On his own side, however, Muâvia had gained a powerful and astute adviser in the person of the conqueror of Egypt. During the attack on Othmân, Amru had retired from Medîna with his two sons to Palestine. The tidings of the tragedy, aggravated by his own unkindly treatment of the Caliph, affected him so keenly that he wept like a woman. ‘It is I,’ he said, ‘who, by deserting the aged man, am responsible for his death.’ From his place of retirement he watched the struggle of Zobeir and Talha at Bussorah; and when Aly conquered, he repaired at once to Damascus, and with his two sons presented himself before Muâvia. In consequence of the unfriendly attitude he had held towards Othmân, Amru was at first received coldly. But in the end, the past was all condoned; friendship was restored between the two chiefs, and thenceforward Amru was the trusted counsellor of Muâvia.[525] [Sidenote: Weakness of Aly’s position at Kûfa.] This coalition, and the false step of Aly in recalling Cays from Egypt, now materially strengthened Muâvia’s hands. The success of Aly at Bussorah brought at least this advantage even to Muâvia, that it removed Talha and Zobeir, the only other competitors, from the field. On the other hand, the position of Aly, as one of concession to the Arab faction, was fraught with peril. While refusing ostensibly to identify himself with the murderers of Othmân, it was virtually in their cause that he had taken up arms; and therefore equally in the cause of the Arabs, as against the Coreish and aristocracy of Islam. And Aly should have foreseen that the socialistic element in this unnatural compromise must sooner or later come into collision with the Caliphate. [Sidenote: Advantages of Muâvia’s position in Syria.] The authority of Muâvia rested on a firmer basis; his attitude was bolder, and his position more consistent. He had from the first resisted the levelling demands of the faction which rose up against Othmân. He was, therefore, justified now in a course of action which, pursuing these to justice, asserted in the pursuit the supremacy of the Coreish. The influence of the ‘Companions’ had always been paramount in Syria; and the Arab element (partly because very largely recruited from the aristocratic tribes of the south) was thoroughly under control. The cry for vengeance, inflamed by the gory emblems still hanging from the cathedral pulpit, was taken up by high and low. The temporising attitude of the Caliph was in every man’s mouth as a proof of complicity with the regicides. And though many may have dreaded Aly’s vengeance in the event of his ultimate success, the general feeling throughout Syria was a burning desire to avenge the murder of his ill-fated predecessor. [Sidenote: Aly and Muâvia in personal antagonism.]