FAms or THE CAXIFHK. 361 



three cenUrries before the Christian eia. 

 trunk and huge fragments were carefolly collected 

 bv the mercenary Saracens, and sold to a Jewish 

 merchant of E^des3a. who loaded 900 camels \rith 

 the metal, the value of which has been estimated at 

 36,000/. sterling money. ExclusiTe of the immense 

 booty acquired on this expedition, the Arabs are 

 said to have carried off 8000 beautiful captives of 

 both sexes. 



In Egypt the affairs of the cahph suffered a tem- 

 porary reverse, occasioned entirely, however, by his 

 own imprudence in displacing the popular governor. 

 But the restoration of Amru re-estabhshed the Sa- 

 racen ascendency. The Grecian troops were de- 

 feated after a protracted combat of several days. 

 Alexandria was again taken by storm, its towers dis- 

 mantled, and its walls thrown dowiL By the sea^ 

 sonable interposition of their general, however, the 

 fury of the relentless iloslems was stayed ; and the 

 Mosque of Mercy, erected on the spot, commemo- 

 rated for ages the clemency thai arrested the indis- 

 criminate slaughter of the citizens. The attention 

 of Othman was next turned to the reduction of 

 AiJrica. 



At the head of a formidable expedition, amount- 

 ing to 40.000 men, Abdallah, governor of Egypt, 

 passed the desert of Barca. A pfunful march brought 

 them under the wails of Tripoli, the weU-fcnown 

 capital of a province which still maintains a respect- 

 able nmk among the States of Barbary. The forti- 

 fications of this place re^sted the fir&l assaults of 

 the invaders. A detachment of Greeks was sur- 

 prised and cut to pieces on the seashore ; but the 

 approach of Jujeir (Gregory), the prefect or Ueuten- 

 ant of the emperor, with a force of 1-20,000 men, 

 consisting of Roman troops and Moorish auxiliaries, 

 induced the Arabs to suspend the siege, in the hope 

 of deciding the fate of the country by a pitched 

 battle. Gresorv rejected with scorn flie terms of 



Vol. L— H h ' 



