of his own house. These mild measures only
served further to exasperate the Mullahs, and
to swell the ranks of the Bâbys. A crowd of
proselytes joined them, coming from all classes
in Persia; merchants, artizans, learned men,
and even ministers of the official religion,
flocked to Shiraz.

The strength to which the Bâbys had now
attained stirred up the ambition of some
restless spirits, and induced a belief that they
might triumph by violence over the followers
of other creeds. The Bâb took no part in this
change from the original constitution of the
society; whether from natural gentleness of
character, or from respect to the sovereign, or
from a sincere feeling that violence was foreign
to a divine mission, he remained quietly at
Shiraz. But a fiery apostle, a priest of
Khorassan, named Hosseïn, succeeded in infusing
a warlike spirit into the Bâbys, and in
giving a military form to the ranks of the
believers. Hosseïn's vast learning, unflinching
daring, and wonderful capacity, rendered him
an object of admiration even to his bitterest
enemies. He took upon himself the part of
action, leaving to the Bâb, who was called the
Sublime Highness, the part of speculation.
Hosseïn was the first missionary of the new
faith, and he preached its doctrines with
immense success, not only in the Khorassan,
his native country, but also in the province of
Irak, at Ispahan, and as far as Kashan. He
set out for Teheran in the hope of accomplishing
there the work he had so successfully
commenced; but on his arrival there he was
silenced by the same means which had checked
his master's progress. He was forbidden to
preach in public, but he was not prevented
from expounding his religion privately.
Mohammed Shah and his prime minister,
excited by their curiosity, condescended to listen
to one of his addresses; but enjoined him,
under penalty of death, to go and preach his
doctrines elsewhere than in the capital.

The zeal of Hosseïn soon attracted two other
converts to imitate his example. One of these
was a learned man like Hosseïn, and a devout
person whom the people up to that time had
honoured as a saint, his name was Hadjy-
Mohammed; the other was a lady of high rank,
named Zerryn Tadj, "The Crown of Gold,"
who, on account of her extraordinary beauty,
had received the surname of Gourret-oul-Ayn,
or "The Consolation of the Eyes." Her beauty
was, however, amongst the least of her good
qualities; learning, eloquence, spotless reputation,
and fervid enthusiasm combined to render
her a most important convert, and a fit leader.
She received from the Bâbys the appellation of
Her Highness the Pure; and while she inveighed
against the seclusion to which her sex was
condemned, she had the courage to show herself
in public unveiled, to the great scandal of all
orthodox Mohammedans. Her purity, her
courage, and her eloquence gave a wonderful
impulse to the religion of the Bâb, and yet,
strange to say, she had never even seen the
Bâb himself. Her father was one of the
most celebrated lawyers and theologians of
the country, whilst her husband and her
father-in-law were ministers of high rank of
the Mussulman religion; thus they were all
naturally hostile to the tenets of Ali-
Mohammed. It was in their fierce and angry
denunciations of the Bâb, that she first heard
of the new religion, and struck by the chance
which it seemed to afford to her sex of
escaping from the slavery and degradation
imposed upon it by Eastern society, she
determined to inquire for herself, and entering
upon a correspondence with Mirza-Ali-
Mohammed, she became converted to his religion,
by the arguments contained in his letters. In
spite of the prayers and threats of the two
families, she left all that was most dear to her,
and went forth to preach the religion of liberty
in the streets and public places of her native
town Kaswyn, and afterwards throughout the
neighbouring towns. The three apostles of the
religion of the Bâb now determined to hold a
conference; and at their meeting the task of
the spiritual conquest of Persia was divided
between them. Hosseïn took the southern
provinces, Hadjy-Mohammed the northern
provinces, and the "Consolation of the Eyes"
undertook the western provinces. It was not
yet time for a second attack upon the capital,
and the eastern parts of the empire. At first
their work progressed smoothly, and as long
as their adversaries were content with abusing
and denouncing them, the apostles of the new
faith were satisfied with simply preaching its
doctrines; but as soon as they discovered that
their adversaries, taking advantage of the
anarchy which reigned in many parts of Persia,
had determined to destroy them by force, they
rose up in arms, and Hosseïn became their
commander. The small band of followers which
Hosseïn had collected in the Khorassan united
with the recruits drawn from the Mazendêran
by Hadjy-Mohammed, and the two leaders
found themselves at the head of a compact
little army, the numbers of which increased
daily as new disciples flocked to their standard.
They now thought themselves strong enough
not only to ward off attack, but even to subdue
their opponents. To rouse the enthusiasm of
the soldiers of the new faith, a popular leader
was required; such a one was found in the
"Consolation of the Eyes," who, putting herself
at their head, boldly and successfully fulfilled
the mission which had been allotted to her.
Her presence in the camp was alone sufficient
materially to increase the number of the
followers of the Bâb, and crowds of people came
from all sides to see her, and to listen to her
impassioned eloquence.

By a stroke of policy, Hosseïn gave to his
superior officers the names of the twelve imams
and of the other descendants of Ali, whose
souls he asserted lived again in them. Thus
he gave new enthusiasm to his followers, while
he supplied a link by which the new religion
was connected with the ancient national form
of worship. All were now eager for the fray;
but it came sooner than was expected.