CHARACTERISTICS AND TEMPERAMENT 43 



active in a hilly district as the wild goat of the 

 mountain. 



In the sandy wastes of his own desert, for which General 

 Nature clearly intended and created him, the camel 

 undoubtedly is the most invaluable of all animals for 

 riding and carrying loads, and here he will defy 

 competition. The fact, therefore, of his not having 

 spread so universally as the horse, the ox, and the ass 

 is thus accounted for. Outside his own domain, 

 although his value is diminished, he is, nevertheless, 

 for military purposes a very valuable acquisition. He 

 is said to have an antipathy to crossing streams of 

 water, which stamps him wherever he goes with the 

 hall-mark of his desert origin. I cannot vouch for the 

 truth of this statement from my own experience, for I 

 have seen thousands wade through streams of icy cold 

 water without showing any disinclination to do so, or 

 even refusing, or giving any trouble whatever over it. 

 Of course, they may have got over their objection by 

 then, and whether they would have done so if left 

 to their own free will and choice I cannot say ; but 

 what I have seen them object most decidedly to has 

 been the descent of a steep and slippery slope. 



The camel's temperament is decidedly passive and Tempera- 

 anomalous, for he cannot in my estimation be said to 

 have either a good or a bad temper. He is looked upon 

 as being vicious, but I must admit that my experience 

 has been to the contrary. Every rule has an exception, 

 and there are times, however, when roused, or especially 

 when he is ' mast ' (rampant), that he becomes highly 

 dangerous and savage to man and beast, biting and 

 kicking most severely. As a rule, though, he is a most 



