On the morrow, the two armies met upon the sandy plain of Acraba. The enemy rushed on with desperate bravery. ‘Fight for your loved ones!’ cried the son of Moseilama; ‘it is the day of jealousy and vengeance; if ye be worsted, your maidens will be ravished by the conqueror, and your wives dragged to his foul embrace!’ So fierce was the shock that the Moslems were driven back, and their camp uncovered. The tent of Khâlid was entered by the wild Bedouins; and, but for the chivalry of her captive, who conjured his countrymen to spare a lady of such noble birth, Leila would have perished by their swords. ‘Go, fight against men,’ Mojâa cried, ‘and leave this woman;’ so they cut the tent-ropes and departed. There was danger for Islam at the moment. Defeat would have been disastrous; indeed, the Faith could hardly have survived it. But now the spirit of the Moslems was aroused. Khâlid, knowing the rivalry between the Bedouin and the city Arabs, separated them to fight apart. On this they rallied one the other; and the sons of the desert cried: ‘Now we shall see the carnage wax hot amongst the raw levies of the town. We will teach them how to fight!’ Prodigies of valour were fought all round. The heroic words and deeds of the leaders, as one after another fell in the thick of battle, are dwelt on by the historian with enthusiasm. Zeid, the favourite brother of Omar, who led the men of Mecca, singled out Rajjâl, and, reproaching his apostasy, despatched him forthwith. A furious south wind, charged with the desert sand, blew into the faces of the Moslems, and, blinding them, caused a momentary pause. Upbraiding them for their slackness, Zeid cried out: ‘I shall follow them that have gone before; not a word will I utter more, till we beat the apostates back, or I appear to clear myself before my Lord. Close your eyes and clench your teeth. Forward like men!’ So saying, he led the charge and fell. Abu Hodzeifa, another Companion of note, calling out ‘Fight for the Corân, ye Moslems, and adorn it by your deeds!’ followed his example and shared his fate. Seeing this, Abu Hodzeifa’s freedman, Sâlim, seized the banner from his dying master, and exclaiming, ‘I were a craven bearer of the Corân if I feared for my life,’ plunged into the battle and was slain.[54] Nor were the citizens of Medîna behind their fellows. Their commander, Thâbit ibn Cays, reproached them indignantly: ‘Woe be to you,’ he said, ‘because of this backsliding. Verily, I am clear of ye, even as I am clear of these,’ and he pointed to the enemy as he flung himself and perished in their midst. Animated thus, the rank and file charged furiously. Backwards and forwards swayed the line, and heavy was the carnage. But urged by Khâlid’s valiant arm,[55] and raising the grand battle-cry ‘_Yâ Mohammedâ!_’ the Moslem arms at length prevailed. The enemy broke and began to give. ‘To the garden!’ cried Mohakkem, a brave leader of the Beni Hanîfa; ‘to the garden, and close the gate!’