368 WARS OF THE CALIPHS. 



successful; the conscience of the Moslems was 

 overawed by this solemn appeal to the sacred vol- 

 ume. All was not to be imposed on by this spe- 

 cious device— but he was compelled to yield to the 

 clamours of his followers, weary of bloodshed, and 

 willing to embrace any reasonable terms of accom- 

 modation. "The son of Henda has vanquished!" 

 he exclaimed in an aarony of vexation, when he found 

 discord and disloyalty spreading among the fanatical 

 part of liis army," who demanded that the sword, al- 

 ready waving in triumph, should return to the scab- 

 bard" in reverence for the Koran. The battle was 

 accordingly suspended, and Moawiyah saluted ca- 

 liph. Wit"h sorrow and indignation Ali retreated to 

 Cufa; but his partisans separated into factions, and 

 his interest from this fatal period began greatly to 

 decline. 



Moawiyah took revenge for the losses he had 

 sustained at Seffein. His troops plundered several 

 districts in Mesopotamia, and for a time maintamed 

 possession of Bussora. Other detachments made 

 incursions into Arabia, where they conniiitted ter- 

 rible devastations. Penetrating into Hejaz, they 

 reduced Medina, Taif, and Mecca, and extended 

 their ravages into Yemaraa and Yemen, the gar- 

 risons of which, unable to oppose the invaders, fled 

 with precipitation to Cufa. The authority of the 

 usurper was thus quietly established over the sanc- 

 tuaries of the Moslem faith, and many of the most 

 important provinces of the Saracen dominions. 



The same tragic fate awaited Ali, now harassed 

 and heart-broken with misfortune, that had cut off 

 his two immediate predecessors. Three of the Ko- 

 rajites or schismatics, heated with fanaticism and 

 revenge, resolved in secret to expiate the slaughter 

 of their comrades, by plunging their daggers in the 

 bosoms of the three principal leaders, Ah, Moa- 

 wiyah, and Amru. Each of the assassins poisoned 

 his weapon, and selected his victim. Moawiyah 



