of the lawgiver of Mecca was seventy years of age, and was, from his remarkable piety, considered to be the foremost saint in Persia. To this man's house the ruthless prince forced his way at dawn on the morning succeeding the day of his attack on the shrine. Not finding him in his outer chambers, the intruder was not to be deterred by the imperious custom of the East, which forbids strangers to penetrate into the apartments of the women. There the Syed was found kneeling on his carpet, in the act of addressing the appointed morning prayer to the Deity. But neither his character nor his occupation was sacred in the eyes of Nadir, who with his battle-axe hewed the aged man to the ground. A general outburst of horror was excited by this act, and the people with one accord opened the city gates to admit the troops of the Shah. Nadir Meerza made his escape through the public drain, but he was closely pursued, and was taken at the distance of four parasangs from Meshed. Chains were placed on his arms and legs, and he was conveyed in that condition to Tehran, and brought to the presence of the Shah. Public opinion demanded that he should receive the utmost punishment which it was in the king's power to give, and the summary way in which this punishment was inflicted was in accordance with Persian custom. When asked what excuse he had to offer for having slain the saint of God, he could only deny having committed the act attributed to him. Upon this the Shah ordered that his tongue should be torn from his head, and that his hands should be cut off. A red-hot wire was then drawn across the culprit's eyes, and those who had abetted him in his sacrilegious acts received the punishment of death. It is illustrative
