FIRST-BORN

Although the Arabian legislator followed the Mosaic law in so many of his legal enactments, he has carefully avoided any legislation as to the rights of primogeniture, although it formed such a marked feature in the Pent a teuch, in which the first-born of man and beast were devoted to God, and were redeemed with a price. In the Muslim law of inheritance, all the sons share equally, whilst in the Mosaic law the eldest son received a double portion of the father’s inheritance. ( Deut. xxi. 17 .) In cases of chiefship, or monarchy, the eldest son usually inherits, but it rests entirely upon his fitne for the position. Very often the eldest son is pa ed by and a younger brother selected as ruler. This was also the case amongst the Jews when Solomon succeeded his father in the kingdom. ( 1 Kings i. 30 ; ii. 22 .) The curious fact that Muḥammad made no provision for these rights of primogeniture, may have arisen from his having had no son to survive him.