St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1879-04-04
The Birthday of the Prophet.

To the Editor Of the CdLedOnidR
In Shakespeare's "Two Gentlemen of
Verona" PrOteus, us he bids adieu to
Valentine, says:
Think on thy Proteus, when thou haply see'st
Some rare noteworthy object in thy travels;
Wish me partaker in thy happiness"
Inasmuch as | could not take the
readers of the CdiedOnidn along with
me while actually on my travels, may
perhaps ask them to follow my memory
as it wanderS back to some note worthy
things that came before my notice i'll
the spring of 1873.
THE PILGRIMS.
1t was just at the beginning of the
third Mohammedan month, the month
Rdbeea- el- OU,Udl, that | was in Cairo.
just in time to witness the return of
the annual caravan of Mecca pilgrims,
and the festival of the MOOlid en- Neb-
bee,-the birthday of Mohammed.
Each year Il large number of pilgrims
set out from Cairo, to reach the goal of
every devout Mussulman's heart. and
to kiss the sacred stone of the Kaaba,
at Mecca. The privilege is accorded
to the people of Cairo to furnish this
holy shrine with covering, and for
this purpose Il magnificent and costly
carpet is prepared every year by the fair
hands of the wealthy Cairene ladies,
and Spnt tIitbnr ON n ac,nSonr,t,J o,,,,l
When this camel returns, bringing the
old carpet, which has absorbed IL wears
sanctity from the shrine, and the hun
dreds of pilgrims get back from their
wealisome, periious journey, it is Il
week ot rejoicing with the people of
Cairo. They go out two or three days
journey to meet them,-with anxiety
to be sure, for many perish in the desert
sands on the way each year,-and il
their friends are alive they escort them
nome with every sign of honor and re
joicing. Clean clothes are taken to
them in place of the filthy, tattered ones
they have worn on their pilgrimage,
and an easy moving donkey takes the
place of the rolling, ungainIy ''ship of
the desert" on which they have made
the journey.
The main part of the caravan, with
the sacred camel bearing the Mammal
had reached Cairo before my arrival,
but goOdly number of pilgrims, who
had been detained for one cause or an
other, had not yet come,-and | pre-
sume many had staid behind purposely,
so as to have a procession gotten up
for their own personal benefit, rather
than to be last in the crowd at the time
of the grand entrance.
The evening after our arrival we saw
numerous professions passing through
the streets of the city, and learned that
they were these returning pilgrims.
Each was preceded by band of musi-
clans, playing on pipes and drums, and
the people that follow ed were showing
all manner of signs of rejoicing. Some
carried flags bearing notices and in
scrlphons, some had torches, and all
were anxious to get near the holy pil-
grim, who cOmplacently rode his donkey
in the centre of the throng. He was
dressed with as much elegance as the
means of his family would allow. but
whether clothed in silks or rags. his
naughty, supercilious looks usually told
of the immense distance in sanctity be-
tween himself and the gaping crowd
around him. If he was a man of wealth
his harem was in the procession behind
him, in closed carriages, covered with
shawls of cashmere.
AS these holy men pass, people who
meet them in the streets often stop
with the petition,-"O, pray for pardon
for me ~ for the prophet said, "God
pardOns him for whom the pilgrim
prays."
The return from Mecca is usually
planned so as to occur about the time
of the Prophets birthday 4: and on the