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When we were within one
day's journey of Medina, we halted for a
longer time than u&longs;ual; occa&longs;ioned, as I
found, by the arrival of a mo&longs;t holy
&longs;aint. As I had never &longs;een a &longs;aint, being
bred, in a land, where even the relics
of the&longs;e holy men are not pre&longs;erved,
for I believe all New England cannot
produce &longs;o much as a &longs;aint's rotten tooth
or toe nail, I was &longs;olicitous to &longs;ee and
conver&longs;e with this ble&longs;&longs;ed per&longs;onage. I
&longs;oon di&longs;covered him, in the mid&longs;t of about
fifty pilgrims, &longs;ome of whom were
devoutly touching their foreheads with

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the hem of his garment, while others, &longs;till
more devout, pro&longs;trated them&longs;elves on
the ground, and ki&longs;&longs;ed the prints of his
foot&longs;teps in the &longs;and. Though I was assured,
that he was filled with divine love,
and conferred felicity on all, who touched
him; yet, to outward appearance, he was
the mo&longs;t di&longs;gu&longs;ting, contemptible object,
I had ever &longs;een. Figure to your&longs;elves,
my readers, a little decrepit, old man,
made &longs;horter by &longs;tooping, with a countenance,
which exhibited a vacant &longs;tare, his
head bald, his finger and toe nails as long
as hawks' claws, his attire &longs;qualid, his face,
neck, arms, and legs begrimed with dirt
and &longs;warming with vermin, and you will
have &longs;ome &longs;aint idea of this Mu&longs;&longs;ulman
&longs;aint. As I was too rea&longs;onable to expect
that holine&longs;s exi&longs;ted in a man's exteriour,
I waited to hear him &longs;peak; anticipating,
from his lips, the profounde&longs;t wi&longs;dom,
delivered in the honied accents of the
&longs;aints in bli&longs;s. At length he &longs;pake; and

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his &longs;peech betrayed him, a mere idiot.
While this a&longs;toni&longs;hed me, it rai&longs;ed the
re&longs;pect of his admirers, who e&longs;timated his
fanctity in an inver&longs;e ratio to the weakness
of his intellects. If they could have
a&longs;certained, that he was born an idiot,
verily believe, they would have adored
him; for the Mahometans are taught by
their alcoran, that the &longs;ouls of &longs;aints are
often lodged in the bodies of idiots
and the&longs;e pious &longs;ouls, being &longs;o intent on
the joys of paradi&longs;e, is the true rea&longs;on
that the actions of their bodies are &longs;o little
&longs;uited to the manners of this world.
This &longs;aint however did not a&longs;pire to the
&longs;anctity of a genuine idiot; though,
fancy, his mode&longs;ty injured his prefement,
for he certainly had very fair pretensions.
It was re&longs;olved, that the homan
&longs;hould go with us; and, to my gremortification
and di&longs;gu&longs;t, he was mouned
behind me on the &longs;ame camel;
Mahometan friends probably conceived

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that he would &longs;o far communicate his
&longs;anctity by contact, as that it might affect
my conver&longs;ion to their faith. Whatever
were their faith. Whatever
were their motives, in the embraces of this
nau&longs;eous being, with the people prostrating
them&longs;elves in reverence on each &longs;ide, I
made my entry into the city of Medina.

p407-443

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