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Mirza Sa'id Khan, in his communication to the Ambassador, stigmatized the Faith as a "misguided and detestable sect," deplored Baha'u'llah's release from the Siyah- Chal, and denounced Him as one who did not cease from "secretly corrupting and misleading foolish persons and ignorant weaklings." "In accordance with the royal command," he wrote, "I, your faithful friend, have been ordered ... to instruct you to seek, without delay, an appointment with their Excellencies, the Sadr- i- A'zam and the Minister of Foreign Affairs ... to request ... the removal of this source of mischief from a center like Baghdad, which is the meeting- place of many different peoples, and is situated near the frontiers of the provinces of Persia." In that same letter, quoting a celebrated verse, he writes: "`I see beneath the ashes the glow of fire, and it wants but little to burst into a blaze,'" thus betraying his fears and seeking to instill them into his correspondent.
(146:1)
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