Page:William Muir, Thomas Hunter Weir - The Caliphate; Its Rise, Decline, and Fall (1915).djvu/36

 632] Prophet's illness, soon followed by tidings of his death, had spread like wildfire over the land. From every side came rumours of disloyalty, and of resolve to cast off the yoke of Islām. The sense of the army, and of Usāma himself, was strongly against leaving the City thus defenceless, and the Caliph exposed to risk of sudden danger. ʿOmar was deputed to represent all this to Abu Bekr, and also to urge (a request which Moḥammad already had refused) that, if the expedition must proceed, a more experienced general should command. To the first request Abu Bekr replied, calm and unmoved:—"Were the City swarming round with packs of ravening wolves and I left solitary and alone, the force should go; not a word from my Master's lips shall fall to the ground." At the second demand the Caliph's anger kindled:—"The mother be bereft of thee, O son of Al-Khattāb!" he said, seizing ʿOmar by the beard:—"Shall the Prophet of the Lord appoint a man to the command and I, deposing him, appoint another in his place?" So ʿOmar returned, with neither object gained.

When all was ready for the march, Abu Bekr repaired to the camp, and accompanied the force a little way on foot. "Be mounted," said Usāma to him, "or else I will dismount and walk by thee." "Not so," replied Abu Bekr; I will not mount; I will walk and soil my feet a little moment in the ways of the Lord. Verily, every step trodden in the ways of the Lord is equal to the merit of manifold good works and wipeth out a multitude of sins." After a while he stopped, and said to Usāma:—"If it be thy will, give ʿOmar leave that he may return for strength and counsel with me to the city." So he gave him leave, and Abu Bekr returned with ʿOmar to Medīna.

The ostensible object of Usāma's expedition was to avenge the death of his father upon the tribe of Ghāssān who had slain him upon the field of Mūta, and Ibn Saʿd states that he did in fact kill the man who had slain him. On the other hand the tribemen actually attacked were of Ḳoḍāʿa, and the point at which the march culminated was apparently Obna, the ancient Jabneh (Josh, xv. 11), close to the Mediterranean, between Askelon and Jaffa. The time occupied was one month or at most two, and when we deduct the days spent in marching from and back to