this fallacious transaction, if each foot-soldier had shared one
thousand, and each horseman three thousand, pieces in the real
division of the plunder. The author of the death of Gregory
was expected to have claimed the most precious reward of the
victory : from his silence it might be presumed that he had
fallen in the battle, till the tears and exclamations of the praefect's daughter at the sight of Zobeir revealed the valour and
modesty of that gallant soldier. The unfortunate virgin was
offered, and almost rejected, as a slave, by her father's murderer,
who coolly declared that his sword was consecrated to the service
of religion ; and that he laboured for a recompense far above the
charms of mortal beauty or the riches of this transitory life.[1]
A reward congenial to his temper was the honourable commis-
sion of announcing to the caliph Othman the success of his arms.
The companions, the chiefs, and the people were assembled in
the mosch of Medina, to hear the interesting narrative of Zobeir ;
and, as the orator forgot nothing except the merit of his own
counsels and actions, the name of Abdallah was joined by the
Arabians with the heroic names of Caled and Amrou.[2]
Progress of the Saracens in Africa. A.D. 665-689 The western conquests of the Saracens were suspended near twenty years, till their dissensions were composed by the establishment of the house of Ommiyah ; and the caliph Moawiyah was invited by the cries of the Africans themselves. The suc- cessors of Heraclius had been informed of the tribute which they had been compelled to stipulate with the Arabs ; but, instead of being moved to pity and relieve their distress, they
- ↑ [Ibn Abd al Hakam [loc. cit. p. 306) gives another story about the daughter of Gregory. She fell to the lot of a man of Medina. He placed her on a camel and returned with her improvising these verses:—
"Daughter of Joujlr, you will go on foot in your turn ;
Your mistress awaits you in the Hijaz,
You will carry a skin of water from Koba (to Medina) ".
She "asked what this dog meant ; and having learned the meaning of the words
threw herself from the camel and broke her neck". - ↑ (
Greek characters) Theophan. Chronograph, p. 285, edit. Paris [a.m. 6139]. His chronology
is loose and inaccurate. [Some words have accidentally fallen out in this passage after (Greek characters) and are preserved in the translation of Anastasius : et hunc ab Africa pellunt (de Boor supplies (Greek characters)). This implies that Gregory was not slain ; cp. above, note 162. Diehl justly remarks that he must not be identified with Gregory the nephew of Heraclius who died in 651-2 ; op. cit. p. 559; but does not question the statement (of Arabic sources, e.g. Ibn Abd al Hakam, loc. cit. p. 304) that he was slain at Sbaitla. The details of the battle given in the text depend chiefly on the doubtful authority of Novairi.]
job. When the Arabs besieged the palace of Othman, it stood high in their catalogue of grievances.
