while Muhammad was but poor and humble, with no pretensions and no prospects. The difficulty was, however, speedily overcome. The ready - witted widow prepared a feast at which she induced her father to partake somewhat freely of the good cheer provided for him. When matters were ripe, she artfully introduced the object of her adoration, and induced the old man to unite him in marriage with herself in the presence of a witness. Awakening to clearer consciousness the fond father was surprised to find himself surrounded by tokens of a nuptial feast. Still greater was his astonishment when he learned what had happened, and that he had given his consent to a match of which he did not approve.

This union (A.D. 595) proved the turning-point in Muhammad's career, as it not only removed from his path the necessity of living by the sweat of his brow, but afforded him time and opportunity to reflect upon, and bring into play those spiritual longings which for years had agitated his bosom. It was also emphatically a happy marriage, while, in spite of Khadija's somewhat mature age, no less than six children in due course gladdened the abode of the future Lawgiver of Arabia. The eldest offspring was a son, by name Qasim, then followed four daughters in succession, Zainab, Rukayya, Fatima, and Umm Kalzum; last of all was born his second son, Abdullah.

For a considerable period the tenor of Muhammad's life was smooth and uneventful, but when he was about five-and-thirty years old an incident occurred in his career, foreshadowing that marvellous power of turning to account the ordinary circum

stances of life, which, in after times, gave him a command over the hearts of men such as has never been surpassed, rarely indeed equalled, in the history of the world. In A.D. 605, it happened that a violent storm sweeping down the valley of Mecca, hurled destruction upon the sacred temple; while to add to the evil, the edifice being roofless, a band of robbers clambered over the walls and carried off some of the relics. Though these latter were recovered, it was resolved that measures should be taken to avoid dangers of theft in the future; accordingly the Quraish, dividing themselves into four bodies, commenced to heighten the walls, of which one was assigned to each of the four sections of the tribe. In spite of the sacrilege of dismantling the holy fabric, so sacred in the eyes of a pious Arab, the work proceeded without interruption, until it became necessary to place the venerated "Black Stone" (to be hereafter described) in such a position in the Eastern Corner, that it could readily be kissed by the votaries who annually repaired to the temple. The honour of handling this most revered of relics was so great that each family of the Quraish advanced an exclusive pretension to the coveted privilege. The strife waxed warm, and the danger of bloodshed became imminent. It SO happened that Muhammad one day chanced to pass through the midst, at a time when the various aspirants, unable to arrange their quarrel, had argued that the first person who entered by a certain gate of the city should be arbitrator in the matter; it thus fell to the lot of "The faithful," as he was known amongst his kinsfolk, to decide the dispute. "Calm and self-possessed," so writes the biographer of the Prophet of Arabia, "Muhammad received the commission, and, with his usual sagacity, at once resolved upon an expedient which should conciliate all. Taking off his mantle and spreading it upon the ground, he placed the stone thereon, and said, 'Now let one from each of your four divisions come forward, and raise a corner of this mantle.' Four chiefs approached, and seizing the corners simultaneously, lifted the stone. When it had reached the proper height, Muhammad with his own hand guided it to its place."

Five comparatively uneventful years elapsed, and the hero of this episode was now approaching his fortieth year.

"Always pensive," again we quote the eloquent words of Sir William Muir, "he had of late become even more thoughtful and retiring. Contemplation and reflection now engaged his whole mind. The debasement of his people, his own uncertainty as to the true religion, the dim and imperfect shadows of Judaism and Christianity exciting doubts without satisfying them, pressed heavily upon his soul, and he frequently retired to seek relief in meditation amongst the solitary valleys and rocks near Mecca. His favourite spot was a cave in the declivities at the foot of Mount Hira, a lofty conical hill, two or three miles north of Mecca. Thither he would retire for some days at a time, and his faithful wife sometimes accompanied him. The continued solitude, instead of stilling his anxiety, magnified into sterner and more impressive shapes the solemn realities which perplexed and agitated his soul.

All around was bleak and rugged. There was harmony between these desert scenes of external nature and the troubled, chaotic elements of the spiritual world within. By degrees his impulsive and susceptible mind was wrought up to the highest pitch of excitement; and he would give vent to his agitation in wild and rhapsodical language, the counterpart of his inward struggles after truth."

It may readily be supposed that the careless and indifferent denizens of the desert received, as the day-dreams of a half-witted enthusiast, the warnings and expostulations which Muhammad now began to utter; yet a few regarded his sayings with attention if not with reverence; but even these latter argued that they had better be content with the light their Maker had given them. "If," said they, "a Prophet had been sent unto us, we should, no doubt, have followed his directions, and been equally devout and spiritual in our worship as the Jews and Christians." Though surrounded by a small band of adherents who recognised him as their spiritual head, Muhammad saw clearly that he would be powerless, unless charged with a "Divine commission" to call forth his people from darkness into light. Distracted in mind and soul, he betook himself to the desert, where under the canopy of the skies, he struggled with a destiny fraught, in his case, with such difficulties and anxieties. But while he meditated on these things a heavenly visitant appeared before his astonished eyes (so Muslims would have it believed), charged with the "memorable behest " *_

And commanded unto Piety?
Dost thou not see that he hath rejected the Truth, and turned his

back;

What! Doth he not know that God seeth?

Nay, verily, if he forbear not, We shall drag him by the ForelockThe lying, sinful Forelock!

Then let him call his company of friends, and We shall call the

guards of Hell;

Nay! submit not unto him; but worship, and draw nigh unto the Lord."

Muhammad now (A.D. 610) claimed to have become the servant of God, the Prophet of the Most High, but his "Mission" was unheeded; the busy world had no mind to listen to the rhapsodies of a religious enthusiast. Weary in mind, and his soul filled with despair, the idea seized his frenzied brain, that to end an existence so painful and full of perplexities, he would rush headlong over one of the wild cliffs where he was wont to repair to cool his thoughts, and collect his ideas. But his better judgment prevailed, and the fatal resolution was cast aside. An invisible influence held him back! Nor did he pass unrewarded; again for the second time an angel from heaven came down from the skies with comfort and support for the struggling and tortured son of Adam, and, falling into a trance, he received the command to "Arise and preach."

Slowly and surely did the twice-consecrated "Mission" of Muhammad gain ground. In the fortyfourth year of his age (A.D. 614), we find him surrounded by a knot of adherents, all of whom looked up to him as their divinely-appointed guide.

The first convert to his doctrines is supposed to have been the faithful wife of his bosom, though