314 THE HISTORY OE THE ORDER OE [book I.

monsters who dishonour it. It is our sacred duty.Let us cleanse the air of the air they breathe, andlet them all be devoted to death.” Such wereSaladin’s secret written orders 1 —preparing themurder. And he undertook himself to besiegePetra, but did not succeed; so returned to Da-mascus, killing, burning, and destroying everythingalong the road. The Prince of Moussoul beingnow his vassal by force, had no longer alliance withthe Franks; so Saladin had nothing else to thinkon but war against the adorers of the cross . 2 Andto any of his emirs that wished for peace, this washis ready reply: “ Allah has made it our strict obli-gation to carry on the holy war, without thesmallest intermission. Nor are we to foresee wantsor difficulties. His precepts are his orders. Hispromises a sure gage. Let us do our duty, andAllah will do His. He who neglects Allah, Allahwill neglect him .” 3

The Leper King , known by that abhorred dis-tinction, and that alone in the whole history ofman, suffering from leprosy, or king's evil, or (arethey the same?) morbo regio laborans being the

1 Arab. Chron., 187.

3 Id., 181.

2 Id., 188.