the fact that he was a
theocratic governor. Otherwise he was supreme in power. There was no
constitutional government, and, indeed, but little precedent in law.
The government depended somewhat upon the whims and caprices {316} of a
single individual. It was said that in the beginning the caliph was
elected by the people, but in a later period the office became
hereditary. It is true the caliph, who was called the "vicar of God,"
or "the shadow of God," had his various ministers appointed from the
wise men to carry out his will. Yet, such was the power of the people
what when in Spain they were displeased with the rulings of the judges,
they would pelt the officers or storm the palace, thus in a way
limiting the power of these absolute rulers.

The government, however, was in a precarious condition. There could be
nothing permanent under such a regime, for permanency of government is
necessary to the advancement of civilization. The government was
non-progressive. It allowed no freedom of the people and gave no
incentive to advancement, and it was a detriment many times to the
progressive spirit. Closely connected with a religion which in itself
was non-progressive, we find limitations set upon the advancement of
the civilization of the Arab-Moors in Spain.

_Arabian Civilization Soon Reached Its Limits_.--One views with wonder
and astonishment the brilliant achievements of the Arabian
civilization, extending from the Tagus to the Indus. But brilliant as
it was, one is impressed at every turn with the instability of the
civilization and with its peculiar limitations. It reached its
culmination long before the Christian conquest. What the Arabians have
given to the European world was formulated rapidly and given quickly,
and the results were left to be used by a more slowly developing
people, who rested their civilization upon a permanent basis. Much
stress has been laid by Mr. Draper and others upon the great
civilization of the Arabians, comparing it favorably with the
civilization of Christian Europe. But it must be remembered that the
Arab-Moors, especially in Spain, had come so directly in contact with
Oriental nations that they were enabled to borrow and utilize for a
time the elements of civilization advanced by these more mature
peoples. However, built as it was upon borrowed materials, the
structure once completed, {317} there was no opportunity for growth or
original development. It reached it