The Bab and Babeeism: Part 2
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16666

THE

CONTEMPORARY
REVIEW                      Un
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er
MI         si
ty
CH
IG
AN

VOLUME XII.   SEPTEMBER - DECEMBER, 1869

STRAHAN & CO., PUBLISHERS
56 LUDGATE HILL, LONDON
1869
LONDON :
PRINTED BY VIRTUE AND CO .,
CITY ROAD .
THE BAB AND BABEEISM .

PART II .

Les Religions et les Philosophies de l'Asie Centrale. Par M. le
COMTE DE GOBINEAU (Ministre de France à Athènes ). 2me
Edition . 1866. Paris : Didier et Cie.
Bab et les Babis, ou le Soulèvement Politique et Religieur en Perse
de 1845 à 1853. (Mirza Kazem Beg.) Journal Asiatique, 1866 .
Paris : A. Labitte.

INMazenderantheBabeeswere     completely
parts of the kingdom neither their       crushed,butinother
numbers nor their influence
were in any way diminished ; and the severity with which the
Government treated those of the leaders whom they could get into
their power showed what importance was attached to the move
ment, and how fearful they were of its results. Against Gourret
oul-Ayn they could for the moment do nothing.                            At the first
outbreak of hostilities her followers had flocked to the standard
of Moullah Houssein, and she herself had disappeared no one knew
where, but was in reality in concealment in Teheran. The Bab ,
who was looked upon as the author of all these disorders, was
naturally not allowed to be at large at this crisis ; and he had
been removed even in the time of the reign of the late king from his
house at Shiraz to themore              Sehrig, in the province ofGholan,
on the borders of the Caspian Sea ,where he was kept closely confined .
The circumstances connected with his trial and death coincide with
the close of the struggle at Sheïk Tebersi, and the first commence
ment of the trouble in Zendjan. Their history ought, according to
chronological arrangement, be given in this place ; but we may
perhaps with advantage defer its consideration till after the history
246                         The Contemporary Review .
of the outbreak in Zendjan. To this we may now turn. The prin
cipal leader in this outbreak was Moullah Mohammed Ali , a native
of Zendjan, a small town in the province of Khamseh . He was a
Moudjtehid, and long before the name of the Bab had become known
in Persia he had made himself remarkable for various strange inter
pretations of the Koran, in which he declared that nothing in the
world was unclean and impure. The Mohammedan religion had pro
scribed many things, and with the faithful it was a matter of con
science to abstain from all contact with wine, pork, dogs, dead bodies,
and blood. A few things indeed remained doubtful, such as opium
and tobacco, but even these were never touched by strict Moham
medans. * Mohammed Ali boldly broke through all these restrictions,
and declared that all things were free to all, and no man could
contract impurity by the lawful use of anything. Of course such
opinions, openly expressed, created great scandal among the Moullahs
and all the orthodox party ; but their remonstrances produced no
effect. The disregard of religious prohibitions was too much in
accordance with the secret practice of many † who vehemently sup
ported these new opinions. The dispute occasioned by this contro
versy rose at length to such a height that the Government had to
interfere, and Mohammed Ali was arrested and taken to Teheran ,
where he was kept in a kind of honourable confinement under the
care of Mohammed Khan, the head of the police. During his enforced
sojourn in the capital he became acquainted with Moullah Houssein
Boushrewyeh, and from him learned the principles and substance of
the Babee doctrines. These he found to agree in the main with the
interpretations of the Koran which he had himself promulgated ; a
correspondence with the Bab enlightened him still further and com
pleted his conversion, and he professed himself one of his followers.
Taking advantage soon afterwards of the interregnum which ensued
on the occasion of the death of Mohammed Shah, he set the injunction
of the Government at defiance, and returned to Zendjan, where he
was at once received in triumph. Before his imprisonment he had
already had many followers ; their number was now increased by
the accession of all the Babees in the town and in the surrounding
country, who welcomed his conversion to their doctrines, and at once                     1

placed him at their head, and bade defiance to their opponents. The
town thus became divided into two rival parties, and Mohammed
Ali, at the head of the Babees, a small but determined band, found
himself opposed to the governor of the city, who was sure of the
* See Palgrave's account of the strictness with which this abstinence is enforced in
Nedjed, where the partaking of wine or tobacco is looked upon as a greater sin than
adultery, theft, or murder. (Palgrave's “ Central Arabia .” )
+ In spite of the religious prohibition drunkenness is a very common failing in
Persia . Gobineau, p. 69.
The Bab and Babeeism .                       247

support of the orthodox Shiite party, and could command the obe
dience of the royal troops. For some time the two parties watched
each other with jealous apprehension, and a conflict became more
and more imminent. The governor was anxious to delay it as long
as possible. Mohammed Ali, on the other hand, sought to precipitate
it before the zeal and enthusiasm of his followers should have had
time to cool; and an event soon occurred which gave rise to the
conflict. The governor had rashly ordered one of the personal fol
lowers of the Babee chief, who had refused to pay his share of some
tax , to be thrown into prison. Mohammed Ali demanded his release,
and as this was refused, with some of his partizans he broke open
the doors of the prison and set the man free. Their passions once
excited , they proceeded to further acts of violence ; and turned their
arms against the members of the opposite party, some of whom they
killed, and burned their houses to the ground.       The struggle was
now openly begun . Mohammed Ali collected his adherents together,
put arms into their hands, and with their help took possession of one
part of the town, which he fortified . It was, however, impossible to
gain any permanent advantage without the possession of the citadel,
which was built in a position of great strength in the centre of
Zendjan , and commanded the town. It was then in the possession
of the royal troops, and the first attempt to dislodge them was unsuc
cessful. The next day (May 28th, 1849) the Babees returned to the
attack with fanatical determination, and carried everything before
them. The troops were forced to evacuate the citadel, and the Babees
established themselves in it. Elated by his success , Mohammed Ali
next made an attempt to take the governor , Emir Aslan Khan ,
prisoner ; but was defeated , and compelled to retreat. At the same
time the governor could do nothing more than fortify the part of the
town he occupied , and await reinforcements. The delay was profit
ably employed by the Babees in still further fortifying the citadel
and carrying into it provisions .
We do not propose to enter into a detailed account of the struggle
which took place. In many respects it resembles the struggle at
Sheïk Tebersi, which was just terminating as the Babees of Zendjan
were rising to arms. In both we find the same desperate courage ,
the same unflinching resolution to die rather than to yield ; the same
ingenuity employed by the Babee leaders in surprising and defeating
their enemies.   For more than three months the contest was carried
on with unvarying success on the part of the Babees. During that
time the town was laid in ruins : in parts, whole streets were burnt ;
in others, the houses were pulled down to prevent their being
occupied by the enemy, or to facilitate an attack ; but, in spite of all
the efforts of the royal troops, they made no progress. At length, in
248                   The Contemporary Review .
the beginning of September, after a desperate assault, which had been
most successfully repelled by the garrison of the citadel, the generals of
the king became convinced that they had no chance of success in their
present mode of carrying on the attack. At a council of war it was
resolved to change their plan of action, and to reduce the siege to a
strict blockade, as had been formerly done at Sheik Tebersi, and in
this way to starve them into submission. In Zendjah the blockade
was, of course, easier of execution than it had been in the mountains
of Mazenderan . The lines were drawn closely round the citadel ; the
supplies of water were cut off ; and to the horrors of famine, which
threatened the brave garrison , was added the dread of thirst. The
Babees procured for themselves, indeed, some water by digging
wells ; but scarcely in sufficient quantity for their need.
But while the troops were lying inactive round the citadel of
Zendjan, Mohammed Ali was not idle. The numbers of the besieging
force were so great as to make it useless to sally forth and attack
them ; the leader of the Babees tried, therefore, to gain some
advantage by means of a stratagem, and sent two of his most
devoted followers to Ferrouk Khan, who was in command of a cavalry
regiment. They appeared before him as deserters from the Babee
cause, they wept over their past errors, and assured him that all
their companions would gladly submit if they were not restrained by
fear of Mohammed Ali. If he could be taken prisoner, or killed, all
the others would yield at once ; and they offered to show a secret
path which led straight to his house. Ferrouk Khan fell into the
trap. Taking with him a hundred of his best soldiers, he followed
his guides along the secret passage they had described till he came
to a place which had been previously fixed upon by the Babees. His
guides here suddenly disappeared, and almost immediately a violent
explosion took place. The Babees surrounded the unhappy band,
who were all slain , with the exception of twelve men, among whom
was Ferrouk Khan, who was taken prisoner. On hearing the
explosion, the royal troops had rushed at once to the place, believing
that a magazine had exploded, and hoping to profit by the disorder
which would have ensued ; but it was to find themselves attacked and
compelled to retreat with great loss.     Ferrouk Khan and his com
panions were afterwards put to death .
During some months the blockade continued, and desultory skir
mishes took place, in which the Babees gradually lost ground, but
which had no perceptible influence on the progress of the siege.
Between the two parties the war was carried on in the most merciless
manner ; no quarter was given, or if by chance any lives were spared
amid the excitement of the conflict, the prisoners were only reserved
to meet a more lingering death by inhuman torture.         Some months
The Bab and Babeeism .                         249
had now elapsed since the Bab had been put to death, and the cir
cumstances attending his end had excited a large amount of com
passion throughout the country ; compassion which was now bestowed
on the small band who were maintaining so desperate a struggle in
Zendjan. Mirza Taghy Khan perceived that it was not safe to in
crease this feeling, or to prolong the suspense ; and he ordered a large
reinforcement to proceed to Zendjan, with several cannon . This was
in the month of January, 1850, and by the end of the month all the
preparations were made for opening fire.         Beneath the storm of
missiles the walls and houses soon crumbled to pieces ; in spite of
this the Babees still defended their position with such desperate
courage that none of the royal troops dared approach ; but a mis
fortune, disastrous to their cause, now happened. During the thick
of the fight Mohammed Ali had his arm broken by a musket shot.
Few were aware of it at the time, and he was carried , without
attracting any notice, into a house near at hand, round which the
fight was raging with unceasing fury. A gun was brought to bear
upon it ; and at length the whole house fell in, but even then
the Babees could not be driven from the ruins. To Mohammed Ali,
nowever, the result was fatal. The contusions he had suffered from
the falling stones and timber, and the impossibility of giving proper
attention to his wound, had together so inflamed it that he was
brought to his last hour. As he felt death approaching he called his
followers round him, and encouraged them , as Moullah Houssein
had done before at Tebersi. He bade them continue the struggle; and
promised that he would be restored to life again in forty days ; and
that if they should be slain the same happy future would be in store
for them. As long as he was alive his words found a response in the
hearts of the Babees ; as soon as he was dead the hopelessness of
their position became evident. Their outworks and defences were
destroyed, their provisions were exhausted ; and now their leader was
gone, and they had no one who could at all supply his place. The
chief men among the Babees held a consultation together, and deter
mined to capitulate. They wrote, therefore, to Emir Aslan Khan,
the governor of the city, and Mohammed Khan, the commander of
the troops, offering to lay down their arms if their lives were spared.
The conditions were accepted, and a solemn promise was given that
no punishment of any kind should be inflicted on the Babees ; and,
trusting to this, they left their fortifications, and came into the royal
camp.    The first question asked of them was what had become
of Mohammed Ali ? they replied that he was dead ; and as the
answer was received with incredulity they confirmed it by showing
the spot where he was buried. The grave was at once opened, his
body torn from its resting-place, dragged through the streets of the
250                     The Contemporary Review .
now desolate and deserted town, and at length left to be devoured by
the wild dogs. The disrespect shown to the dead body of the late
chief of the Babees was a pretty clear intimation of the manner in
which the governor and commander - in - chief meant to deal with their
prisoners. Their lives had been promised ; but the terms of the
treaty were as little regarded as they had been in Mazenderan. The
whole body of the Babees, with the exception of the three principal
men, were put to death, either with the bayonet or by being blown
from guns. The three men, whose lives were momentarily spared,
Mirza Rizay, Hadji Mohammed Ali, and Hadji Mohsen, were taken
to Teheran , where they were condemned to have their veins opened.
When this sentence was announced to them they exhibited no
surprise, only they inveighed bitterly against the Government for its
want of faith both towards themselves and their companions. God,
they said , would not behold such crimes with indifference, and would
take signal vengeance on the perpetrators ; and, as a proof, they
warned the prime minister that he would suffer death in the same
manner as he was now inflicting it on them.* M. Gobineau does not
vouch for the truth of this prophecy ; but the fact is certain that,
some years afterwards, Mirza Taghy Khan , having fallen into dis
favour with the king, was condemned to death , and perished by
having his veins opened.
When the revolt in Zendjan was finally crushed, the Bab, in
whose name the rising had taken place, had been already some
months dead. After the first charge had been brought against him,
before the court of Teheran, he was enjoined, as we have already
seen , to keep to his house. This injunction the Bab scrupulously
obeyed, and for some months remained unmolested at Shiraz, during
which time his doctrines made rapid progress throughout the whole
of Persia . On the outbreak of hostilities in Mazenderan the Govern
ment considered him responsible for them. He had never in any
way, by word or act, incited his followers against the estab
lished Government ; he had never desired that his doctrines should
be promulgated by force ; but when an outbreak took place, involv
ing such tremendous issues as the one in Mazenderan, which was
begun in his favour and carried on in his name, it was impossible
that he could be acquitted of all complicity, or escape all suspicion.
As long as he was at large, it was possible for him to place himself
at the head of a rising which might prove to be more formidable
even than the one begun by Moullah Houssein, and , therefore, at the
very commencement of the outbreak in Mazenderan, to secure the
safety of the state, he was placed under arrest and transferred to
the fortress of Tjehrig.t           Here he remained till the death of
• Gobineau, p. 253.
† In this statement we have followed M. Gobineau . Another account is given by the
The Bab and Babeeism .                                251
Mohammed Shah , when a new régime began, and measures of
severity were carried into execution. When Mirza Taghy Khan
took into his hands the reins of power, he was confronted by
Babeeism , and deemed the destruction of its author to be the surest
way of destroying it. At first he had no intention of putting the
Bab to death . To do so would only have been to place him in the
position of a martyr, and he was rather anxious to destroy the favour
able opinion which had attached itself to the Bab and his doctrines,
and to disgrace him in the eyes of the people ; could this be done, it
did not very much matter what became of the Bab himself.                          For
this purpose the prime minister proposed to bring him to Teheran,
and in all the towns to exhibit him publicly in chains ; whenever
an occasion offered to require him to dispute publicly with the
Moullahs, without allowing him a fair opportunity of reply, and even
at times enjoining him total silence. In addition, a series of petty
persecutions, and the fear of death impending over him, would com
bine to dishearten and crush him, and render him at length the
sport instead of the admiration of the people. With any man of less
ability, less character, and less resolution than the Bab, this plan
might have succeeded ; but with him it soon became evident that
such a scheme would only recoil against its originators. The
wonderful influence exercised by the Bab since his imprisonment in
Tjehrig would have been sufficient to prove this. In the prison his
life had been gentle and unobtrusive ; and his time was divided
between prayer and work . To those with whom he conversed he
often spoke of his own death as an event not very distant, but which
had for him no terror.          Few were able to resist the charm of his
manner, and of his general conversation, or failed to be impressed by
the expression of his face ; even the soldiers did not escape the
influence he exerted ; and if the Bab was publicly exposed in the
manner proposed, instead of being disheartened by being confronted
with his enemies, it was possible , nay probable , that he might extort
sympathy from many, and gain them over to his doctrines. The
plan of Mirza Taghy Khan, if successful, would no doubt have done
more to destroy Babeeism than anything else ; but the danger arising
from its possible failure was too great to allow of its being tried,
and the Government resolved, therefore, to put him quietly to death .
Journal Asiatique (April - May), according to which the Bab, wearied by the close con
finement to which he was subjected in Shiraz, and by the petty persecutions inflicted on
him by the clergy of the town, made his escape to Ispahan, where he implored and
obtained the protection of Menoutjehr Khan , the governor of that city, a man who,
without becoming a convert, had been favourably impressed by the preaching of
Moullah Houssein . At Ispahan the Bab remained protected and concealed until the
death of Menoutjehr Khan , in 1847, when the Government took measures for his arrest,
and had him conveyed to Tjehrig. Both statements appear to be founded on original
Persian documents. In any case he was a prisoner at Tjehrig on the death of Mo
hammed Shah .
252                    The Contemporary Review .
An order was sent to Prince Hamze Mirza, who had been transferred
from Khorassan to Azerbedjan, to take the Bab from the fortress of
Tjehrig, and convey him to Tebriz.* Two disciples of the Bab, who
had been active in disseminating Babee doctrines, and had shared
the imprisonment of their master, were sent at the same sime, Seyd
Houssein, a native of Yezd, and Moullah Mohammed Ali , + a native of
Tebriz .
After his arrival at Tebriz, the Bab was allowed to see all who
chose to come and visit him, and many did so from very various feel
ings of curiosity, or of sympathy. This was probably allowed from
motives of policy, that all might be cognizant of the steps the Govern
ment was taking, and certain that the Bab was really in their power.
For the same reason, all the proceedings connected with his death
were prolonged and conducted in the most public manner possible.
On his death the Government had now finally resolved ; only it was
necessary that it should be preceded by some form at least of a trial.
Accordingly, Hamze Mirza, to whom the proceedings were entrusted,
required the Moullahs and the principal men of the city to meet
together, and confute the Bab. They assembled in a room in the
fortress, but the Moullahs, absolutely declined to enter on any dis
cussion ; the time for that, they said, was past ; efforts had been
made to induce the Bab to abjure his doctrines and had failed , and
nothing now remained but to make him suffer the penalty due to his
error. The laymen present in the assembly were bolder, and on
various points tried to prove to the Bab the error of his views, but
they soon had reason to repent of their imprudence, as all their argu
ments were in turn easily disposed of. At length Hamze Mirza,
seeing that matters were not going on very favourably for his side,
interfered , and, addressing the Bab, required from him some proof of
his divine mission .     “ I have heard ," he said, " that you assert that
you have a divine nature, and have dared to write                   a Koran , which
has been impudently disseminated among the people.                             If what
you assert is indeed the case, turn towards that crystal chandelier,
and pray     that a new verse may be revealed to you.” The Bab did
so at once , and repeated some verses which were not to be found in
any of his published writings. Hamze Mirza was at first rather sur
prised, but commanded them to be taken down in writing. Allowing
a short interval to elapse, he said to the Bab that if those words wer ?
a revelation from heaven, they were no doubt engraved on his mind ,
and required him to repeat them again . This, it is asserted, he
* Another name for Tebriz is Tauris, and it is so called in the Journal Asiatique.
+ It is difficult to distinguish the different persons who bore the name of Mohammed
Ali, and were of note in the Babee movenient.         There were three principal men ,
Mohammed Ali Balfouroushy, Mohammed Ali Zendjany, and Mohammed Ali of Tebriz .
The Bab himself was Ali Mohammed .
The Bab and Babeeism .                      253

failed in doing, though the Babees indignantly deny it. In any
case, the occurrence was not very miraculous. It was quite possible
for him to have composed some lines, which he knew by heart, with
out having committed them to paper ; and it was as easy for him to
repeat them the second time as the first. After this episode the
assembly broke up. It could not be called in any sense a court of
justice, nor could the proceedings be honoured with the name of a
trial, but the obstinate adherence of the Bab to his own opinions
served as a pretext for putting him to death. The real reason was to
be found, not in the difference between him and the Moullahs, but in
the outbreak, which had only just been quelled in Mazenderan, and
the revolt which was still making head in Zendjan.
Sentence of death was given against the Bab, and it was resolved
to carry it out in the most public manner, that no doubt might
exist as to the fact, and that none of his followers might have any
grounds for believing that he was still living, and in concealment,
and would some day appear again . On the following day the Bab and
his two companions, Seyd Houssein and Mohammed Ali, were led out
of the prison with an iron collar fastened round their necks, to which
was attached a long cord, held by one of the common executioners.
In this guise they were paraded through the streets of the town, in
the midst of an overwhelming crowd. Some of the spectators indeed
turned aside with disgust from the sickening sight ; others, who were
Babees in disguise, tried to excite compassion for their unhappy
fate ; but the greater number vied with each other in pouring upon
them abuse, in covering them with filth , in ill-treating them in every
way. Three times the procession stopped before the houses of the
three principal men among the clergy of the town, with whom the
Bab was confronted.     Before one of them his enemies assert that the
Bab abjured his faith, and prayed for mercy . The fact is not very
probable ; at any rate it made no difference in the fate of the Bab.
The three chief Moudjtehids solemnly ratified the sentence of the law
in the presence of the people, and delivered the victims over to
death . On one of them, however, the sentence was not to be carried
into execution. On leaving the last of the three houses the physical
strength of Seyd Houssein completely gave way ; he fell to the
ground , and, with tears, asked for mercy. He was raised with
difficulty, and told to curse the Bab. Seyd Houssein obeyed. He
was then promised his liberty if he would spit in the Bab's face.
Seyd Houssein did so.    His irons were at once taken off, and he was
left crouching in the middle of the street, while the procession, with
the accompanying crowd, passed on. As soon as the street was
empty Seyd IIoussein rose up , and leaving the town, took his way to
Teheran.
254                The Contemporary Review .
Every effort was now made to shake the firmness of the other
disciple of the Bab, Mohammed Ali ; but in vain . His wife and
children , who were living at Tebriz, were brought from their home
and placed before him ; but their tears and entreaties made on him
r.o impression. He looked at them unmoved , and would not listen
to their prayers. When Seyd Houssein had denied his master and spat
in his face, Mohammed Ali kissed his hand with every mark of the
deepest respect, and exclaimed aloud to the people, “ This man is the
gate of the truth, the Imaum of Islamism ,"'* and the only favour he now
deigned to ask was that he might be put to death before his master .
At length, seeing that no impression could be made on him , and that
he remained firm in his attachment to the Bab, the two men were con
ducted to the ramparts and let down from the wall by cords passed
under their shoulders till their feet nearly touched the ground. In
front of them was a large open space, where the whole population of
the town was assembled.      After the two men had been fastened to
the wall, an officer ordered a company of the regiment of Behaderan
to advance. The regiment was entirely composed of Christians, and
had been selected from fear that the Mussulmen might refuse to act.
The last words were addressed by Mohammed Ali to the Bab. “ My
master, are you satisfied with me ? ” The order was given to fire,
and he was killed at once. The Bab had escaped unhurt ; but the
cord which had fastened him to the wall was cut, and he fell to the
ground. Rising quickly to his feet, he began to run ; and then ,
seeing a guard -house, he rushed into it. For a moment the whole
multitude, seeing the Bab escape unhurt, looked on breathless with
astonishment, and soon murmurs of applause and sympathy were
heard, as they fancied a miracle had taken place.         Had the Bab, at
the very first, rushed into the crowd and called upon them for their
help, there is little doubt that to a man they would have turned in his
favour, and another revolt would have begun, of a very different
character from the struggles of Mazenderan and Zendjan. But the
Bab was worn out with the sufferings of the past day, and scarcely
conscious of what he was doing ; and instinct led him to take refuge
in the first shelter he could find. The officers had heard the murmurs
of the crowd behind them , and perceived at once the whole danger
of the crisis. Any delay would have been fatal.             They at once
entered the guard-house with some soldiers, and there despatched
the Bab. His body was dragged for some days through the streets of
the city, and then thrown outside the walls.
The execution of the Bab took place on July 15th , 1849, and
when, some months later, in January, 1850, the three last survivors
of the Baboes of Zendjan were put to death, the Government began
• Journal Asiatique, No. XXVI. p. 377.
The Bab and Babeeism .                                 255
to breathe more freely. If the proceedings against the Bab had been
instigated by the hatred of the clergy, the active measures against
the rebels of Mazenderan and Zendjan were taken by the Govern
ment solely from an instinct of self-preservation. The movement,
purely religious in its first beginnings, had assumed a distinctly
political character. When Moullah Houssein appeared before
Mohammed Shah and his minister, Mirza Aghassy Khan, he hoped
to secure their co-operation in obtaining the various reforms, civil
and religious, which he, along with the other Babees, desired
to see carried out.       Could the Babees have succeeded in gaining
over the king, they would have been quite content, as they had
no wish to make a change in the dynasty ; but when they found
their hopes were vain , more especially when, shortly after, they
found themselves persecuted , and yet forming together a large
and united force, with arms in their hands, the idea of making
a change in the established Government presented itself vividly
before their minds. The Bab'was naturally selected as the claimant
to the throne, nor were they at a loss to find grounds on which
to base his rights. The title of Seyd, which was appropriated
by his family, asserted his descent both from Ali and Yezdegerd,
the last of the Sassanian kings. Such only were considered by the
Persians as the rightful occupants of the throne ; and though the
nation had acquiesced through centuries in the various dynastic
changes which had taken place, still the rightful title to the throne
was not forgotten . On this slender ground, therefore, of his dubious
descent from Ali, the Bab was proclaimed as the rightful possessor
of the crown ; and though his claim was soon disposed of by his
death, the political aspect of Babeeism continued, even if it was not
developed. Other claimants arose, and one of these was able to
raise the standard of revolt at Neïriz just about the time when the
struggle in Zendjan was drawing to a close. Seyd Yahia - Darabi*
had been a disciple of the Bab, and an earnest propagator of the
Babee doctrines, but his zeal for the cause was prompted chiefly by
a desire for self-aggrandisement. The death of the Bab seemed to
open up to him a favourable opportunity for the furtherance of his
ambition.     He collected a band of men at Neïriz , and proclaimed
himself as the successor of the Bab.             A few zealous Babees were
among his followers, and they continued the resistance to the forces
sent against them to the very last ; but the greater number were
very indifferent, and sought only to promote their own advantage.
The rising was not supported by the Babees generally, and had very
little influence on their cause. Darabi at length submitted to the
Seyd Yahia -Darabi is only mentioned in the Journal Asiatique, No. XXIX., August
-September.
256                 The Contemporary Review .
Government, and his life would have been in all probability safe, had
he not been murdered by the son of a man who had been killed in
the attack on Neïriz. The lives of his two sons were spared, but
the Babees who were with him were all put to death. Another
claimant * was found, among the members of the Babee council , or
the Unity, in the person of Mirza Asad Oullah of Tebriz, who was
surnamed Deyyan, or the Supreme Judge. He proclaimed himself to
be the successor of the Bab, but was at once disowned by the leaders
of the sect, some of whom followed him as he fled into Arabistan or
Khuzistan, and drowned him in the Shât- el- Arab. But while the
Babees refused to recognise any self- elected successor of the Bab,
they had no intention of allowing themselves to be discouraged or
disheartened by the want of a head. This was, indeed, necessary
according to the principles of their faith ; and, therefore, soon after
the death of the Bab, the members of the Unity met together at
Teheran to elect a successor. Their choice fell on Mirza Yahya, a
youth of about seventeen, whom we have already seen present at the
council held in Mazenderan . This Mirza Yahya was the son of Mirza
Bouzourg Nouri, the lieutenant of the Governor of Teheran.         His
mother died when he was born , and he was brought up from his infancy
by the wife of one of the Babee chiefs, who had been warned in a dream
of his miserable condition. This woman was known by the title of
Djenab -Beha, or The Precious Excellency, and occupied a high
position in the councils of the Babees. At the age of five Mirza
Yahya was sent to school, but only remained there three days, as his
foster -mother objected to some correction he had received from his
master. His removal from school does not, however, seem to have
affected his learning, as he is reported to have been thoroughly con
versant with every subject of knowledge and science. On his elec
tion he received the title of Hezret- e- Ezel, The Eternal Highness, to
distinguish him from the first Bab, who was called Hezret-è- Alá, The
Sublime Highness. Immediately afterwards he left the capital,
where he would not have found the necessary leisure to direct the
affairs of the sect, and where his life would have been in danger.
As it was, the Government was informed of his election, and made
diligent search after him, but in vain ; he was, however, in conse
quence, obliged to remove from one city to another, and at length
judged it prudent to cross the frontier, and take up his residence at
Bagdad. Here he was beyond the power of the Persian authorities,
at the same time that he was in constant communication with the
Persian pilgrims, who poured through Bagdad every year in great
numbers on their way to the shrines of Kerbela and Nedjef.
After these events matters remained pretty quiet in Persia for
Gobincau, p. 277 .
The Bab and Baberism .                    257
nearly two years. The Babees were not suppressed, in fact, they
were as numerous as ever, but they judged it to be more prudent at
that time to make no public demonstrations, but secretly to increase
the number of their adherents, and organize their forces, so as to be
ready in case events should become in any way propitious to them.
The principal man among them at this time was Moullah Sheykh
Ali .   He had become a convert to Babeeism when Ali Mohammed
had been elected the head of the Sheykhys, and received the title of
Bab. Since then, he had never ceased to propagate it actively in the
various cities of the empire, and though not appearing in any pro
minent position, or occupying at that time the place of a leader, no
one devoted more time or labour in making the doctrine known.
Disguised at one time as a dervish, at another presenting the appear
ance of a rich merchant, changing his character as occasion required,
he was to be found preaching in all the principal towns. After the
death of the Bab, and the election of Mirza Yahya to that dignity,
he established himself at Teheran, and there formed a secret society
of the Babees, despite the emissaries of Mirza Taghy Khan, who
were able to report nothing to their master.
The active vigilance of the minister was no doubt one reason why
the Babees thought it best to do nothing during these years.        He
had shown what he could do, and his severity they knew would be
mercilessly directed against any one who should oppose him ; pru
dence for the time became the better part of valour. But about the
beginning of the year 1852, owing to a series of petty court intrigues,
and the suspicion of a plot for placing Abbas Mirza, the brother of
the reigning king, on the throne, to which Mirza Taghy Khan was
supposed to be privy, the prime minister was driven from power,
and at last put to death by order of the king, at a small village near
Kashan.        He died by having his veins opened, as the Babee martyrs
of Zendjan had foretold . His successor in power was Mirza Agha
Khan, who had been Minister of Foreign Affairs, but was untried in
his present exalted post. As his rule, in consequence, did not pro
mise to show the same vigour as that of Mirza Taghy Khan, the
Babees, with Moullah Sheykh Ali, endeavoured to take advantage of
the change, and began at once to plot against the Government.      We
have already seen how the death of the king in Persia places all law
and order in abeyance, and they thought that if such an interregnum
could be created they might be able to gain some permanent advan
tage amid the general confusion. A plot was therefore formed to
assassinate the king, and twelve men were sworn to carry it into
execution . Rumours to this effect had been circulated through the
town, and reached the ears of the king's ministers ; even the day
when the act was to be carried into effect was named ; but the secret
VOL . XII.                          S
258                     The Contemporary Review .
was so well kept that they could never arrive at the bottom of it, or,
which is more probable, they did not give any particular credence to
the report, and made little effort to trace it out. Suspicion pointed
to Sheykh Ali, but his place of concealment could not be discovered .
In furtherance of their plan three men of the twelve conspirators
hired themselves as gardeners to work in the royal grounds, and thus
have an opportunity of getting near the person of the king. They
were working one day near the place where the king was conversing
with his courtiers, when some water-melons were brought to the
royal party, of which they partook ; and the king, seeing these men
labouring in the heat of the day, ordered some of the fruit to be
taken to them . The three Babees were so touched by this kind
ness, that they had scruples about carrying their plan into execution .
According to the Eastern notion, the person of the king, of whose
hospitality they had partaken, was now sacred to them , at least for
some days, and they were further unwilling, after what had passed,
to assassinate him on his own grounds. A change of plan was
therefore made. Some days after (August 16th, 1852 ) the king was
going out for a ride, and as he was passing along one of the streets
of Teheran with his attendants, some in advance, others a little
behind him , he saw the three men standing by the road. They
cried out that they had a petition to make, but instead of waiting
till he should summon them , they rushed up to him. One of them
seized his horse by the bridle, and at the same time fired a pistol
charged with shot ; the two others did the same, and some of the
charge took effect in the king's arm . The king resisted to the best
of his power ; and as they were trying on both sides to drag him
from his horse, they kept his equilibrium , and he was able to main
tain his seat. By this time the attendants of the king came to his
rescue ; one of the Babees was killed, the other two were seized and
bound.      The whole town was in a state of alarm , the troops were
ordered under arms, and the gates of the city were shut. After a
time the minds of the people began to quiet down , as they saw that
it was only an attempt at assassination , and not the commencement
of a general rising.*
The wound of the king was of no consequence ; but the attempt
to assassinate him revealed the existence of a conspiracy, and the
continuance of an almost-forgotten danger. For two years little had
been heard of the Babees, and it was hoped that they had been finally
suppressed ; now, their existence as a large and thoroughly organized
body became again apparent. The Government felt themselves
* * In the account of the attempt at assassination of the king, we have endeavoured to
reconcile the different and somewhat conflicting statements of M. Gobineau and of the
Journal Asiatique.
The Bab and Babeeism .                         259
surrounded by secret dangers, with which they scarcely knew how
to cope : but the first thing to be done was to trace out the authors
of the conspiracy in Teheran itself. The agents of the police were
required to keep a vigilant watch over the whole town, and especially
over the houses of any suspected Babees, and their efforts were
soon rewarded with success.     The house of one Souleyman Khan
soon attracted their notice, where secret meetings appeared to be
held. Forcible entrance having been made into it, they arrested, not
only the master of the house, but fifteen other persons, with several
women and children. Among the women was Gourret-oul-Ayn ,
who was not placed in the common prison with the others, but con
ducted to the house of Mahmoud Khan, the head of the police, and
consigned to the care of his wife. Several other arrests were made,
and the Government soon found that they had about forty.Babees in
their power . The two men who were seized when attempting to
murder the king were first interrogated. In spite of the tortures to
which they were subjected, nothing could be drawn from them.
They confessed that they were members of a widely -spread conspiracy,
but nothing could make them give up the names of their accom
plices. They admitted their guilt in attempting the life of the king,
but justified their act by saying that they were only obeying their
orders, and had been actuated by no feelings of hatred. “ If this had
been the case, ” they said, “ they could easily have killed the king by
a single shot ; but their orders had been to cut off his head, and to do
this they had tried to drag him off his horse. ” “ Their pistols ,” they
remarked at the same time, “ were charged with shot, and not with
ball, and they only fired to disable him , and so effect their purpose
more easily .” As the Government could get nothing out of these
men, it tried some of the other prisoners, but found them all equally
firm . They would give no information, nor reveal the names of any
of their accomplices. Nothing therefore remained but to try them—
or rather punish them — for we cannot give the name of trial to the
mere form which was gone through. The Government was uncer
tain of the number of the Babees, or indeed who were and who were
not infected with the doctrines of the sect ; and therefore thought it
politic to implicate as many as possible in the punishment of those
they had in their power. These unfortunate men were distributed
among the principal men of the town and the chief officers of the
Court, who were told that their treatment of the Babees would be a
test of their loyalty. The hint was taken, and the prisoners were
subjected to the most awful tortures, without however wavering in
the smallest degree in their faith . Gourret-oul-Ayn was treated
with greater respect ; and if she would have consented to deny her
faith , it is probable that not only her life would have been spared,
s2
260                 The Contemporary Review .
but that she would have been set at perfect liberty. Such at least
was the promise which Mahmoud Khan gave to her from the prime
minister if shewould give up her faith ; but Gourret-oul-Ayn treated
it with scorn .   “ I shall not regain my liberty,” she said , “ but I
shall gain something far better. To -morrow you will have me
burnt, and I shall then bear, I trust, a noble testimony to God and to
his Highness. And you, Mahmoud Khan, listen to my words. The
master whom you serve, so far from recompensing your services,
will cause you to be put to death. My death shall be a sign to you
of the truth of my words.” This prophecy of Gourret-oul- Ayn was
fulfilled some years later, when Mahmoud Khan fell into disgrace
with the king, and was strangled. On the morrow , too, as she had
foreseen , Gourret-oul-Ayn was brought before the principal officers
of state, and required to deny that she was a Babee. This she
obstinately refused to do ; whereupon they condemned her to be
burnt. She was carried back to the citadel, one of the veils worn
by Persian women was thrown over her, and she was led to the
stake. Before setting fire to the pile the executioners mercifully
strangled her, so that the flames consumed only her dead body.
The ashes were thrown to the winds.
The death of Gourret-oul-Ayn was followed the next day by the
execution of all the remaining prisoners. Among their number we
meet again with Seyd Houssein, who had denied the Bab at Tebriz.
As soon as he recovered a little from the physical prostration into
which he had fallen , he had made the best of his way to Teheran.
The consciousness of his guilt weighed heavily upon him ; and, pre
senting himself before the Babee leaders, he confessed with tears his
crime. His repentance was accepted, and he was forgiven ; but in
his own mind he could find no peace, and he only longed for an
opportunity when by his death he might seal his testimony to the
truth of Babeeism . When inquisition was made for the members of
the sect in Teheran, he made no attempt to escape, but had shared
joyfully with the others the fearful tortures to which all had been
subjected ; and equally with them , when brought before the council,
had boldly confessed his faith. Sentence of death was passed upon
all the prisoners, some forty in number. They had been present
when Gourret-oul-Ayn was condemned, and had seen her led away
to execution, and now they were only anxious to emulate her con
stancy. On the next day the whole band was ordered to execution.
They came out, men, women, and children , enfeebled by suffering,
their bodies showing the marks of the tortures which they had
endured , and which the pen refuses to describe ; but their courage
was unshaken. Some of the children died on the way, and their
bodies were thrown beneath their parents' feet; but these latter passed
The Bab and Babeeism .                             261

over them without a sign of emotion. An immense crowd gathered
on their way ; but this time the sympathy was too great to allow an
opprobrious word to be spoken, and a deep silence pervaded the whole
multitude, broken only by the voice of the Babees, joyfully chanting
the burden of one of their hymns,
“ In truth we belong to God, and we return to him . "

At times one of their number, faint from loss of blood, stumbled and
fell, but soon resumed his place and joined his voice with the others.
When they arrived at the place of execution, life was once more
offered to them, and again refused, and the executioners were bid to
do their work.   We do not care to dwell on the scene of butchery
which followed , and which ended only with the covering shades of
night. The heads were suspended from the stake, and the bodies
left to be devoured by the dogs. The events of that day left a deep
and lasting impression on the people of Teheran. M. Gobineau,
who speaks from personal knowledge, says that he often heard the
scene described, and in the interest and sympathy which were shown,
it would be easy for any one to suppose that the whole population
were Babees at heart. The sufferings of these men did more for
Babeeism , and made more converts, than all the preaching of the
most ardent disciples of the Bab ; but the conversions needed to be
kept secret. From the day when they were executed at Teheran,
in 1852, Babeeism became a proscribed word, and every one was
afraid of the slightest suspicion of sympathy with the cause attaching
to him.
The causes of the partial success of such a movement, and the
general sympathy it inspired, are not far to seek. Babeeism pre
sented a curious mixture of political and religious motives which
united very different men together in the common bond of a brother
hood. It was not the result of the dreams or speculations of a
religious enthusiast ; it sought after practical results, which the
leaders ever kept in view, however they might seek to influence the
minds of their followers by awaking the zeal of religious fanaticism .
The reforms the Babees desired were few , but practical.              Western
civilization had made its way ; free thought was not unknown ; and
rumours of constitutional liberty had been heard, and they wished to
enjoy some of its blessings. The feeling was shared by many who
were not Babees in their religious belief, but who gave them their
hearty sympathy, when they sought to restrict the despotic power of
the king, to do away with the luxury of the Court, to place some
check on the power of the minister, and especially on the subordinates
in the chief towns and in the provinces ; finally, to have equal justice
administered between man and man.               But while Babeeism could
262                 The Contemporary Review .
thus appeal to the sympathy of many, its strength rested on the
principle which is strongest in human nature — the principle of a
firm religious belief. This united the adherents closely together,
and gave them in the hour of trial a fanatical courage. And there
were peculiar advantages which gave Babeeism so much strength,
and attracted so many to its faith . On the one hand, it was an
offshoot of a philosophic school which had become widely spread in
Persia, and many of the Sheykhys, and especially the personal dis
ciples of Seyd Kazem , became the followers of the Bab ; on the
other hand, while discarding many of the tenets of Mohammedanism ,
it adopted those doctrines which would find special favour in Persia,
as the Imamide Isna acharide, or a belief in the twelve Imams.
When we come to look further into the doctrines of Babeeism, we
find in them a curious combination of Shüte Mohammedanism , of
ideas taken from ancient Oriental philosophy, and practices which
might be borrowed from the precepts of Christianity. These doctrines
are put forward in the writings of the Bab and his followers, but a
statement of them may be found in the Biyyan, or Exposition, a
general name which the Bab gave in succession to three distinct
works. The third * of these, the Book of Precepts, is a kind of
catechism, in which we find a summary of Babee teaching, whence
we may extract some of the principal doctrines of the Babee faith .
The first part of it refers to the nature of the Deity.
God is One, Unchangeable, Eternal, and has no associates. This
formula is the same as that of the Mohammedan faith, “ There is no
God but God ; ” but the meaning intended to be conveyed is different.
The latter believe that there is only one God, and no other beings
partake of the divine nature ; the Bab asserts not only that there is
one God, but that there is nothing else : not only all created things,
but the very act of creation itself, is an emanation from God, and all
things will be finally resolved again into God . We saw this idea
expressed in the verse of the hymn the Babees sang as they were led
to execution, “ In truth we belong to God, and we return to him ; "
and, thus explained, the formula of the Babee faith is the assertion
of pure Pantheism .. A further consideration, however, shows us
several doctrines peculiar to the Bab. In His nature God is
essentially creative, and has in this respect seven attributes, which
are called letters or words.        They are force, power, will, action,
condescension, glory, revelation . Many other attributes belong to
God, but these are employed in the work of creation, and from them
result all the life and activity in the world, which represent the
character of God.
As the number 7 represented the creative power of God, so also
* The translation of this is given in M. Gobineau's work .
The Bab and Babeeism .                        263
another number was chosen to represent the Divine Unity, and this
number the Bab stated to be 19. The reason of this choice is curious.
As in Hebrew and Greek, the letters in Persian are used also for
numerals ; and the numerical value of the word hyy , which means
" living ,” is 18 ; h = 8, y = 10. If we take the form ahyy, which
means “ the One who gives life,” we have the addition of a, whose
numerical value is 1, and together the word has the numerical value
of 19— (1 + 8 + 10 = 19 ). The Bab supports the choice of the number
by instancing the Arabic use of the word wahed, “ one," a word often
used by the Koran to designate God . The numerical value of this
makes up again 19— (6 + 1 + 8+ 4 = 19) . The letter a in ahyy, which
seems brought in so conveniently to make up the requisite number,
is in reality of great consequence, and is called the Point, as repre
senting the Unity of God. Having thus established the number 19
as the numerical representation of God, it is made the unit of division
of everything. In the year there must be 19 months, in the month
19 days, in the days 19 hours, in the hours 19 minutes, and so on
with everything. In the colleges of priests which he intended to
establish there were to be 18 priests in each college, with 1 at their
head. The Council of Unity, the governing body of the Babees,
which represented the Unity of God, was to consist of 18 members,
with the Bab at their head.
Pantheism fails to account for the existence of evil.      The Bab
attempts to explain it by saying that the evil is the consequence of
the separation of the part from the whole, which is necessitated by
the work of creation, and whereby loss, and even total destruction,
may ensue.   Hence the creature is not perfect as God, although part
of Him, nor can it be as long as it is separated ; but this separation
is only temporary ; at the day of judgment all things will be again
united to the divine essence, and return to their former perfection.
In the meantime an opportunity is offered to men to destroy part of
the evil. As this evil árose in the act of creation, when man was
separated from the perfect Unity of God, and as he can increase it
by being separated further from God, so it is in his power to destroy
it, partly or wholly, by having a more perfect knowledge of God,
and entering into closer union with Him. God has placed this in
man's power, and for this purpose has given a series of different
revelations by the mouths of his prophets. The first revelation was
given by Moses, and continued to be developed till the time of David,
the last of the prophets, when that revelation ceased .   It was found
to be insufficient, and a fuller revelation was given by Jesus Christ.
Under the influence of his teaching the world made a rapid advance,
and was prepared to receive the instructions of Mahomet. In these
latter days a new revelation has been given in the person of the Bab.
264                 The Contemporary Review .
None of these prophets could be considered as mere men ; the words
they spoke, their spiritual life, indeed , was nothing else but the
breath of God ; they were a kind of divine emanation. In this
series the last revelation is different from all the others, and as it is
now the most perfect, it cannot be confined , like the previous ones,
to one person, but must be composed of nineteen different persons.
In this hierarchy the Bab held the highest place ; yet he was only
one of the nineteen ; nor was his life essential to its continuance ;
his place could be occupied by another, and it was the same with all
the other members of the Unity, — Mohammed Ali Balfouroushy,
Gourret-oul-Ayn, and all the rest.    Others could succeed them ; and
so Mirza Yahya was elected as the second Bab ; another woman ,
Djenâb Moteherreh, the Purified Excellency, took the place of
Gourret -oul-Ayn, for it was one of the fundamental principles that
one of the members of the Unity should be a woman . In this way
we see provision was made for the continual succession in the Unity,
and it gave to the present revelation a much more enduring character
than had belonged to any of the others.
We must be careful, however, not be misled by this succession.
The names were changed, the persons were different, but the same
spirit or mind continued to pervade each individual member of the
Unity. When Moullah Houssein was dying at Sheik Tebersi, and
Mohammed Ali at Zendjan, they promised their followers that they
would return to life in a given period. By most of their followers
probably this may have been understood as we should take it — the
rising again to life of the same body ; but this was far from being the
Babee meaning. Nor can we take it to be the same as the doctrine of
the Indian metempsychosis, according to which the same life, or rather
the same person, continued to exist under different forms. With the
Babees it is the same portion of the divine essence which is united
to different persons in succession, and which leads them to live and
act very much in the same way as those lived and acted whowere
influenced by it before. The Bab became thus a reproduction of
Mahomet, who was the reproduction of the prophets who had pre
ceded him . At some future time another prophet will arise, who
shall have the same portion of the divine essence as was associated
with the person of the Bab . And this was the doctrine in conformity
with which Moullah Houssein, at the close of the struggle in Mazen
deran, gave to his principal followers the names of some of the
Imams, or holy men, of the Mahommedan religion. The revelation
which the Bab gave is not intended to be final. The composition of
the first Biyyan, the Koran of the Babee faith, proves this, as it was
left incomplete. Of course, to be perfect it must be composed in
nineteen different sections, and of these the Bab only wrote eleven,
The Bab and Babeeism .                     265
leaving it to his successor to write the others. Who this should be
he did not intimate, but only spoke of him as “ The one whom God
shall manifest."      These are the words usually employed by the
Mahommedans when speaking of the return of the Imam Mehdy at
the last day ; and this much the Bab left on record, that when his
great successor shall appear, the time of the present era will be
drawing to a close, and the day of judgment will be at hand.        The
Bab had only come to prepare the way for him , and make men
acquainted with the truth .    The time of his coming is left uncertain,
and his name was not given ; but the Bab intimated that it would
have the numerical value of nineteen .     With this hint the Babees
have tried to speculate who it should be, and some are inclined to fix
upon the present Bab, Mirza Yahya, as the one designated ; but this
belief is not generally shared in by the members of the sect, and the
whole matter is left in uncertainty. Whenever this great prophet
does come, all evil in the world will cease, and all imperfections will
come to an end, because all things will be reunited to the one divine
essence .

These tenets remind us of the Oriental philosophies, from whence
neo - Platonism borrowed some of its speculations; the practical pre
cepts which the Bab gave reflect much of the spirit of Christianity.
The distinction which the Mohammedan law had lain down between
things clean and unclean was to be abolished, and all things in nature
were declared to be pure.   The restrictions which were laid upon
women in the East were declared to be no longer in force. The use
of the veil was entirely done away ; in this Gourret-oul-Ayn had
already set the example.      No man was allowed to have more than
one wife, and in his treatment of her he was enjoined to be kind and
gentle.     Divorce was allowed, but encompassed with so many restric
tions that it became almost a prohibition. In this matter we cannot
do better than transcribe the words of the Bab : “ Never divorce your
wife, or if you are obliged to do so, wait for the cycle of a year. It
may be that you will return to a fondness for the union. And know
that permission is given to those who have wives to reconcile them
selves to them ninety times even after they have waited for a month.
May you never dwell in the shade of the gates which lead outside the
truth .” These laws struck at the very root of the immorality and
depravity which were the result of the Mohammedan law, and tended
to bring in a better spirit in all conjugal as well as social relations.
All the other laws were conceived in the same spirit, and exhibit
Babeeism to us as a mild, just, and tolerant faith. The fearful
cruelties practised in Mazenderan and Zendjan must no more be
attributed to its teaching than the horrors of religious wars can be
laid to the account of the spirit of Christianity. Punishment awarded
266                 The Contemporary Review .
was to consist either of fines, or, if the man was married, in a sepa
ration from his wife for a given number of days, according to the
gravity of the offence. Capital punishment was never to be inflicted
even in the case of unbelievers.   The restriction laid upon the latter
were very tolerant; they were excluded from five provinces, but
were allowed full liberty to traffic, and possess property in all other
parts of the empire. These laws were all framed with a view to the
time when Babeeism shall become the one prevailing religion of the
world, a period eagerly and with certainty anticipated by faithful
Babees. Looking at its present results, it does not seem to have
exercised much perceptible influence in Persia ; but M. Gobineau,
who speaks from personal knowledge of Persian society, describes
the fire as still smouldering beneath the surface, and of the Babees
as awaiting only an opportunity for recommencing the struggle.
His Eternal Highness and the other apostles of the faith are working
in secret , and making many converts. Of this we cannot speak for
certain .   But there is no doubt that if Babeeism ever became
dominant it would change the whole state of society. The form and
expression of the belief are framed to suit the Eastern mind, but the
spirit which underlies it is of a very different temper from that which
has prevailed in the Mohammedan empire for so many centuries, and
would bring the nations of the East into a closer relation with the
spirit of Western civilization and Christianity.
R. K. ARBUTHNOT.
-- The Bab and Babeeism: Part 2 (Used by permission of the curator)