ABSTRACT
Some praiseworthy actions of the Emir Muh ˙ ammad:* Then reigned the emir
Muh ˙ ammad – may God have mercy on him. He was one of the quiet and
tranquil people, slow to move and reluctant to punish. He treated with deference his leading scholars, clients and soldiers, and was careful in his choice of provincial governors; until he appointed Ha¯shim [Abu¯ Kha¯lid Ha¯shim ibn Abd al-Azı¯z] as chamberlain, and all that was upset.2 He gave up the system appointing venerable elderly men and instead chose young ones and divided what money they made from their position between them and himself. Governors were known as ‘partners’ (muna¯fis
˙ u¯n), and things went to
rack and ruin, as we shall relate.
