AND DROMEDARY. 375 



stomach, which serves as a reservoir, to hold a 

 greater quantity of water than the animal has an 

 immediate occasion for. It is of a sufficient 

 capacity to contain a large quantity of water, 

 where the fluid remains without corrupting, or 

 without being adulterated by the other aliments. 

 When the camel finds itself pressed with thirst, 

 it has here an easy resource for quenching it ;* it 

 throws up a quantity of this water, by a simple 

 contraction of the muscles, into the other sto- 

 machs, and this serves to macerate its dry and 

 simple food : in this manner, as it drinks but 

 seldom, it takes in a large quantity at a time ; 

 and travellers, when straitened for water, have 

 been often known to kill their camels for that 

 which they expected to find within them. 



In Turkey, Persia, Arabia, Barbary, and 

 Egypt, their whole commerce is carried on by 

 means of camels : No carriage is more speedy, 

 and none less expensive in these countries. 

 Merchants and travellers unite themselves into a 

 body, furnished with camels, to secure themselves 

 from the insults of the robbers that infest the 

 countries in which they live. This assemblage is 

 called a caravan, in which the numbers are some- 

 times known to amount to above ten thousand, 

 and the number of camels is often greater than 

 those of the men : each of these animals is loaded 

 according to his strength, and he is so sensible 

 of it himself, that when his burden is too great, 

 he remains still upon his belly, the posture in 

 which he is loaden, refusing to rise till his burden 

 be lesseed or taken away. In general, the large 



