THE CAMEL. 



DURING the countless ages that must have elapsed in 

 its upward progress from the original germ, by the 

 various processes of the survival of the fittest, selection, and 

 adaptability to circumstances, it is clear that the camel kept 

 its eyes strictly to business. The object of the germ and 

 its descendants was to build up an animal that should 

 be capable of enjoying existence in the desert. To this 

 they turned all their attention, with, it may be admitted, 

 marvellous success ; but it must be added that, while so 

 doing, they unaccountably neglected the beautiful, and 

 turned out a creature which in point of awkwardness and 

 uncouthness stands completely apart from the rest of the 

 brute creation. The camel's wide, spongy feet save it from 

 sinking in the sand, its long neck enables it either to allay 

 irritation by gnawing itself down its spine to the root of its 

 tail, or to grab a rider by the foot, while its hind legs are 

 specially adapted by their length to allow it to scratch itself 

 behind the ear. It may be admitted that in these respects 

 few animals have its advantages. As a provision against 

 sand storms it has the unique faculty of being able entirely 

 to close its nostrils ; while by complicated internal arrange- 

 ments it is able to carry its water supply about with it 



