194 ' THE CAMEL. 



formed of cloth made from the camel's hair, which they 

 pull off and spin with a hand-spindle. When preparing to 

 weave it, they drive two rows of pegs into the ground, 

 wrap the yarn around them, and begin their work by run- 

 ning a kind of wooden sword through the yarn, under one 

 thread and over another, in the manner of darning : this 

 sword they never part with, and it appears as if used for 

 ages ; they next turn up the sword sideways, pull the work 

 tight, and beat the whole together. 



When the materials are completed there is little diffi- 

 culty in putting up the tent. They sew the pieces together 

 with the same kind of twine, through holes made with an 

 iron bodkin. Four short crooked sticks are then fastened 

 to each end, which answer the purpose of loops, and two 

 on either side. When this is done they spread it out, 

 stretching and fixing the cords by which it is fastened to 

 stout pegs, driven into the ground with a hard smooth stone, 

 that serves the purpose of a hammer. They then creep 

 beneath the awning, and place a block, whose top is 

 rounded like a wooden bowl, in the centre, by means of 

 which the tent is raised and kept steady. The ropes arc 

 next tightened, and the tent assumes the shape of an 

 oblong umbrella, about two feet from the ground. During 

 the day they make a doorway by raising up the cloth, with 

 two small props ; but as soon as the evening draws on, 

 and the cold wind of the desert begins to blow, they close 

 the entrance, and betake themselves'to its shelter for the 

 night. This tent contains the whole family ; the mistress 

 and her handmaid, the master and his slave. 



The mention of a tent naturally leads us back to the 

 earliest ages of society, to the plains of Mamre, and the 

 wanderings of the patriarchal families. Tents were then 

 most probably of various kinds ; some simple as an Arab's, 

 put up or taken down at the shortest notice ; others more 

 durable, and even magnificent. They were also of various 

 sizes, and adapted to different ranks, as we may learn 



