506 



j4ccbuni hfihe iFechutiCcs. 



Liul;ti 



the tax bh thfetfaf %« '"'t'rt'll as their shoes inage that is 



admitted the divine origin of the Ko^ 



and farrier; tf^fetlier with the bills 

 of harness-mtikers, blacksmiths, and 

 wheeUvrights, fot- ploughs, harrows, 

 sfcuffles, carts, wagfeons, rollers, horse- 

 hofes,and all other mings used or work- 

 ed by liorses, as well as wear, tear, and 

 accidents of every description, and even 

 (he purchase of t)ther horses in lieu of 

 stich as happen to die or become unable 

 to labour. John Middieton. 



Lambeth, 18 21. _ 



For the Monthly Magazine. 



ACCOUNT 0/ /Air WAH.4 BIS or WEOHA- 



BITES, an Arab tect or tribe. 

 By (he Consul General of France, in 



the Levant, taken from an original 

 - MS. which had been transmitted to 

 ■*-him from Dret^, or Deraich, the chief 



seat of the Wechabites. 



IN the East tradition often mixes 

 with memorable events somewhat 

 of the marvel loois. Recent transac- 

 tions borrow this hue, in imitation of 

 others that have borne it for ages. 



In their relations (he Wechabites re- 

 port, in the (one of conviction, that 

 Suleiman, father of the founder of 

 their sect, saw in a dream a flame pro- 

 ceed from his navel, the light of which 

 tpread to a great distance in the desert. 



The astrologers then predicted that 

 he ihould have a son, destined to be- 

 come the head of a new i-eligion and 

 the founder of a potent empire. This 

 tradition was studiously propagated by 

 Scheikh-Muhammed, who may be con- 

 sidered iis the real author of (he reli- 

 gion. Born in a vill.age on the banks 

 of the Euphrates, he was the grandson 

 of Suleiman, and the son or Abd-il- 

 Wahab, giving his name (o the new 

 sect, to revive the memoiy of the dream, 

 and thereby to justify his pretended 

 mission. 



It was in the province of Yemen that 

 this sect arose, whose fanaticism and 

 atrocities were to renew those of Ma- 

 homet, and of the Karmats, Carmathi- 

 ans, or Keramites. This was a sect 

 which inhabited the same country, and 

 under the reign of the Abassides was 

 near crushing the Caliphate. The 

 author is of opinion, that the reli- 

 gious system of the Wechabites is only 

 a renovation of the ancient Keramites, 

 but M. Burckhardt dissented from 

 this. 



The reformation preached up by 

 Scheikh Muhammed, went to condemn 

 all the oral and written interpretations 

 of the Koran, and to annul all the ho- 



aid to* Matiome^^ ' Hh 



pai 

 divi 

 ran, and it formed (lie basis of hi* 

 creed, but he insisted (hat the text is 

 perverted, and that God cannot liave & 

 companion. 



In fact, the Wechabites only consider 

 Mahomet us a sage or elect personage, 

 ordained by the Most High to be on 

 earth (he organ of (he Divine will, in 

 composing and publishing (he Koran ; 

 biit (hat by death, he relapsed into the 

 condition of ordinary men. Thus, in 

 their profession of fai(h, they admit 

 ' there is no other God but (Jod,' but 

 reject (he second part, added by th^ 

 Mussulmans in general, ' and MaholnSt 

 is his prophet.' 



They do not allow of saints, and 

 their first object, after taking any city, 

 is to demolish the tombs of men consi- 

 dered as such. In the act of destroy- 

 ing these monuments, which generally 

 have a small cupola on them, for dis- 

 tinction, they utter an exclamation — 

 " May Allah bless those who are pull- 

 ing it down, and curse those who 

 erected it.'"* 



Besides (he Koran, there are two 

 other books which contain the articles 

 of the Mussulman faith; they are the 

 Haddis and the Muegman. The forr 

 mer expresslj' prohibits (he use of gold, 

 silver, and even silk in apparel. The 

 WechabKcs conform (o this ; and the 

 principal point they object to the 

 Turks is, (heir having adopted a luxury 

 that Mahomet disallows. Though the 

 law forbids tlie wearing of red or yel- 

 low stuffs embroidered with goli or 

 silver, (he pracdce is very common 

 among (he Turks, and he must be very 

 poor that has no embroidery on his 

 apparel. 



The first attempts of Scheikh Mu- 

 hammed to increase the number of pro- 

 selytes, out of his own (ribe, werie 

 fruitless. He had traversed (he Ned- 

 jid, Syria, and Irack Arabi, in hopes of 

 securing the aid of some powerful chief. 

 Being disappointed, and meeting with 

 obstacles, he was on the point of re- 

 nouncing his undertaking, when chance 

 threw in his way an auxiliary, whose 

 ambition and audacity were wonder- 

 fully suited to second his projects. 

 This was at Deraich, where he had re- 

 tired (o end his days in solitude. Here 



• The Wechabites honour the memory 

 of Abraham, Enoch, Moses, Aaron, Christ, 

 Hout. Saadi,&c. but not in the high charac- 

 ter of saints or prophets. 



he 



