This great and sudden increase in the population of the sacred city—for it was to Jerusalem that the male inhabitants went, after they were settled in Canaan—could be accommodated much more easily than at first might be supposed. Three times a year these pilgrims were looked for, and every arrangement was doubtless made for their reception, while those who could not find room in the houses could pitch their tents in the streets or on the outskirts of the city. When the Mohammedans, in countless numbers, make their great pilgrimage to Mecca, they carry with them provisions enough to last during the journey both ways, and also during their stay in the city. They take from their homes butter, honey, oil, olives, rice, and bread, besides provender for camels and asses. They dwell in tents until their return.