THE ARABS. 207 



who originally lived in Yemen, and then spread themselves 

 beyond Mecca and Medina to Canaan and Syria, appearing 

 in the Arabian annals as rulers over Egypt in the time of Jo- 

 seph* It seems extraordinary that the nomadic races of the 

 Hyksos should have been able to subdue the ancient powerful 

 and well-organized kingdom of the Egyptians. Here the more 

 freely-constituted nation entered into a successful contest with 

 another long habituated to servitude, but yet the victorious 

 Arabian immigrants were not then, as in more modern times, 

 inspired by religious enthusiasm. The Hyksos, actuated by 

 fear of the Assyrians (races of Arpaschschad), established their 

 festivals and place of arms at Avaris, on the eastern arm of 

 the Nile. This circumstance seems to indicate attempted ad- 

 vances on the part of hostile warlike bodies, and a great mi- 

 gration westward. A second event, which occurred probably 

 a thousand years later, is mentioned by Diodorus on the au- 

 thority of Ctesias.f Ariseus, a powerful prince of the Himy- 

 arites, entered into an alliance with Ninus, on the Tigris, and 

 after they had conjointly defeated the Babylonians, he returned 

 laden with rich spoils to his home in Southern Arabia.^ 



Although a free pastoral mode of life may be regarded as 

 predominating in the Hedschaz, and as constituting that of a 

 great and powerful majority, the cities of Medina and of Mec- 

 ca, with its ancient and mysterious temple holiness, the Kaa- 

 ba, are mentioned as important places, much frequented by 

 foreigners. It is probable that the complete and savage wild- 

 ness generated by isolation was unknown in those districts 

 which we term river valleys, and which were contiguous to 

 coasts or to caravansery tracks. Gibbon, who knew so well 

 how to consider the conditions of human life, draws attention 

 to the essential differences existing between a nomadic life in 

 the Arabian peninsula and that described by Herodotus and 

 Hippocrates, in the so-called land of the Scythians, since in 

 the latter region no portion of the pastoral people ever settled 



* Ewald, Gesch. des Volkes Israel, bd. i., s. 300 und 450 ; Bunsen, 

 j^gyplen, buch iii., s. 10 und 32. The traditions of Medes and Per- 

 sians in Northern Africa indicate veiy ancient migrations toward the 

 West. They have been connected with the various versions of the 

 myth of Hercules, and with the Phoenician Melkarth. (Compare Sal 

 lust, Belliim Jugnrth., cap. 18, drawn from Panic writings by Hiempsal < 

 and Pliny, v. 8.) Strabo even terms the Maurusians (inhabitants of 

 Mauritania) "Indians who had come with Hercules." 



t Diod. Sic, lib. ii., cap. 2 and 3. 



X Ctesice Cnidii Operum Reliquice, ed. Baehr, Fragmenta Assyriaca, 

 p. 421; and Carl Muller. iu Dind'orf's edition of Herodotus (Par., 1844). 



p. 13-ir^. 



