"We have paid you back for the day of Badr!--I was tortured by the remembrance of my father--Of my son, and of my uncle, murdered by you!--My soul is now at rest and my vengeance is glutted.--My "uhayha" (grief) hath been softened by thee--O Uhayha! O conqueror of Hamzah! I'll sing thy praises--Until my bones crumble into dust in my grave!" [Illustration: _Setting out for Al Jihad, or Holy War._ 2 views] Abu Sufyan, searching every nook and corner of the field of battle in the hope of finding Mohammad's lifeless body, stopped short in front of Hamzah's corpse at the same time as Jalis, chief of the Arab Confederates. Abu Sufyan amused himself by striking the corners of the dead man's mouth with the point of a spear. 'Take a good taste of the bitterness of rebellion,' he said. Seeing this, Jalis, although an idolater, was greatly shocked. 'O Banu Kinana!' cried he to his partisans, 'admire the behaviour of the Lord of the Quraish towards his cousin now that he is lifeless!' Abu Sufyan, alive to the fact that his conduct was vile, drew Jalis on one side and supplicated him. 'Keep all this a secret, O Jalis, for I am ashamed of what I did just now in thy presence.' He then drew near to a spot within hail of the Faithful, entrenched on the slopes of the Uhud, and called out to them: 'Is Mohammad with you?' There being no answer, he joyfully concluded that the Prophet was dead. Before going away, he bawled as loudly as he could: 'Assuredly, war is a game of chance. This day avengeth the day of Badr; Hubal, our god, is victorious. He is the All-Highest!' At this blasphemy, the Prophet ordered Umar to reply. He cried out: 'Allah is the Most High; the Most Majestic!' Recognising Umar's voice, Abu Sufyan asked him: 'O Umar! I conjure thee, inform me if we have killed Mohammad.'--'No, by my faith! He is even now listening to thee.' Abu Sufyan, disappointed, rejoined: 'Evidently, I am bound to believe thee in preference to Ibn Qamiah who boasts of having killed him. But I swear to meet you next year at Badr.'--'That is understood!' replied Umar. 'We pledge our word to meet thee there.' The Prophet despatched Ali to track the Infidels. 'Take heed how they carry themselves,' Mohammad impressed upon his scout. 'See if they ride their camels and lead their horses by the bridle. That will certainly denote that they give up all hope of battle and are going to Makkah. If, on the contrary, they mount their steeds and drive their camels before them, it is a sure sign that they are bound for Al-Madinah with the intention of cutting us off. In that case, there is but one thing to be done: to hurl ourselves upon them without loss of time, so as to attack them and hack our way through.' A few minutes later, Ali returned. He had seen the Quraish alight from their horses, bestride their camels and set out in the direction of Makkah.