Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XII.djvu/640

 626 OMAR I. OMEN the second Egyptian invasion, sent an army into Oman, but accepted the terms offered by the seyid. The tribute was continued till 1852, when further demands were made by the Wa- habee ruler, and it was increased to 12,000 crowns. The seyid Said died in 1856 after a reign of half a century, leaving 15 sons. At this time Oman was rich and prosperous. Her government extended over the best part of the Arabian coast, the islands of Zanzibar, Pemba, and Monfia, and a large portion of the African coast opposite ; and her navy num- bered 40 ships, 12 of which carried from 10 to 50 guns each. But with the death of Said internal dissensions began, and the suc- cession was disputed. Thoweiny, the eldest son, was elected ruler of Oman, and Majid, his brother, of Zanzibar. After a long dispute, the rival claims of the brothers were submit- ted to the arbitration of Lord Canning, then governor general of India, who confirmed each in his sovereignty, and decreed that the seyid of Zanzibar should pay an annual subsidy to Oman of 40,000 crowns. In making the award, regard was had to the fact that Oman was bur- dened with a tribute to the Wahabees, then increased to 20,000 crowns, the half of which had previously been drawn from the treasury of Zanzibar. The terms were accepted by each in 1862, and since then Zanzibar has been in- dependent. For the past ten years Oman has been the scene of dissension, brought about by the rival claims of different members of the ruling family to the sovereignty, and the con- tinued interference of the Wahabees. In 1873 the seyid of Oman made a treaty with England for the suppression of the slave trade. OMAR I. (ABU HAFSAH IBN AL-KHATTAB), the second of the caliphs, third cousin of Ab- dallah, the father of Mohammed, born about 581, assassinated in 644. Originally an enemy of the prophet, he set out for Medina to mur- der him ; but chancing to read what is now the 20th chapter of the Koran, he was con- verted, and thenceforth became a zealous sup- porter of the Moslem, faith. When the proph- et died in 632, Omar resigned his claim to the supreme rule in behalf of Abubekr ; and the latter on his deathbed appointed him his suc- cessor (634). During his reign the Moslems were everywhere victorious. One army pros- ecuted the conquest of Syria, took Damas- cus in 635, defeated the Greeks in the bloody battle of Yermuk;, and in 637 compelled Je- rusalem to capitulate. Another army under Amru invaded Egypt, reduced Alexandria, and overran Africa as far as the deserts of Tripoli and Barca. .In Persia and Armenia the Mos- lems were also successful. A Mohammedan his- torian sums up the conquests of Omar by say- ing : " He took from the infidels 36,000 cities or castles, destroyed 4,000 temples and church- es, and founded or endowed 1,400 mosques," In the beginning of November, 644, while per- forming his morning devotions in the mosque at Medina, he was stabbed three times by a Per- sian slave named Firuz, who had applied to him in vain to be relieved of half the tribute he was compelled to pay his master. He lingered five days, and refused to name his son as his suc- cessor. Omar's only food was barley bread and dates ; his only drink, water ; and his gar- ment an old coat torn in twelve places. He regularly distributed the contents of his trea- sury among his soldiers and followers, and supported himself by the work of his own hands, manufacturing and selling leather belts. He was the first to assume the title of emir el- mumenim, or commander of the faithful. In his time the era of the Hegira was established, armies were first kept under pay, and a sort of police force was instituted. Omar has al- ways been an object of reverence among the Moslems of the Sunni or orthodox sect. He was succeeded by Othman. OMAR II. (ABU HAFS), eighth caliph of the Ornmiyades, succeeded Solyman in Septem- ber, 717, died early in 720. He was a descen- dant of Omar I. To reconcile the houses of Omar and Ali, he revoked the maledictions against the partisans of the latter, which had been read in all the mosques since the time of Moawiyah, and restored to them the lands given to Ali by the prophet. But members of the ruling family gave him a slow poison, of which he died. OMIEARA, Barry Edward, an Irish surgeon, born about 1780, died in London, June 3, 1836. He entered the army at an early age, and served several years in Sicily, Egypt, and Calabria, as assistant surgeon to the 32d regi- ment. He was afterward surgeon in the navy, and was appointed to the Bellerophon in July, 1815, when Napoleon came on board that ship as a prisoner. At the request of Napoleon, O'Meara accompanied him to St. Helena in the capacity of medical attendant ; but on account of a rupture with Sir Hudson Lowe in regard to the treatment of Napoleon, he returned to England in 1818. Having ac- cused Sir Hudson Lowe before the admiralty of cruel and arbitrary conduct, his name was erased from the list of naval surgeons. He afterward acted with the extreme liberals, and was a partisan of O'Connell. He published " Letters from the Cape of Good Hope ;" "Letters from St. Helena;" " Letters from Count Las Cases," with a preliminary dis- course ; " Exposition of the Treatment of Napoleon Bonaparte;" a translation of the "Memoirs of Napoleon" by himself; and "A Voice from St. Helena, or Napoleon in Exile." OMEN (Lat.), a sign believed to be an intima- tion from a superior power prognosticating a future event. Suetonius mentions that Caesar, on landing at Hadrumetum in Africa, fell on his face, which would have been an unlucky omen had he not transformed it into a sym- bolical act by exclaiming as he touched the earth : Teneo te, Africa (I take possession of thee, O Africa). Valerius Maximus relates that Pompey, on arriving at Paphos after the battle