CARAVAN, a Persian word, used to de note large companies which travel together in Asia and Africa for the sake of security from robbers, having in view, principally, trade or pilgrimages. Such companies often have more than 1,000 camels to carry their baggage and their goods. These walk in single file, and the line is often four or five miles long. To avoid the excessive heat, they travel mostly early in the morning. As every Mohammedan is sup posed to visit the tomb of Mohammed once at least during his life, caravans of pilgrims go to Mecca every year from various places of meeting. Of the various caravans which pro ceed to Mecca every year, the most important has always been the Syrian. The place at which it meets is Damascus, and here the pilgrims and merchants assemble many weeks before the day of departure, which is always fixed according to the season of the year in which the feast of Bairam occurs, the pilgrims requiring to be at Mecca on the day of the feast. As these cara
vans serve mercantile as well as religious pur poses, Mecca, on the arrival of the caravans, resembles a great fair, and this fair is indeed the most important in all the East. The journey from Damascus to Mecca and back occupies about four months. The leader of such a cara van to Mecca, who carries with him some can non for protection, Is called Emir-el-Hadj (Prince of the Pilgrims). Trading caravans choose one of their own number for a leader, whom they call Karwan Bashi. Besides a leader, each caravan has its servants, guides, military escorts and priests. Obedience is en forced by the leader in the matter of internal discipline, but in trafficking, each member is independent. Much information on the subject of caravans is to be found in the travels of Nie buhr, who made many journeys with them, and describes them, as is well known, minutely and faithfully.