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 apart in front. He wore beard and moustache in full. He stooped, and walked carelessly and heavily. His expression was gentle, and inspired confidence; but he could not look a man straight in the face. On his back he had a round, fleshy swelling the size of a pigeon's egg, covered with hair and surrounded by black moles: this was supposed to be the mark of the prophet.

Such was the man who at the end of the fifth year of his ministry took up his abode in 'the House of Arcam,' facing the Kaaba on the east; and here he preached, and received those who came to him for instruction. But his converts were few at first; he had many powerful enemies, some among his own relations of the Coreish tribe; and his followers, many of whom were slaves, were subjected to frequent persecution. Some of them, by the prophet's advice, took refuge in Abyssinia, a Christian country then as now. But what made the cause far more popular than before, even among those of higher rank, was the adhesion of two men in particular. These two men were Hamza, known as the 'Lion of God,' and Omar, afterwards the second Caliph or chief of the Mahometans; both men of great size and strength, and renowned warriors. The growing popularity of the sect drove the opposite party to stronger measures, and a league was formed which forbade trade or marriage with the Mahometan sect, and forced them to live apart in a secluded quarter of Mecca. But luckily for the prophet, the league had their rules written out and hung up in the Kaaba, and there insects ate them. This was an omen of terrible import; so the league broke up, and the blockade was over.