His History. 121 



time was continually employed in plundering caravans. 

 When he lost the battle of Ohod, what horse he had (a 

 considerable force, 500 horse) was away on a plundering 

 expedition under his follower Zeid, who came down 

 upon a very rich caravan at Al-Karda in Nejed. The 

 booty taken on this occasion was estimated at 25,000 

 dahrems or pieces of silver. 



On another occasion, after having been compelled to 

 raise the siege of the castle of El-Tayef, into which 

 Malec the chief and his fighting-men had thrown them- 

 selves, Mohammed took the town of Waha, in which 

 Malec had caused to be deposited many of their most 

 valuable effects, which is said to have consisted of 

 24,000 camels, 40,000 .sheep, and 4,000 oz. of silver, in 

 addition to 6,000 captives. If Malec were possessed of 

 horses — which most probably he was — and they not away 

 from home on any expedition, they would be with his 

 fighting-men, and form part of the garrison of El-Tayef, 

 and which did not succumb to Mohammed. 



Mohammed was not slow in learning the full value of 

 the horse, and during his early career doubtless often 

 deplored his own deficiency in cavalry. Having seen 

 how essential the horse was to rapid movement, either 

 in the advance to attack, or for security in case of defeat, 

 he was loud in the praise of that generous animal, and 

 left maxims regarding his care and treatment to his fol- 

 lowers. 



It was in the ninth year of the Hegira — only one 

 year before the death of Mohammed — that the greater 

 number of Arabian tribes sent embassies to him, ten- 



