“Medina Is Much Supplied By The Opposite Abyssine Country, Which Is On
The Other Side Of The Red Sea:
From thence they have corn and
necessaries brought in ships:
An odd sort of vessels as ever I saw,
their sails being made of matting, such as they use in the houses and
Mosques to tread upon.
[p.388] “When we had taken our leave of Medina, the third day, and
travelled about ten days more, we were met by a great many Arabians,
who brought abundance of fruit to us, particularly raisins; but from
whence I cannot tell.[FN#52] When we came within fifteen days’ journey of
Grand Cairo, we were met by many people who came from thence, with
their camels laden with presents for the Hagges, sent from their
friends and relations, as sweetmeats, &c. But some of them came rather
for profit, to sell fresh provisions to the Hagges, and trade with them.
“About ten days before we got to Cairo, we came to a very long steep
hill, called Ackaba, which the Hagges are usually much afraid how they
shall be able to get up. Those who can will walk it. The poor camels,
having no hoofs, find it very hard work, and many drop here. They were
all untied, and we dealt gently with them, moving very slowly, and
often halting. Before we came to this hill, I observed no descent, and
when we were at the top there was none, but all plain as before.
“We past by Mount Sinai by night, and, perhaps, when I was asleep; so
that I had no prospect of it.
“When we came within seven days’ journey of Cairo, we were met by abundance
of people more, some hundreds, who came to welcome their friends and
relations; but it being night, it was difficult to find those they
wanted, and, therefore, as the Caravans past along they kept calling
them aloud by their names, and by this means found them out. And when
we were in three days’ journey of it, we had many camel-loads of the
water of the Nile brought us to drink. But the day and night before we
came to Cairo, thousands came out to meet us with extraordinary
rejoicing. It is thirty-seven days’ journey from Mecca to Cairo, and
three days we tarry by [p.389] the way, which together make us (as I
said) forty days’ journey; and in all this way there is scarce any green
thing to be met with, nor beast nor fowl to be seen or heard; nothing
but sand and stones, excepting one place which we passed through by
night; I suppose it was a village, where were some trees, and, we
thought, gardens.”
[FN#1] It is curious, as Crichton (Arabia, vol. ii. p. 208) observes,
that Gibbon seems not to have seen or known anything of the little work
published by Pitts on his return home. It is entitled “A faithful Account
of the Religion and the Manners of the Mahometans, in which is a
particular Relation of their Pilgrimage to Mecca, the Place of Mahomet’s
Birth, and Description of Medina, and of his Tomb there,” &c., &c. My
copy is the 4th edition, printed for T. Longman and R. Hett, London,
A.D. 1708.
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