women ¹ and children. There is no proof that Muslim historians are right in saying that the Najashi himself became a Muslim, for Abyssinia is still a professedly Christian country. A little later we find some forty Muslims,² men and women, in Mecca. We are told that some twenty Christians from Najran heard the Qur'an read in the Ka'bah and believed.³ But this story can scarcely be true; for, in the first place, Christians would hardly have entered the Ka'bah, then a heathen temple full of idols; and, in the second, they certainly did not find Muhammad described in their Book, as Ibn Hisham says.

At a conference with the chiefs of the Quraish, Muhammad endeavoured to win them to his side by assuring them that they would gain power and influence over both Arabia and Persia by accepting belief in God's Unity and by rejecting all other objects ⁴ of worship. Once before, after the departure of many of his followers to Abyssinia, he had made an effort for the same purpose by ⁵ speaking thus: "Have ye not then seen Allat and Al-'Uzza' and Manat, the other, the third? These are the exalted Swans, and verily their intercession may indeed be ⁶ hoped for." The Quraish who were then in the Ka'bah thereupon joined with him in worship, and the news spread to the exiles in Abyssinia that the Meccans had all become Muslims. Most of them returned to find the report false, for Muhammad had soon changed the last part of the above quotation into the very different words which are now found in Suratu'n Najm (Surah liii), vers. 21, 22, 23.

Some men of the tribes of Aus and Khazraj dwelling at Yathrib, which is now called Medinah, visited Mecca, and there heard Muhammad preach. One of them was converted, but died soon after his return home. Yet the teaching spread there slowly. Six men then came

to Muhammad and embraced ¹ Islam. Soon "there was no house amid the houses of the Ansar in which there was no mention of ² Muhammad". At the first Agreement at Al 'Aqabah, twelve people from Medinah invited Muhammad to go there, and promised him their support. This Agreement bound these converts not to associate anything with God, not to steal, not to commit adultery, not to murder their children, not to slander, and not to rebel against Muhammad in what was seemly. Muhammad in return promised them Paradise, if they kept their ³ covenant with him. In after times this was called the "Women's Agreement", because no fighting was involved in it. Mus'ab ibn 'Umair was sent to Medinah with the converts in order to teach them the rules of worship. He soon made several more converts, including two powerful chiefs, Sa'd ibn Mu'adh and Usaid ibn Huzair. Next year Mus'ab returned to Mecca with seventy-three Muslim men and two Muslim women ⁴ from Medinah. In the second Agreement at 'Aqabah, they offered to draw their swords to help Muhammad to exalt Islam and overthrow Polytheism. At first he said that he had not been so commissioned.⁵ Put he soon declared that God permitted ⁶ war for the faith; and promised Paradise ⁷ to the faithful. Soon after this the Hijrah took place. Nearly all the Meccan Muslims went to Medinah. Muhammad, Abu Bakr, and 'Ali ⁸ remained in Mecca for a short time, and then escaped with some danger. We do not know how many Muslims left their native city for their faith. About a year and a half later eighty-three of the Muhajirun fought at Badr, and hence perhaps somewhat more than 100 in all were the converts whom in thirteen years peaceful teaching and preaching Muhammad had succeeded in winning at Mecca. We must remember, too, that