In
Loire felt strong enough to risk n II
ghty cast Of the dice. He had SD
hed important re-enforcements and all
spite of the general terrOrization he st,
q Stiffened the spirit of his men. All a.
'rahman'S success in entering Tours, ito
N the resultant decentralization oP no
troops, gave the Frankish leader on
opportunity for which he waited So,
&c II came he pressed it to the full len
lt OF success. Abderrahman stormed
nrs almost before the eyes of the
ny which came to save it. The fury
cruelty Of the successful Moslems do.
INST the luckless inhabitants of the ,
EN- town has been likened 70 that ,ro
raging tigers. Each man of the in ,
efs loaded himself with loot. The cto
'rd and torch were everywhere M .
X. 1T was manifest" says one q
ID historian, that Gods chastIse- dr.,
ut was sure to follow such ex- tbr