ven turning the edge of
his weapon.

Then he dictated a letter to Nicephorus, in which he said:

"Harun-al-Rashid, Commander of the Faithful to Nicephorus, the
Roman dog: I have read thy letter. Thou shalt not hear, thou shalt
_see_ my reply."

[Illustration: HARUN-AL-RASHID]

Harun was as good as his word. He started that day with a large
army to punish the emperor. As soon as he reached Roman territory
he ravaged the country and took possession of everything valuable
that he found. He laid siege to Her-a-cle'a, a city on the shores
of the Black Sea, and in a week forced it to surrender. Then he
sacked the place.

Nicephorus was now forced to agree to pay the tribute. Scarcely,
however, had the caliph reached his palace in Bagdad when the emperor
again refused to pay.

Harun, consequently, advanced into the Roman province of Phrygia,
in Asia Minor, with an army of 15,000 men. Nicepherus marched against
him with 125,000 men. In the battle which followed the emperor was
wounded, and 40,000 of his men were killed.

After this defeat Nicephorus again promised payment of the tribute,
but again failed to keep his promise.

Harun now vowed that he would kill the emperor if he should ever
lay hands upon him. But as he was getting ready to march once more
into the Roman provinces a revolt broke out in one of the cities
of his own kingdom; and while on his way to suppress it the great
caliph died of an illness which had long given him trouble.

EGBERT

KING FROM 802-837 A.D.

I

Egbert the Saxon lived at the same time as did Harun-al-Rashid
and Charlemagne. He was the first king who ruled all England as
one kingdom. Long before his birth the people who are known to
us as Britons lived there, and they gave to the island the name
Britain.

But Britain was invaded by the Romans under Julius Caesar and his
successors, and all that part of it which we now call England was
added to the Empire of Rome. The Britons were driven into Wales
and Cornwall, the western sections of the island.

The Romans kept possession of the island for nearly four hundred
years. They did not leave it until 410, the year that Alaric sacked
the city of Rome. At this time the Roman legions were withdrawn
from Britain.

Some years before this the Saxons, Angles and Jutes, German tribes,
had settled near the shores of the North Sea. They learned much
about Britain; for trading vessels, even at that early day, crossed
the Channel. Am