LA OLIVA 31 



the way, of some sixty miles, more or less. The fact is 

 that the camels are turned out on the hill sides to feed 

 when they are not required for work, and a familiar 

 scene in Fuerteventura is one in which these animals 

 are dotted here and there on the barren slopes, feeding 

 on what isolated specimens of vegetation they can find. 

 There is no fear of their over-eating themselves. 



Camels and donkeys are the only beasts of burden 

 in Fuerteventura ; the former carry cargo almost exclu- 

 sively, while the latter are ridden by the inhabitants 

 when they find it necessary to ride, as for instance in 

 making a journey to some distant part of the island. 

 The camels are also used for the purpose of ploughing, 

 wherever it is possible to till the ground at all, the 

 plough used being a very simple affair, and made of 

 wood. The day before we left La Oliva, as we were 

 returning home from a long excursion, we came upon 

 some of the peasants engaged in ploughing, and had 

 some conversation with them, or rather Lorenzo had, 

 but they did not know of anything that would be likely 

 to interest us. I took some photographs of them, one 

 of which is reproduced here, and another forms the 

 frontispiece to this book. They were much interested 

 in the camera, and I should think it probable that very 

 few of them had ever seen such a thing before. 



The country where these peasants were ploughing 

 was on the slope of a broad shallow valley, its sides 

 gradually sweeping up to the bare mountains on either 

 hand, and on these slopes it seemed most curious to see 

 camels leisurely feeding their way, and cropping at the 

 almost microscopic vegetation that grew here and there 

 among the stones. As we walked up the centre of the 



