confines of their territory, he marched thither in haste, hoping to catch
and overcome them before they dispersed.

But the Beni Ghatafan were too wise to suffer this, and when Mahomet came
to the place he found it deserted, save for some camels, left behind in
the flight, which he captured and brought to Medina, deeming it useless
to attempt the pursuit of his quarry through the trackless desert.

The raid in Jumad II (September) by Zeid was far more successful. Since
the victory at Bedr the coast route had been entirely barred for the
Kureischite caravans, and they were forced to try the central desert,
which road lay through the middle tableland leading on to Babylonia and
the Syrian wastes. The Meccan caravan had only reached Carada when it was
met by a Muslim force under Zeid, sent by the prescience and predatory
instincts of Mahomet. The guard was not strong, possibly because the
Meccans thought there was little fear of attack by this route, and so
Zeid was easily able to overcome his foe and secure the spoil, which
amounted to many bales of goods, camels, trappings, and armour. The
conquerer returned elated to Medina, where he cast the spoil at the feet
of the Prophet. The usual division was made, and the whole city rejoiced
over the wealth it had secured and the increasing discomfiture of its
enemies.

Meanwhile matters were becoming urgent between the Muslim and the Jews.
Neither the murder of their singers, nor the expulsion of the Kainukaa
could silence the voice of Jewish discontent, which found its most
effective mouthpiece in the poet Ka'b al' Ashraf, son of a Jewess of the
tribe of the Beni Nadhir. This man had been righteously indignant at the
slaughter of the Kureischite champions at Bedr. The story seemed to him
so monstrous that he could not believe it.