Arabian Education. Following the conquests of the armies of the Mohammedans in the seventh and eighth centuries A. D., the conquerors turned their attention to learning. Before Mohammed the Arabian was ignorant, a lover of the horse, hospitable, and warlike. The great prophet himself could neither read nor write. He had no confidence in worldly knowledge and made the study of the liberal sciences punishable by death. However, in two centuries after his death, the Arabians were the teachers of the world. The Arabians were brought into contact with what learning there was through their victories. Leaders of armies met philosophers and grammarians. The science of medicine was especially interesting to the Arabians. When they captured Alexandria one John Philoponus showed his friendship for the conquering general by translating into the Arabic language extracts from the books of Galen on the bites of poisonous serpents and the cure for them. He also composed a book on Aristotle in the language of the Arabs. The kalifs in the beginning were not so enlightened. While it may not be true that one of them directed the burning of the great library with the remark that if the books agreed with the Koran they were not needed and if they did not they should be burned, the currency of the story shows the Arabian's lack of appreciation for learning. But in less than fifty years after the death of Mohammed the kalifs were enthusiastic advocates of learning. A decree was made that beside every mosque there should be built a schoolhouse. In Spain, in Egypt, in Arabia, there grew up universities numbering their students by the thousand. The Nestorian Christians, driven out of Constantinople for heresy, settled in Persia and turned their attention to medicine. They founded the medical college of Gondisapore which sent out numbers of skilled physicians. Kalifs who fell ill sent for these doctors and thus came under the influence of Greek learning, for the Nestorians were eager cultivators of Greek science. One of the kalifs, El Mamoun, threw the Nestorian, Honain Ben Ishac, into prison for refusing to teach the kalif a prescription by which the kalif might kill any enemy who became troublesome. After a year Honain was summoned before the kalif and was given his choice of death or compliance with the request of the kalif. The faithful physician declined to comply; whereat the kalif assured him that the demand was merely a test of his integrity. Said the kalif, "What hindered thee from granting our request, when thou sawest us appear so ready to perform what we had threatened?" "Two things," replied Honain, "my religion, which commands me to do good to my enemies, and my profession, instituted purely for the benefit of mankind." "Two noble laws!" exclaimed the kalif. Honain was loaded with gifts and made court physician. As was the custom with great conquerors, Haroun El Raschid traveled with a hundred men of science in his train. His son, El Mamoun, was the greatest patron of learning among the kalifs. No religious or race prejudice prevented him from securing every scholar upon whom he might impose labors and rewards. Hungerford says of El Mamoun: "By such measures he strove to make Bagdad the residence of the choicest among the learned. His court took on the character of a great academy. The provinces of his empire were searched for precious manuscripts; his collectors were busy everywhere,--in Syria, in Armenia, in Egypt. Governors of provinces had instructions to further the work. Collections of books were taken as a tribute. Among the terms of peace with the Greek emperor, Michael the Stammerer, was the exaction of a series of the manuscripts of Greek authors. Vast numbers of books were brought from all quarters to Bagdad, constituting a library which represented the accumulated learning of the East. These contributions of the nations to Arabian enlightenment were borne on the backs of hundreds of camels, which entered the city laden with their treasures. Such a collection required numerous laborers to inspect, arrange and classify, transcribe and translate." It is sad to relate that all the original manuscripts were burned. Just why this was done is not known. Probably the Arabs looked upon all other nations as beneath consideration, and there was some excuse for this in the prevailing ignorance of the times among western peoples. There was little evidence of aristocracy in these old schools. Sons of mechanics as well as the noble born were welcome. Endowments of immense sums were contributed to the support of the universities. After studying books of foreign authorship the Arabs became authors. A dictionary in sixty volumes, histories, scientific works, encyclopedias, were among their writings. They introduced our decimal notation, and were learned in other branches of mathematics. There is little account coming down to us of the schools of the common people, the primary schools of that day. Probably there was no such school as one of our grade schools in all the Mohammedan dominions. Even the universities were dismantled when the political supremacy of the Arab was ended. Hungerford says: "While the time of its endurance is not short,--for its sway lasted through centuries,--it goes, nevertheless, as it came; suddenly. One wakes from the recital of all Arabian history as from a dream. With the passing away of other glories the glory of letters fades so completely that it is hard to realize their former supremacy over vast territories and over millions of active minds. The bustle and busy searching. the collecting and transcribing and recording, the piling up of libraries and accumulation of treatises covering every department of learning, ceases. The intellectual career of Islam is finished. In the history of the world the movement of the Arabian mind is like that of the Bedouin horde, suddenly appearing upon the desert, sweeping with dash and vigor over the sands, and vanishing again, leaving the observer surprised, wondering, and questioning."--A. W. RANKIN, University of Minnesota.