The Daily Gate City

RETURN OF THE PILGRIMS

Interesting Ceremonial When the Escort of the Sacred Carpet Gets Back to Cairo.

Yesterday morning, writes the Cairo correspondent of the Queen, was devoted to watching the ceremonial return of the Mahmal and its attendant escort of soldiers and pilgrims from Mecca. The sacred kiswe or carpet, which is the annual tribute from Cairo and which journeyed to Mecca with the pilgrims, has now taken its place as the covering of the Kaaba, while that which it replaced has already been divided as valuable mementos among the faithful.

The ceremony of the return of the pilgrims as that of their departure is celebrated in the great Place Mohamet Ali, below the ramparts of the citadel, the square being outlined with Egyptian troops. The khedive was present of course yesterday with all his ministers and staff, and many of the European notables and a tremendous concourse of less important spectators were present to view the ceremony.

The departure of the Mahmal took place so early in November that but few visitors were in the place to witness it, and as the Mohammedan calendar is nearly a fortnight shorter than ours, before long this interesting annual event will be relegated to the days of the early autumn, whereat the European element will be deprived of one of the few remaining purely Egyptian festivals. Statistics from Mecca this year state the number of pilgrims at the enormous figure of 90,051, out of which Egypt accounted for no less than 15,619.