The Rate Of Hire This
Year Was Very Moderate, On Account Of The Great Number Of Beasts Of
Burden:
I engaged two of these camels, for the journey of four days to
Arafat and back again, for three dollars.
On the 8th of Zul Hadj, early in the morning, the Syrian Hadj passed in
procession through the town, accompanied by all its soldiers, and
carrying the Mahmal in front. All its baggage was left at Sheikh
Mahmoud, excepting the tents that were to be pitched at Arafat. Most of
the hadjys were mounted in the Shebrye, a sort of palankeen placed upon
the camel. The great people, and the Pasha of Damascus himself, rode in
takhtrouans, a kind of closed [l]itter or box carried by two camels, one
before and the other behind, and forming a very commodious conveyance,
except that it is necessary always to have a ladder, by means of which
one may mount or descend. The camels' heads were decorated with
feathers, tassels, and bells; but their heads, bent down towards the
ground, showed how much they were fatigued by their journey. While these
passed, the streets were lined by people of all classes, who greeted the
caravan with loud acclamations and praise. The martial music of the
Pasha of Damascus, a dozen of fine caparisoned horses led in front of
his litter, and the rich takhtrouans in which his women rode,
particularly attracted attention.
[p.264] Soon after the Syrians had passed, the Egyptian procession
followed, consisting of its Mahmal or sacred camel, (for each of the
caravans carries one,) and the Shebryes of the public officers, who
always accompany the Hadj; but not a single private pilgrim was to be
seen in its suite. The good appearance of the soldiers who were with
them, the splendour of the Mahmal, and of the equipage of the Emir el
Hadj, who was a commander of the Turkish horsemen called Delhis, drew
from the Mekkawys many signs of approbation, such as had been given to
those who immediately preceded them. Both caravans continued their route
to Arafat without stopping.
Before mid-day, all the hadjys who had resided for some time at Mekka,
likewise mounted their camels, and crowded the streets as they pressed
forward to follow the Hadj. They were joined by the far greater part of
the population of Mekka, who make it a rule to go every year to Arafat;
and by a similar portion of the population of Djidda, who had been
assembled here for some time. During five or six days, the gates of
Djidda, thus deserted by so many people, remain shut.
I left my lodgings on foot, after mid-day, with a companion and a slave-
boy mounted on two camels, which I had hired from a Syrian driver, a
native of Homs. It is thought meritorious to make the six hours' journey
to Arafat on foot, particularly if the pilgrim goes barefooted. Many
hadjys did so; and I preferred this mode, because I had led a very
sedentary life for some months.
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