22 THE NEW METHOD 



of the very source of all the splendor of the ruins 

 that surrounded them. They soon began to cultivate 

 the civilization of the conquered people, and restore 

 to the world what they had destroyed. Books were 

 collected at great expense from all sources, and trans- 

 lated into Arabic. Schools and colleges sprang up, 

 and learning revived in every part of the great 

 empire. 



In the early part of the eighth century a Spanish 

 noble requested Musa, the governor of Egypt, to send 

 a military force to Spain to correct the tyranny of 

 King Roderic, the usurper. Seven thousand men led 

 by the brave general Tarik soon landed at Gibraltar, 

 and in two years had taken nearly all Spain. Tarik 

 established in Spain the best known civilization, 

 giving all Europe the means of rising above the thral- 

 dom of ignorance and barbarism, and eventually 

 bringing the dark ages to a close. From time to time 

 thousands of the cultured families of western Asia 

 and northern Africa were attracted to Spain by the 

 genial climate, beautiful scenery, and fertile soil. 

 Schools, colleges and universities were founded in the 

 Alexandrian methods. A high civilization sprang up 

 and flourished for nearly eight centuries. It became 

 the best civilization in the world at that time. It 

 held that position until Europe had founded, on the 

 Arabian models, learned societies and academies in 

 every capital and large city. 



