An Outline of Early Islamic History — Page 2
2 Arabs The Romans were in power in Europe. Persia was a great Empire. Both Romans and Persians were rich nations. They were ruled by great kings and generals. Between these two big states lay the vast sandy deserts of Arabia. The Arabs were a wild people. They ha d no king and no central authority. They were divided into many tribes, who knew no law but the law of vendetta. They worshipped stars and stones. The climate of Arabia was dry and hot in summer, and dry and cold in winter. There were no rains. They people were poor and ever in search of water. They would, therefore, travel from one place to another. They had no brick houses and lived in tents. They could thus move easily about with their families. Wild life had made them brave and warlike. They had short tempers but long memories. They were, therefore, quick to quarrel but slow in making peace. They loved women and were ever at war with one another o ver one thing or the other. They also fought for water - rights. The quarrels of the Arabs were over petty causes but were yet bloody and long. It is said that once a man saw a bird lay eggs in its nest. Passing by, he promised to look after it. Next day he saw two shattered eggs lying near about. A camel was grazing no t far away. The man guessed that the camel must have disturbed the nest. He went to the keeper of the camel and told him to stay away from the tree. But the owner of the camel only laughed at him. The man was so angry that he killed the camel there and the n. This small matter led to a bloody fight. First the families of the