THE STORY OF THE CAMEL. 



169 



thick eyelids, are half closed to avoid the glare of the sun; its fleshy feet are 

 remarkably broad, so that they produce only a slight impression upon the 

 yielding surface of the desert, over which other animals find great difficulty 



in walking. 



Its pace, suited to that of man, renders it admirably adapted to the 

 movement of caravans, in which there is always a crowd of persons on foot. 

 Considered as a beast of burden, the dromedary camel is of unquestionable 



BACTRIAN CAMEL OF CENTRAL ASIA. 



value in countries where the heat of the sun and the scarcity of food and 

 water preclude the possibility, not only of any other domestic animals bearing 

 burdens, but even of their traveling with speed and safety for great distances. 

 If the camel may be compared tO' a merchant vessel, the dromedary mer- 

 its the title of a ship of war, since it is suited to the journeys and combats 

 which lead the Arabs to traverse great distances over an ocean of sand. 



