'In the Name of God, exalted is He. My sweet love, may God preserve thee.' 'God is my witness,' He continues, 'that since the time of separation sorrow has been so intense that it cannot be described,' and adds His hope that God, 'the Lord of the world,' may 'facilitate the return journey in the best manner.' Two days previously He had reached Bú[_sh_]ihr, and informs His wife that 'the weather is exceedingly hot, but God, the Lord of the world, is the Protector.' The boat, it seemed, would be sailing the same month; 'God, the Lord of the world, will provide protection by His grace.' He had not been able to see His mother at the time of His departure, and asks His wife to give her His salutation (salám) and request her prayers. He would write to Bombay for the goods required. And the letter ends thus: 'God willing, that which is decreed will come to pass. Peace be upon thee and the mercy of God and His blessings.'[7] The ship, bearing pilgrims to Jiddah, set sail on the nineteenth day of Ramaḍán 1260--October 2nd 1844.[8] CHAPTER 4 THE FIRST MARTYR The world turns and the world changes, But one thing does not change. In all of my years, one thing does not change. However you disguise it, this thing does not change: The perpetual struggle of Good and Evil. --T. S. Eliot Lady Sheil, whose husband was the British envoy in Ṭihrán,[BC] states in her book, _Glimpses of Life and Manners in Persia_, that the Báb declared His mission in Káẓimayn, near Ba[_gh_]dád, and that 'Incensed at this blasphemy, the Turkish authorities issued orders for his execution, but he was claimed by the Persian consul as a subject of the Shah, and sent to his native place'.[1] Obviously Lady Sheil was confused. She had heard of the arrest of Mullá `Alíy-i-Basṭámí in `Iráq and of his imprisonment. She mistook him for the Báb. [Footnote BC: See note 6, Prologue.] Mullá `Alí, as we have seen, was directed to `Iráq by the Báb, and took with him a copy of the _Qayyúmu'l-Asmá'_, the commentary on the Súrih of Yúsuf (Joseph). The news and the message that he gave aroused eager interest and ready response from his hearers. But hostile reaction was also swift. It was Mullá `Alí who, in Karbilá, informed Qurratu'l-`Ayn of the advent of the Báb. He was not at liberty to mention His Name. We do not know whether, in view of the fact that Qurratu'l-`Ayn had been elevated to the high and honoured position of a Letter of the Living, Mullá `Alí gave her any information other than the tidings of the appearance of the Báb. The disciples of Siyyid Káẓim were in a much stronger position there than in Najaf, in spite of the fact that in Karbilá they had a redoubtable opponent in the person of Siyyid Ibráhím-i-Qazvíní. There in Karbilá, Mullá `Alí remained safe. But the story was different in Najaf. Nabíl-i-A`ẓam writes: