[562] "Life of Abbas Effendi," p. 43. [563] Mr. A. J. Stenstrand, of Chicago, was convinced by the facts. He wrote, "When I studied the Babi history and read about the terrible cruelty and assassinations which the followers of Beha perpetrated upon Subh-i-Azal's supporters which made no resistance, this broke the backbone of my Behai faith." In conversation he told me that Doctor Kheiralla had informed the Chicago assembly that the account of the assassinations as narrated by Professor Browne was true and that the Manifestation had a right to slay them." [564] Page 364. [565] "New Hist.," p. xxiii. [566] One of these was the author of "Hasht Behesht." If the Bahais had the longer dagger, the Azalis did not lack the bitter pen. Professor Browne translates from this work as follows, "The misleadings of black darkness brought me into the city of blood (Acca). I met Abbas Effendi, the whisperer of evil thoughts, one of the manifestations of infidelity. Afterwards I saw the rest of the Wicked One's followers. Their words and arguments consist of a farrago of names, baseless stories, calumnies, falsehoods and lies, and not one of them had any knowledge of the first principles of the religion of the 'Bayan.' They are all devoid of knowledge, ignorant, short-sighted, of common capacity, hoodwinked, people of darkness, spurned of nature, hypocrites, corrupters of texts, blind imitators. God hath taken away from them His light and hath left them in the darkness of the Wicked One and hath destroyed them in the abysses of vain imaginings." He was admitted to audience with Baha and narrates, "When I came there and looked upon the Arch-Idol, that Greatest Talisman, that personified Revolt, that rebellious Lucifer, the envious Iblis, I saw a form upon the throne and heard the lowing of the Calf (Baha--Golden Calf). Then did I see how the light of the Most Great Name shone on Ahriman the accursed, and how the fingers of the demon wore the ring. (Alluding to the theft of Solomon's ring by the demon.) For they had written the name Baha-ul-Abha on divers writings and called it 'the Most Great Name.' Thereat there came to my mind the verse of Hafiz: Efficient is the name divine: be of good cheer, O heart! The div becomes not Solomon by guile and cunning art." XI The Quarrel over the Succession The confusion, the reaction, and the spiritual division usually attendant upon a prophet's death were in this case happily averted (!?).--_Holley, a Bahai, "The Modern Social Religion," p. 169._ The last schism and the bitterness to which it gave rise lead me to inquire, where is the compelling and constraining power which they regard as the essential and incontrovertible sign of the divine word as in the text, "Associate with all religions with spirituality and fragrance," when they can show such bitter animosity against those of their own household.--_Professor Browne._