Sometimes the good men themselves would come, sitting humbly beneath the
hood of the great cart, or riding a mule, far enough in front to avoid
the dust, and yet near enough for company. This was more especially in
the month of February, at the anniversary of the miraculous appearance,
at which time the graven image set up in the cathedral is understood to
be more amenable to supplication than at any other. And, having
accomplished their pilgrimage, the simple churchmen turned quite
naturally to the house that stood adjoining the cathedral. There, they
were always sure of a welcome and of an invitation to lunch or dinner,
when they were treated to the very best the city could afford, and, while
keeping strictly within the letter of the canonical law, could feast
their hearty country appetites even in Lent.

Mon so arranged his journeys that he should be away from Saragossa in the
great heats of the summer and autumn, which wise precaution was rendered
the easier by the dates of the other great festivals which he usually
attended. For it will be found that the miracles and other events
attractive to the devout nearly always happen at that season of the year
which is most suitable to the environments. Thus the traditions of the
Middle Ages fixed the month of February for Saragossa when it is pleasant
to be in a city, and September for Montserrat--to quote only one
instance--at which time the cool air of the mountains is most to be
appreciated.

Evasio Mon, however, was among those who deemed it wise to avoid the
great festival at Montserrat by making his pilgrimage earlier in the
summer, when the number of the devout was more restricted and their
quality more select. Scores of thousands of the very poorest in the land
flock to the monastery in September, turning the mountain into a picnic