The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-06-21
THE GREAT HAy.
Early Summer Pilgrimage of thu Moslefns to Gain Immortality.

 St. James Gazette.
 AS soon as winter is fairly over. ths fever of travel seizes upon thousands oi Moslem souls. All through the summer one caravan after anothAg will, from ev- cry part of the near East. be starting for one of the seven holy places of Islam These adored shrines. mentioning them in the order of their sanctity, are Mecca, where Mohammed was born; Medina, the
 burial place of the prophet; Nejef. in the
 Euphrates. where Ali was martyred; ker- bela, on the banks of the same great river, where the earth is so sacred that
 bodies are brought by caravans for burial there in hundreds every year; Kazemein, the village close to Bagdad, where stands one of the loveliest of all mosques; Me shed, the holiest of all the cities of Per sia. with its glorious golden-domed mosque; Samara, in southeast Russia, reekoned sacred not by the Russian Greek Church, but by the Moslem Tartars, nu-
 merous in the region; and Rum, vil' iage in Persia, near Teheran, little known to the outside world, but revered by all Persians.
 When I first saw lot of pilgrims cross- Ing the Black Sea was like most other travellers, fascinated by their odd ways They did not fail to arrnge littl sanc- tuaries by spreading their prayer rugs in any little vacant spot on the deck, just before sunset. But. of course, not one of their yelled women took any part in the ahject prostrations performed in the d. reetion of Mecca.
 Many of these pilgrims are at this mo- ment traversing the Black Sea, the Medi- terranean Levant, the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. Especially along the Red Sea, for weeks to come, will thousands of "hajia," as they are called ever after making such a religious expedition, be yoyaging to Jeddah, the port of Mecca, that praying center" of the whole Mos lem world, which lies in the lap of the sand wastes, sixty-five miles from the coast,
 The scene at Suez when pilgrim craft Is about starting is indescribable. but 1t can never be forgotten. The stohd Orien- tals are excitable enough when their ex- perience appeals to their fnnaticism. Those "hamals," or porters of giant strength who fight for the luggage and infurate the passengers for extortfonate claims, do much to start the confusion. Women shriek and children cry, and men scoid and swear In fine Oriental style. People who cannot become "hajis' arc sullen and scowling; friends are weeping and shriekIng that their friends. as well they may for many who depart will ney- CT return.
 What is the great aim of these enthusi- asts who day after day in all parts of the near east throng the caravan routes, or take sea passages where these are avail able? TEeir ideas are perfectly definite. They are chasing immortality. For the most part they are ,little enough com eerned about the prospect of safe re- turn home. If they do they will have graduated in the great college of sane tity. and will, as "hajis.' he regarded by all their acquaintances with unbound ed admiration. Those will be the hap piest who have not only worshped be. fore the Black Stone in the Kaaba, or mystic mosque, in the Belt Allah" (house of God) at Becca, but have also gone far into the desert to Medina to the prophets tomb.
 The ceremonies at these shrines are vivid and romantic in all their details. One of the most striking Is that of the 'Stoning of the Great Divel." No pii- grim to Me0ca would willingly miis that All sst out, soon after arriving at the Holy City, for the case of Holy Ara rat" the beautiful mountain six miles out where vast encampment of tents gleams under the radiant sky.
 The "Shaitan el Kabir." or devils pill lar. is a small, rough buttress near the little village of Muna, at the foot of the mountain. Early in the morning crowds gather for the stoning. This ceremony of liquidation Is very religious observance. but deadly one to many of the partic- ipants. Snorting and stampeding cameis and dromedaries. rearing Arab horses, struggling mules and asses trample under foot many poor waifs, injuring them for life and sometimes killing them outright I'll. ferent to all human considerations. The doctrine of the fanatics is that the spot is so sacred that nobody can die. but ex- perience gives the lie downright to this theory. All seek to get as near as possible to the devil. (who is said to have appeared to the prophet at this place) in order to cast seven peb- bles at the pillar.
 The devotees in Mecca have much to | do. The rites are numerous and occupy | several days. The "hijis" I have met. | however, do not seem to think much | of the various ceremOnials; they are | satisfied with the glory of hav- Ing been to Mecca. They have been | within that wonderful house of God. that ! Belt Allah" with it's seven lovely min erets it's nineteen gates. Its many little lomes and its collonades of hundreds of pillars of marble, granite and porphyry. They have seen the holiest object on earth, that kaaba ("sauare house') stand ng on the spot where Adam worshipe1 in | ] tent let down from heaven. after his | from Paradise. They have | .issed the most famous piece of rock in | he world. the black stone to which all | doslems must turn in prayer.
 To go from Mecca to Medina you must | ravel nearl ythree hundred miles, and | must traverse the famous pass of death | Tor ages that weird wilderness road has | 'een strewn with dying pilgrims. Death 1