en from Barbary came a considerable body of Moors, who entered the
service of the Morisco chief. Fierce and intrepid, trained to the military
career, and accustomed to a life of wild adventure, these were a most
valuable reinforcement to Aben-Humeya's forces, and enabled him to carry
on a guerilla warfare which proved highly vexatious to the troops of
Spain. He made forays from the mountains into the plain, penetrating into
the vega and boldly venturing even to the walls of Granada. The
insurrection spread far and wide through the Sierra Nevada, and the
Spanish army, now led by Don John of Austria, the king's brother, found
itself confronted by a most serious task.

The weak point in the organization of the Moriscos lay in the character of
their king. Aben-Humeya, at first popular, soon displayed traits of
character which lost him the support of his followers. Surrounded by a
strong body-guard, he led a voluptuous life, and struck down without mercy
those whom he feared, no less than three hundred and fifty persons falling
victims to his jealousy or revenge. His cruelty and injustice at length
led to a plot for his death, and his brief reign ended in assassination,
his kinsman, Aben-Aboo, being chosen as his successor.

The new king was a very different man from his slain predecessor. He was
much the older of the two, a man of high integrity and great decorum of
character. While lacking the dash and love of adventure of Aben-Humeya, he
had superior judgment in military affairs, and full courage in carrying
out his plans. His election was confirmed from Algiers, a large quantity
of arms and ammunition was imported from Barbary, reinforcements crossed
the Mediterranean, and the new king began his reign under excellent
auspices, his first movement being against Orgiba, a fortified place on
the road to Granada, which he invested in October with an army of ten
thousand men.

[Illustration: THE ALHAMBRA, OVERLOOKING GRANADA.]

THE ALHAMBRA, OVERLOOKING GRANADA.

The capture of this place, which soon followed, roused the enthusiasm of
the Moriscos to the highest pitch. From all sides the warlike peasantry
flocked to the standard of their able chief, and a war began resembling
that of a century before, when the forces of Ferdinand and Isabella were
invading the Kingdom of Granada. From peak to peak of the sierras
beacon-fires flashed their signals, calling the bold mountaineers to
forays on