ar Derna. So impressive
was his personality and so great his organizing ability that converts
flocked to him from all over North Africa. Indeed, his power soon
alarmed the Turkish authorities in Tripoli, and relations became so
strained that Seyid Mahommed presently moved his headquarters to the
oasis of Jarabub, far to the south in the Lybian desert. When he died in
1859, his organization had spread over the greater part of North Africa.

Seyid Mahommed's work was carried on uninterruptedly by his son, usually
known as Sennussi-el-Mahdi. The manner in which this son gained his
succession typifies the Sennussi spirit. Seyid Mahommed had two sons, El
Mahdi being the younger. While they were still mere lads, their father
determined to put them to a test, to discover which of them had the
stronger faith. In presence of the entire Zawia he bade both sons climb
a tall palm-tree, and then adjured them by Allah and his Prophet to leap
to the ground. The younger lad leaped at once and reached the ground
unharmed; the elder boy refused to spring. To El Mahdi, "who feared not
to commit himself to the will of God," passed the right to rule.
Throughout his long life Sennussi-el-Mahdi justified his father's
choice, displaying wisdom and piety of a high order, and further
extending the power of the fraternity. During the latter part of his
reign he removed his headquarters to the oasis of Jowf, still farther
into the Lybian desert, where he died in 1902, and was succeeded by his
nephew, Ahmed-el-Sherif, the present head of the Order, who also appears
to possess marked ability.

With nearly eighty years of successful activity behind it, the Sennussi
Order is to-day one of the vital factors in Islam. It counts its
adherents in every quarter of the Moslem world. In Arabia its followers
are very numerous, and it profoundly influences the spiritual life of
the holy cities, Mecca and Medina. North Africa, however, still remains
the focus of Sennussism. The whole of northern Africa, from Morocco to
Somaliland, is dotted with its Zawias, or lodges, all absolutely
dependent upon the Grand Lodge, headed by The Master, El Sennussi. The
Sennussi stronghold of Jowf lies in the very heart of the Lybian Sahara.
Only one European eye[33] has ever seen this mysterious spot. Surrounded
by absolute desert, with wells many leagues apart, and the routes of
approach known only to experienced Sennussi guides, every one of whom
would suffer a thousand deat