Chapter I: Introduction: BY

REV. JAMES S. DENNIS, D.D.

EDINBURGH AND LONDON
Oliphant Anderson and Ferrier
1900

Printed by
THE CAXTON PRESS
171-173 Macdougal St.
New York, U.S.A.

DEDICATED

TO

_The “Student Volunteers” of America_

IN MEMORY OF

THE TWO AMERICAN VOLUNTEERS WHO LAID DOWN THEIR LIVES FOR ARABIA

PETER J. ZWEMER

AND

GEORGE E. STONE

And Jesus said unto him: This day is salvation come to this house, forasmuch as he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.—LUKE xix. 9, 10.

Introductory Note

The author of this instructive volume is in the direct line of missionary pioneers to the Moslem world. He follows Raymond Lull, Henry Martyn, Ion Keith-Falconer, and Bishop French, and, with his friend and comrade the Rev. James Cantine, now stands in the shining line of succession at the close of a decade of patient and brave service at that lonely outpost on the shores of the Persian Gulf. Others have followed in their footsteps, until the Arabian Mission, the adopted child of the Reformed Church in America, is at present a compact and resolute group of men and women at the gates of Arabia, waiting on God’s will, and intent first of all upon fulfilling in the spirit of obedience to the Master the duty assigned them.

These ten years of quiet, unflinching service have been full of prayer, observation, study, and wistful survey of the great task, while at the same time every opportunity has been improved to gain a foothold, to plant a standard, to overcome a prejudice, to sow a seed, and to win a soul. The fruits of this intelligent and conscientious effort to grasp the situation and plan the campaign are given to us in this valuable study of “Arabia, the Cradle of Islam.” It is a missionary contribution to our knowledge of the world. The author is entirely familiar with the literature of his subject. English, German, French, and Dutch authorities are at his command. The less accessible Arabic authors are easily within his reach, and he brings from those mysterious gardens of spices into his clear, straightforward narrative, the local coloring and fragrance, as well as the indisputable witness of original medieval sources. The ethnological, geographical, archaeological, commercial, and political information of the descriptive chapters brings to our hands a valuable and readable summary of facts, in a form which is highly useful, and will be sure to quicken an intelligent interest in one of the great religious and international problems of our times.

His study of Islam is from the missionary standpoint, but this does not necessarily mean that it is unfair, or unhistorical, or lacking in scholarly acumen. Purely scientific and academic study of an ethnic religion is one method of approaching it. It can thus be classified, labelled, and put upon the shelf in the historical museum of the world’s religions, and the result has a value which none will dispute. This, however, is not the only, or indeed the most serviceable, way of examining, estimating and passing a final judgment upon a religious system. Such study must be comparative, it must have some standard of value; it must not discard acknowledged tests of excellence; it must make use of certain measurements of capacity and power; it must be pursued in the light of practical ethics, and be in harmony with the great fundamental laws of religious experience and spiritual progress which have controlled thus far the regenerative processes of human development.

The missionary in forming his final judgment inevitably compares the religion he studies with the religion he teaches. He need not do this in any unkind, or bitter, or abusive spirit. On the contrary, he may do it with a supreme desire to uncover delusion, and make clear the truth as it has been given to him by the Great Teacher. He may make a generous and sympathetic allowance for the influence of local environment, he may trace in an historic spirit the natural evolution of a religious system, he may give all due credit to every worthy element and every pleasing characteristic therein, he may regard its symbols with respect, and also with all charity and consideration the leaders and guides whom the people reverence; yet his own judgment may still be inflexible, his own allegiance unfaltering, and he may feel it to be his duty to put into plain, direct, and vigorous prose his irreversible verdict that Christianity being true, Islam is not, Buddhism is not, Hinduism is not.

There he stands; he is not afraid of the issue. His Master is the one supreme and infallible judge, who can pronounce an unerring verdict concerning the truth of any religion. He has ventured to bear witness to the truth which his Master has taught him. Let no one lightly question the value of the contribution he makes to the comparative study of religion.

The spirit in which our author has written of Islam is marked by fairness, sobriety, and discrimination, and yet there is no mistaking the verdict of one who speaks with an authority which is based upon exceptional opportunities of observation, close study of literary sources and moral results, and undoubted honesty of purpose.

It may not be out of place to note the hearty, outspoken satisfaction with which the author regards the extension of British authority over the long sweep of the Arabian coast line. His admiration and delight can only be fully understood by one who has been a resident in the East, and has felt the blight of Moslem rule, and its utter hopelessness as an instrument of progress.

Let this book have its hour of quiet opportunity, and it will broaden our vision, enlarge our knowledge, and deepen our interest in themes which will never lose their hold upon the attention of thoughtful men.

JAMES S. DENNIS.

Preface

There are indications that Arabia will not always remain in its long patriarchal sleep and that there is a future in store for the Arab. Politics, civilization and missions have all begun to touch the hem of the peninsula and it seems that soon there will be one more land—or at least portions of it—to add to “the white man’s burden.” History is making in the Persian Gulf, and Yemen will not forever remain, a tempting prize,—untouched. The spiritual burden of Arabia is the Mohammedan religion and it is in its cradle we can best see the fruits of Islam. We have sought to trace the spiritual as well as the physical geography of Arabia by showing how Islam grew out of the earlier Judaism, Sabeanism and Christianity.

The purpose of this book is especially to call attention to Arabia and the need of missionary work for the Arabs. There is no dearth of literature on Arabia, the Arabs and Islam, but most of the books on Arabia are antiquated or inaccessible to the ordinary reader; some of the best are out of print. The only modern work in English, which gives a general idea of the whole peninsula is Bayard Taylor’s somewhat juvenile “_Travels in Arabia_.” In German there is the scholarly compilation of Albrecht Zehm, “_Arabie und die Araber, seit hundert jahren_,” which is generally accurate, but is rather dull reading and has neither illustrations nor maps. From the missionary standpoint there are no books on Arabia save the biographies of Keith-Falconer, Bishop French and Kamil Abdul-Messiah.

This fact together with the friends of the author urged their united plea for a book on this “Neglected Peninsula,” its people, religion and missions. We have written from a missionary viewpoint, so that the book has certain features which are intended specially for those who are interested in the missionary enterprise. But that enterprise has now so large a place in modern thought that no student of secular history can afford to remain in ignorance of its movements.

Some of the chapters are necessarily based largely on the books by other travellers, but if any object to quotation marks, we would remind them that Emerson’s writings are said to contain three thousand three hundred and ninety three quotations from eight hundred and sixty-eight individuals! The material for the book was collected during nine years of residence in Arabia. It was for the most part put into its present form at Bahrein during the summer of 1899, in the midst of many outside duties and distractions.

I wish especially to acknowledge my indebtedness to W. A. Buchanan, Esq., of London, who gave the initiative for the preparation of this volume and to my friend Mr. D. L. Pierson who has generously undertaken the entire oversight of its publication.

The system for the spelling of Arabic names in the text follows in general that of the Royal Geographical Society. This system consists, in brief, in three rules: (1) words made familiar by long usage remain unchanged; (2) vowels are pronounced as in Italian and consonants as in English; (3) no redundant letters are written and all those written are pronounced.

We send these chapters on their errand, and hope that especially the later ones may reach the hearts of the Student Volunteers for foreign missions to whom they are dedicated; we pray also that the number of those who love the Arabs and labor for their enlightenment and redemption may increase.

S. M. ZWEMER.

_Bahrein, Arabia._

Table of Contents

PAGE
I

THE NEGLECTED PENINSULA 17

Arabia the centre of Moslem world—Its boundaries—The coast—Physical
characteristics—Climate—Water-supply—Geology—The
Wadys—Mountains—Deserts.

II

THE GEOGRAPHICAL DIVISIONS OF ARABIA 25

Natural divisions—Provinces—Political geography—Important
flora and fauna—Population.

III

THE HOLY LAND OF ARABIA—MECCA 30

Its boundaries—Sacredness—European travellers—Jiddah—Its
bombardment—The pilgrimage—Mecca—Its location—Water-supply—Governor—The
Kaaba—The Black Stone—Zemzem—Duty of pilgrimage—The pilgrims—The
day of sacrifice—The certificate—Character of
Meccans—Temporary marriages—Superstitions—Mishkash—Schools
of Mecca—Course of study.

IV

THE HOLY LAND OF ARABIA—MEDINA 45

Taif—Heathen idols—The road to Medina—Sanctity of Medina—The
prophet’s mosque—Was Mohammed buried there?—The
five tombs—Prayer for Fatima—Living on the pilgrims—Character
of people—Yanbo—Importance of Mecca to Islam.

V

ADEN AND AN INLAND JOURNEY 53

The gateways to Arabia Felix—Aden—Its ancient
history—Fortifications—Tanks—Divisions—Population—Journey
inland—Wahat—The vegetation of Yemen—A Turkish custom-house—The
storm in the wady—Taiz—The story of the books.

VI

YEMEN: THE SWITZERLAND OF ARABIA 62

The Jews of Yemen—From Taiz to Ibb and Yerim—Beauty
of scenery—Climate—Ali’s footprint—Damar—Sana—Commerce
and manufactures—Roda—From Sana to the coast—The
terraces of Yemen—Suk-el Khamis—Menakha—Bajil—Hodeidah.

VII

THE UNEXPLORED REGIONS OF HADRAMAUT 72

Von Wrede’s travels—Halévy—Mr. and Mrs. Bent’s
journeys—Makalla—Incense-trade—The castles and
palaces—Shibam—Shehr and its ruler—Hadramaut
and the Indian archipelago.

VIII

MUSCAT AND THE COASTLANDS OF OMAN 78

Boundaries—Population—Government—Muscat—Heat—The
forts—The town—The gardens—Trade—The coast of Oman—The
pirate-coast—The Batina—Sib, Barka, Sohar—From
Muscat to Ras-el-Had—Sur—Carter’s exploration—The Mahrah
and Gharah tribes—Frankincense.

IX

THE LAND OF THE CAMEL 88

“The mother of the camel”—Importance of the camel to
Arabia—Tradition as to creation—Species—The dromedary—An
illustration of design—Products of the camel—Characteristics—The
interior of Oman—Chief authorities—Fertility—Caravan-routes—Peter
Zwemer’s journey—Jebel Achdar.

X

THE PEARL ISLANDS OF THE GULF 97

Ancient history of Bahrein—Origin of name—Population—Menamah—The
fresh-water springs—The pearl-fisheries—Superstitions
about pearls—Value and export—Method of diving—Boats—Apparatus—Dangers
to the divers—Mother-of-pearl—Other
manufactures—Ruins at Ali—The climate—Political
history—English protection.

XI

THE EASTERN THRESHOLD OF ARABIA 110

The province of Hassa—Katar—The Route inland—Ojeir—Journey
to Hofhoof—The two curses of agriculture—The
capital of Hassa—Plan of the town—Its manufactures—Curious
coinage—The government of Hassa—Katif—Its unhealthfulness.

XII

THE RIVER-COUNTRY AND THE DATE-PALM 119

The cradle of the race—Boundaries of Mesopotamia—The
Tigris-Euphrates—Meadow lands—The palms—Their
beauty—Fruitfulness—Usefulness—Varieties of dates—Value—Other
products—Population—Provinces and districts—The government.

XIII

THE CITIES AND VILLAGES OF TURKISH-ARABIA 128

Kuweit—Fao—Aboo Hassib—Busrah—The river navigation—A
journey—Kurna—Ezra’s tomb—Amara—The tomb of the
barber—The arch of Ctesiphon—Bagdad, past and
present—Population—Trade—Kelleks.

XIV

A JOURNEY DOWN THE EUPHRATES 136

Journey to Hillah—-The route—Kerbela—Down the
Euphrates—Diwaniyeh—The soldier-guard—Amphibious Arabs—Samawa—Ya
Ali, Ya Hassan!—Nasariya—Ur—The end of our
journey—The future of Mesopotamia.

XV

THE INTERIOR—KNOWN AND UNKNOWN 143

What it includes—Its four divisions—(1) “The empty
quarter”—Ignorance of this part of Arabia—(2) Nejran—The
Dauasir-valley and other wadys—Halévy’s travels—Aflaj—The Roman
expedition to Nejran—(3) Nejd—Its proper limits—The
zephyrs of Nejd—Soil—Vegetation—Animals—The ostrich—The
horse—The chief authorities on this part of Arabia—The
population of Nejd—The character of government—Intercourse
with Mesopotamia—Chief cities—Hail—Riad—(4)
Jebel Shammar—The Bedouin-tribes—Division—Character
and customs—Robbery—Universal poverty.

XVI

“THE TIME OF IGNORANCE” 158

Why so-called—The golden age of literature—The influence of
Christianity and Judaism—Tribal constitution of
society—Commerce—Incense—Foreign invasions—Political commotion—The
condition of women—Female infanticide—The veil—Rights
of women—Marriage choice—Polygamy and Polyandry—Two
kinds of marriage—Did Islam elevate woman?—Writing
in “the days of ignorance”—Poetry—Mohammed’s
opinion of poets—The religions—Sabeanism—The Pantheon
at Mecca—Jinn—Totemism—Tattooing—Names of idols—Allah—Decay
of idolatry—The Hanifs.

XVII

ISLAM IN ITS CRADLE—THE MOSLEM’S GOD 169

Different views—Carlyle—Hugh Broughton—Borrowed elements
of Islam—The God of Islam—Palgrave’s portrait—Attributes
of God—What God is not—Analysis of Islam—Borrowed
elements of Islam.

XVIII

THE PROPHET AND HIS BOOK 179

The prophet of Islam—Birth of Mohammed—His environment—Factors
that helped to make the man—Political, religious and
family factor—Khadijah—Mohammed’s appearance, mind and
character—His transgression of law—His sensuality—His
murders—Expeditions—Mohammed, as he became through
tradition—His glories, favor and power as an intercessor—How
Moslems regard the Koran—Its character according to
Dr. Post, Goethe and Nöldeke—Its names—Contents—Origin—Recension—Its
beauties—Its defects—Its omissions.

XIX

THE WAHABI RULERS AND REFORMERS 191

The story of past century—The Wahabis—Character of teaching—The
preacher and the sword—Taking of Mecca and Medina—Kerbela—Mohammed
Ali—The Hejaz campaign—Ghalye—Turkish
cruelty—English expedition—Peace—The
Wahabi dynasty—Abdullah bin Rashid—Rise of Nejd kingdom—Character
of rule—Hail conquers Riad.

XX

THE RULERS OF OMAN 202

Oman rulers—Seyid Said—Feysul bin Turki—The rebels take
Muscat—Arab warfare—European diplomacy.

XXI

THE STORY OF THE TURKS IN ARABIA 206

Hejaz—The Sherifs of Mecca—Othman Pasha—Threats to
assassinate him—Turkish troops in Asir—Losses—The conquest
of Yemen—Turkish rule—Rebellions—The rebellion of
1892—Bagdad, Busrah and Hassa—Taxes—The Turks and
Bedouins—The army—Character of rule.

XXII

BRITISH INFLUENCE IN ARABIA 218

British possessions—Aden—Socotra—Perim—Kuria Muria
islands—Bahrein—Her naval supremacy—In the Gulf—German
testimony—Survey of coasts—Telegraph and
posts—Slave-trade—Commerce—British India S. N. Co.—Gulf trade—The
rupee—Trade of Aden—Overland railway—Treaties with
tribes—The Trucial League—England in Oman—Aden—Makalla—Method
of “protection”—British consuls and
agents.

XXIII

PRESENT POLITICS IN ARABIA 233

Hejaz—Future of Yemen—France in Oman—Russia in the Gulf—The
Tigris-Euphrates Valley—The greater kingdom—God’s
providence in history.

XXIV

THE ARABIC LANGUAGE 238

Wide extent—Its character—Renan’s opinion—The Semitic
family—Their original home—The two theories—Table of the
group—The influence of the Koran on the Arabic language—Koran
Arabic not pure—Origin of alphabet—Cufic—Caligraphy
as an art—Difficulty and beauty of Arabic speech—Its
purity—Literature—Difficulty of pronunciation—Of its grammar—Keith
Falconer’s testimony.

XXV

THE LITERATURE OF THE ARABS 251

Division of its literature—The seven poems—The Koran—Al
Hariri—Its beauty and variety—Arabic poetry in general—Influence
of Arabic and other languages—English influence
on the Arabic—The Arabic Bible and a Christian literature.

XXVI

THE ARAB 258

Origin of tribes—Two theories—Yemenite and Maädite—The
caravan routes—Bedouins and townsmen—Clark’s
classification—Genealogies—Tribal names—Character of Arabs—Influence
of neighbors—Their physique—Their
aristocracy—Intolerance—Speech—Oaths—Robbery—Privilege of
sanctuary—Generosity—Blood-revenge—Childhood—Fireside talk—Marriage
among Bedouins—Position of women—Four witnesses—Doughty—Burckhardt—Lady
Ann Blunt—Hurgronje—Woman despised—The kinds of dwelling—Tents
and houses—Dress—The staple foods—Coffee, tobacco and locusts.

XXVII

ARABIAN ARTS AND SCIENCES 274

Music of the Arabs—War chants—Instruments of music—Songs—Kaseedahs
in Yemen—Mecca chants—Science of _Athar_ and
_Wasm_—Tracking camels—Tribal marks—Medical knowledge
of the Arabs—Diseases—Remedies—A prescription—The
Koran’s panacea—A Mecca M. D.—Amulets—Superstitions.

XXVIII

THE STAR-WORSHIPPERS OF MESOPOTAMIA 285

Where they live—Their peculiar religion—Their language—Literature—A
prayer-meeting of the Star Worshippers—Strange
ceremonies—The dogmas—Gnostic ideas—Priesthood—Baptisms—Babylonian
origin.

XXIX

EARLY CHRISTIANITY IN ARABIA 300

Pentecost—Paul’s journey—The Arabs and the Romans—Christian
tribes of the North—Mavia—Naaman’s edict—Christianity
in Yemen—Character of Oriental Christianity—The
Collyridians—Theophilus—Nejran converts—Martyrs—Abraha,
king of Yemen—Marching to Mecca—The defeat—End
of early Christianity—The record of the rocks.

XXX

THE DAWN OF MODERN ARABIAN MISSIONS 314

Raymond Lull—Henry Martyn—Why the Moslem world was
neglected—Claudius Buchanan’s sermon—The Syrian missions—Doctor
Van Dyck—His Bible translation—Henry
Martyn, the pioneer—His Arabian assistant—Visit to Muscat—His
Arabic version—Anthony N. Groves—Dr. John Wilson of
Bombay—The Bible Society—Opening of doors—Major-General
Haig’s journeys—Arabia open—Dr. and Mrs. Harpur and
the C. M. S.—A call to prayer—Bagdad occupied—The present
work—Missionary journeys to the Jews—William Lethaby
at Kerak—The North Africa mission among the nomads—Samuel
Van Tassel—The Christian Missionary Alliance—Mackay’s
appeal from Uganda—The response.

XXXI

ION KEITH FALCONER AND THE ADEN MISSION 331

Keith Falconer’s character—Education—At Cambridge—Mission
work—His “eccentricity”—Leipzig and Assiut—How he
came to go to Arabia—His first visit—Plans for the interior—His
second voyage to Aden—Dwelling—Illness—Death—The
influence of his life—The mission at Sheikh Othman.

XXXII

BISHOP FRENCH THE VETERAN MISSIONARY TO MUSCAT 344

“The most distinguished of all C. M. S. missionaries”—Responds
to Mackay’s appeal—His character—His letters from
Muscat—His plans for the interior—Death—The grave.

XXXIII

THE AMERICAN ARABIAN MISSION 353

Its origin—The student band—The first plan—Laid before the
church—Organization—The Missionary
Hymn—James Cantine—Syria—Cairo—Aden—Kamil—Journeys of exploration
to the Gulf and Sana—Busrah—Dr. C. E. Riggs—Death of
Kamil—Opposition from government—Home administration—Bahrein
occupied—Lines of work—Muscat—Journey through
Yemen—The mission transferred to the Reformed Church—Troubles
at Muscat and Busrah—Dr. Worrall—Journeys in
Oman—Scripture-sales—First-fruits—Reinforcements.

XXXIV

IN MEMORIAM 367

Peter John Zwemer—George E. Stone.

XXXV

PROBLEMS OF THE ARABIAN FIELD 374

The general problem of missions to Moslems—The Arabian
problem—What part of Arabia is accessible—Turkish Arabia—Its
accessibility—Limitations—The accessibility of independent
Arabia—Climate—Moslem fanaticism—English influence—Illiteracy—The
Bedouins—The present missionary
force—Its utter inadequacy—Methods of work—Medical
missions—Schools—Work for women—Colportage—Preaching—Controversy—What
should be its character—The attitude
of the Moslem mind—Fate of converts—Thoughtless and
thoughtful Moslems—The Bible as dynamite—The right men
for the work.

XXXVI

THE OUTLOOK FOR MISSIONS TO MOSLEMS 391

Two views of work for Moslems—Christian fatalism—Results in
Moslem lands—India—Persia—Constantinople—Sumatra and
Java—Other signs of progress—The significance of persecution—Character
of converts—Promise of God for victory over
Islam—Christ or Mohammed—Missionary promises of the
Old Testament—The Rock of Jesus’ Sonship—Special promises
for Arabia—Hagar and Ishmael—The prayer of Abraham—The
sign of the covenant with Ishmael—The third revelation
of God’s love—The sons of Ishmael—Kedar and Nebaioth—The
promises—Seba and Sheba—The spiritual boundaries of
Arabia—Da Costa’s poem—Faith like Abraham—O that Ishmael
might live before thee.