OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE 855 of religious faction ; the most helpless or timid of the disciples retired to /Ethiopia ; and the prophet withdrew himself to various places of strength in the town and country. As he was still supported by his family, the rest of the tribe of Koreish riheinter- engaged themselves to renounce all intercourse with the children of Hashem, neither to buy nor sell, neither to marry nor to give in marriage, but to pursue them with implacable enmity, till they should deliver the person of Mahomet to the justice of the gods. The decree was suspended in the Caaba before the eyes of the nation ; the messengers of the Koreish pursued the Musulman exiles in the heart of Africa ; they besieged the prophet and his most faithful followers, intercepted their water, and inflamed their mutual animosity by the retaliation of injuries and insults. A doubtful truce restored the appearances of [a.d. 6i9-»] concord ; till the death of Abu Taleb abandoned Mahomet to the power of his enemies, at the moment when he was deprived of his domestic comforts by the loss of his faithful and generous Cadijah. Abu Sophian, the chief of the branch of Ommiyah, rAbuBofyan succeeded to the principality of the republic of Mecca. A " ' zealous votary of the idols, a mortal foe of the line of Hashem, he convened an assembly of the Koreishites and their allies, to decide the fate of the apostle. His imprisonment might provoke the despair of his enthusiasm ; and the exile of an eloquent and popular fanatic would diffuse the mischief through the provinces of Arabia. His death was resolved ; and they agreed that a sword from each tribe should be buried in his heart, to divide the guilt of his blood and baffle the vengeance of the Hashem- ites. An angel or a spy revealed their conspiracy; and flight and driven was the only resource of Mahomet. i"^*^ At the dead of night, A.D^sa'"*' accompanied by his friend Abubeker, he silently escaped from his house ; the assassins watched at the door ; but they were deceived by the figure of Ali, who reposed on the bed, and was covered with the green vestment, of the apostle. The Koreish respected the piety of the heroic youth ; but some verses of Ali, which are still extant, exhibit an interesting picture of his anxiety, his tenderness, and his religious confidence. Three days Mahomet and his companion were concealed in the cave of Thor, at the distance of a league from Mecca ; and in the close of each evening they received from the son and daughter of Abubeker a secret supply of intelligence and food. The 126 D'Herbelot, Bibliot. Orient, p. 445. He quotels a particular history of the flight of Mahomet.
