XI 



cainol can 'g"o for seven days without water wlien properly cared 

 for, but ho ou^ht to be watered ouce a day whouevcr possiblo 

 and stinted in this respect only in extreme emergency. There 

 are jioneiies in his stomach, and they aro frequently, after death, 

 found to contain fluid ; but that they aro reservoirs pure and 

 simple is doubtful ; and it is very certain that the parched tra- 

 veller who das to cut open his dying camel and obtain its accumu- 

 lated stores of water, will thus procure onl}'- a very little fluid, 

 of a temperature of about 90° Fahr., a mawkish sub-acid flavour, 

 and an unpleasant odour. It is evident that the time-honoured 

 water-tank theory needs much modification, and is a danger- 

 ous one to insist on as a guide to practice during campaigns. 



As a matter of fact, the active and special services of camels 

 in war and peace have been most extensive and valuable. That 

 they have been associated with enormous losses is due to our 

 ignorance and mismanagement, and is decidedly not the camel's 

 fault. In Afghanistan, the Punjab, Sind, and Beluc"histan; in 

 Abyssinia, Egypt, and the Soudan, the camel has been essential 

 to success of the operations ; and it is certain that when we 

 need to fight in China, Central Asia, Western Asia, Arabia, and 

 North Africa, the. services of this extremely valuable baggage 

 aninuil will be again called for. The camel is, I believe, under a 

 cloud now in official estimation, but, like the Royal Marines, he 

 has done good service on many an occasion, and is always ready 

 to do it again and sure to turn up when there is hard work 

 going. Although the camel spits and grumbles when beino- 

 loaded, though he makes unpleasant noises in the camp at night, 

 and though he is generally considered unlovely in the extreme — 

 and certainly no European nose can appreciate his odour — these 

 unpleasant habits and conditions are to my mind more than 

 redeemed by the undaunted and plucky manner in which he 

 plods on with his load until he actually falls dead, by the stolid 

 manner in which he remains quiet after a mortal wound until he 

 rolls over on his side to die, and by tin; ^vay in which he steadily 

 plods on mile after mile under his heavy load until the halt is 

 called, even for a march of considerably more than regulation 

 lenirth. 



