On the Antiquity of the Chemical Art | Page 2

over some 4000
years before Christ and 1878 years since, so that, according to the
usually accepted idea, if chemistry originated in Arabia in the eighth
century, it was not known during say the first 5000 years of the world's
history, but has advanced to its present high position amongst the
sciences in the last 1000 years.
I hope to be able to show that, while the Arabian school of philosophy
get the credit of originating most of the sciences, that it is as
undeserved in the case of chemical science as in that of astronomy or
mathematics. At the same time let us not undervalue the services
rendered to science by this school: it is to them we owe the distribution
of the knowledge of most of our sciences, and the Arabic literature of
most of these was widely spread abroad over all the known world of
their time.
The central portion of Baghdad between the eastern and western
portions of the Old World, and the wise and enlightened policy of its
rulers, which welcomed to its schools, without reference to country or
creed, the wise and learned men of every nation, drew to it as to a
centre the accumulated wisdom and knowledge of both the rising and
the setting sun. Long ere this time, however, we find, as regards the
Greeks, that they constantly travelled eastward in search of learning,
while we know that the expedition of Alexander the Great, about B.C.
327, in which he traversed a considerable portion of India, had already
opened up the store-houses of Indian lore to the minds of the West.
In connection with this, the following extract from an old book: called
The Gunner, dated 1664, is interesting:--
"In the life of Apollonius Tyanæus, written by Philostratus 1500 years
ago, we find, in reference to the Indians called Oxydra: These truly
wise men dwelled between the rivers Hyphasis and Ganges; their
country Alexander the Great never entered, being deterred, not by fear
of the inhabitants, but, as I suppose, by, religious considerations, for
had he passed the Hyphasis, he might doubtless have made himself
master of the country all round him; but their cities he could never have

taken, though he had led a thousand as brave as Achilles or ten
thousand such as Ajax to the assault. For they come not out into the
field to fight those who attack them; but these holy men, beloved of the
gods, overthrow their enemies with tempests and thunder-bolts shot
from their walls.
"It is said that Egyptian Hercules and Bacchus (Dionysius), when they
overran India, invaded this people also, and having prepared warlike
engines, attempted to conquer them. They made no show of resistance,
but upon the enemy's near approach to their cities they were repulsed
with storms of lightning and thunder hurled upon them from above."
May we not here have the original of the Greek fire, that was in its day
so celebrated and so destructive?
Beginning then at the period of Geber, about 776 A.D., let us try to
work backwards and trace, if we can, the progress of chemical
knowledge down the stream of time.
While the Western Roman Empire had fallen, the Eastern still held its
sway as far as the rivers Tigris and Euphrates, and continued the
contest with the Persian power for the supremacy in Asia. At this time
the various creeds and beliefs of the Arabian tribes--which had been
much influenced by the settlement amongst them of Jews who had been
dispersed at the time of the destruction of Jerusalem, and many of the
sects of Christians who had been driven from the Roman empire by the
more orthodox--were deeply stirred by the new doctrine of Islam,
preached by Mahomet, A.D. 622, proclaiming the Koran as the rule of
life, and the destruction of the ancient Arabian worship of the stars and
sun and moon.
The religion of "the one God and Mahomet his prophet" took deep root,
and the injunction to pursue the unbelieving with fire and sword was
followed out with such unrelenting vigour that, within less than a
century from the death of Mahomet, the Arabian power had extended
its sway amongst nearly every tribe and nation that had owned the rule
of the Roman or Persian empires, and had reached from Spain to India,
from Samarcand to the Indian Ocean.

Egypt and Syria were conquered between A.D. 632-39, and Persia
about A.D. 632-51. Their attempts to take Constantinople by siege
failed both in A.D. 673 and 716. But they were more successful on the
African shores of the Mediterranean, which they swept along till they
crossed the Straits of Gibraltar and entered Spain in A.D. 709. Their
further progress--through France--was stayed by their defeat in a great
battle fought at Tour's,