JEFFERSON DAVIS'S CAMEL EXPERIMENT 145 



After Wayne and Porter met at Spezzia they decided to get a camel 

 at once in order to study its habits and to learn the proper treatment. 

 They went in the Supply to Tunis, where Mohammed Bey gave them 

 two animals which they hoisted on board, and proceeded to the Asiatic 

 coasts, studying on the way the habits, ailments and care of the ani- 

 mals. Their observations were carefully reduced to writing and sent 

 to Davis. The first stop after leaving Tunis was made at Smyrna, 

 where they found fine burden camels, but no dromedaries such as Davis 

 was anxious to get for chasing the Indians; at Salonica, the next stop, 

 there were no camels — from both places the dromedaries had been taken 

 for use in the Crimean war then going on. Davis had instructed 

 AVayne and Porter to go to Persia to see about the Bactrians of that 

 region, but at Salonica they found that the roads were closed by snow — 

 it was now December — and that the country was in an unsettled con- 

 dition. So after sending circulars to the English-speaking mission- 

 aries, consuls and business men in the Levant requesting information, 

 the two officers sailed to Constantinople and thence went to the Crimea 

 to see what was being done there with the camels. Wayne reported that 

 the Bactrians seemed to be of little use because they were slow and 

 because of their two humps, which made it difficult to fasten on the 

 loads. But the one-humped Arabians were valuable ; 3,000 were already 

 in the Crimea and more were to be imported for the next campaign. 

 The English officers who had used them in India were enthusiastic. 



At Constantinople Wajme was disappointed in not getting a supply 

 of both kinds of animals. All there were worthless or had the " itch." 

 The Sultan sent far into the interior for good ones to give them, but 

 Wayne, anxious to go to Egypt, did not wait for them to be brought 

 to Constantinople. 



The Supply sailed to ^gj]}t and while Wayne went to Cairo to get 

 permission to export dromedaries Porter remained at Alexandria look- 

 ing over the market and making a lengthy report to Secretary Davis. 

 He was now an enthusiast on the subject of camels. " 1 hope to see 

 the day," he wrote, " when every Southern planter will be using the 

 animal extensively." The education of Wa}Tie and Porter progressed 

 rapidly. They were soon expert camel traders. Animals at first 

 palmed off on them as good they were now able to pronounce worth- 

 less. These they got rid of — two, for instance, they sold to a butcher 

 in Constantinople for $44. Porter said " the good condition of these 

 camels recommended them to a butcher of Constantinople, who bought 

 them for purposes known only to himself." The natives now could 

 not impose upon the ignorance of the American officers. 



An amusing incident happened in Egypt. Wayne found it difficult 

 to get permission to carry camels out of the country. He wanted 

 twenty dromedaries; but could get permission to carry out only two. 

 After protest this number was increased to four and later to five. Some- 



