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THE 



CAMEL AND THE DROMEDARY. 



THESE animals are in all refpefts the fanne, except that the camel 

 has but one bunch on his back j the dromedary has two. The 

 camel alfo is the ftrongeft and largeft. The two races produce with 

 each other, and the mixed breed formed between them is confidered the 

 bcft, the mod patient, and moft indefatigable. 



The camel has a bunch on the back, fmall head, little ears, long 

 neck and bending ; about fix feet fix inches to the top of his bunch ; 

 foft hair, longell about the neck, throat, and bunch; tail long, hoofs 

 fmall, divided, but not entirely} the foal exceflively tough and pliant; 

 has fix callofities on the legs, one on each knee, one on the infide of 

 each fore-leg on the upptrr joint, one on the infide of the hind-leg at the 

 bottom of the thigh, another on the lower part of the bread, being the 

 places on which the animal refts when lying down. 



The camel is by far the moft numerous, and is fpread over the defarts 

 of Arabia, Africa, Perfia, Tartary, and great part of the eaftern Indies, 

 but cannot fubfifr, or propagate, in the variable climates towards the 

 north ; they feem formed for countries where fiirubs are plenty, and 

 •water fcarce ; where they can travel along the fandy defart, without be- 

 ing impeded by rivers, and find food at expected diftances ; fuch a 

 country is the defart of Arabia, and feems moft adapted to this animal. 

 They have been tranfported to Spain, to America, to Barbadoes, but 

 without efFc6t. 



The camel is the moft temperate of animals, and can travel feveral 

 days without drinking. Its feet are formed for travelling upon fand, and. 

 utterly unfit for moift or marftiy places ; the Arabians, therefore, find a 

 iTioft ufeful afiiftant in this animal, where no other could fubfift, and by 

 its means crofs thofe defarts with fafety, which would be unpaflfable by 

 any other method of conveyance. If the camel fhould flip, as in moift 

 places it might, it would fplit afunder under'a burden. 



The natives could neither fubfift, traffick, or travel without the camel j 



its milk and flefti make part of their nourilhment; its hair, which ic 



fheds yearly, their clothmg; and if they fear an invading enemy, their 



camels convey them in a fingle day above an buodred miles. All the 



2 Hz armies 



