of time.

In Yathrib the faith of Mohammed spread quickly and he received
attention and reverence wherever he went. And when he had a large
following he desired to put up a house of prayer, or a temple which he
called a mosque. This was done, but the first Mohammedan mosque was a
very simple affair indeed and the roof was supported by trees that were
not removed from the earth where they had been growing.

And then for the first time began to be heard the call that to-day
rings through so large a part of Asia and Africa, when the muezin, or
crier, summons Mohammed's followers to prayer five times a day. They
must all face toward Mecca as they pray, for that is the sacred city;
and Mohammed so considered it because of the mysterious temple or
Kaabah that was in it, and because, before the days of the idolaters,
this temple had been connected with the religion of Abraham. And every
morning since that time up to the present day, Mohammedans have been
summoned to prayer with the following words:

"God is great; there is no god but the Lord. Mohammed is the Apostle of
God. Come unto prayer! Come unto salvation! God is great. There is no
god but the Lord."

Another change was effected by Mohammed. Since Yathrib had been the
first place to take him in and receive his religion, its name was
changed to Medinat al Nahib, the city of the prophet, to do the place
honor. And in Medinah, as it was later called, Mohammed spent the rest
of his life.

It was not long before word came to Mecca that the man whom they had
driven out had become powerful and mighty in a city not far off and
that he was considered greater than a king among the disciples that
followed him. Then the Meccans were again afraid, for they feared that
some day Mohammed would appear with an army before their walls and
revenge himself for the injuries that they had worked upon him. So,
when a frightened messenger brought word to the Meccans that a number
of Mohammed's followers were plundering the Meccan caravans, the people
of Mecca raised an army to raze Medinah to the ground and put an end
for all time to the man that had so troubled their affairs.

Mohammed, however, had already designed to march against Mecca and had
raised an army for that purpose. And he came upon the Meccan soldiers
at a place called Badrh. There were a great many more Meccans than
Mohammedans, and should have won the day, for the odds against Mohammed
and his followers were huge, but M