uir's Life of Mahomet, Vol. IV, pp. 161 and 162.

Taking concubine-slaves was an established and recognized institution of
the Arab society, until Mohammad abolished it. Practically the custom
has prevailed up to the present time. No blame attached to such
alliances in the social system of the Arabs. "The Caliphs of the House
of Abbas were all of them the children of concubines except as--Saffah,
Al-Mahdi, and Al-Amin" (History of Caliphs. By Sayute. Translated by
Major Jarret, page 20, Calcutta, 1880). If the story regarding Mohammad
be true, there was no fear of exposure or offending the wives.]

[Footnote 365: Muir's Life of Mahomet, Vol. I, Introduction, page ciii.]

[Footnote 366: "The Calcutta Review," Feby. 1868, page 374.]

[Footnote 367: The Life of Mahomet, Vol. IV, page 160.]

[Footnote 368: Zeid bin Aslam (in _Tabrani_), who narrates the story,
though he does not mention Maria, is a Tabaee (died A.H. 136), and does
not quote his authority. Besides, his authority itself is impeached;
_vide_ Ibn Adi in his Kamal.

Masrook (in Saeed bin Mansoor) only came to Medina long after Mohammad's
death; therefore his narration, even if it be genuine, is not reliable.

Zohak Ibn Muzahim (in _Tabrani_), also a Tabaee and of impeached
authority, narrates it from Ibn Abbas, but he never heard any tradition
from him, nor had he even seen him (_vide Mzan-ul-Etedal_, by Zahabi,
and _Ansab_, by Sam-ani). His narration must be hence considered as
apocryphal.

The ascription of Ibn Omar's (died 73 A.H.) story, not strictly to the
point, is untrustworthy.

Abu Hurera's narration is also admitted as apocryphal; _vide
Dur-rul-mansoor_, by Soyuti.

All these traditions are noted by Soyuti in his _Dur-rul-mansoor_.

The tradition by Nasaee (died 303 A.H.) from Anas (died 90 A.H.)
regarding the affair of a slave is equally contradicted by the tradition
from Ayesha, the widow of the Prophet, narrated by the traditionist
Nasaee in the same place of his collection of traditions. This is the
story of the honey. _Vide_ para. 16, _ubi supra_. Ayesha's tradition is
more trustworthy than that of Anas. Hammad bin Salma, a narrator in the
ascription of Anas, has been impeached owing to the confusion of his
memory in the later days of his life (_vide Tekreeb_). Sabit, another
link in the same chain, was a story-teller by profession (_vide Zahabi's
Tabakat_,) and cannot be depended upon. And Nasaee himself has rejected
the tradition asc