248 THE CAMEL 



sick and wounded I have nothing to say, except that 

 the arm-chairs could be made a little more com- 

 fortable, and ought to be constructed so that the 

 sufferer should be protected from the cold at nights, 

 which in Afghanistan and the Soudan was very 

 intense, and added to the misery and pain, which was 

 quite enough in itself. This could be easily done by 

 strapping a waterproof rug round it. As to the 

 hammock, there are three points deserving of atten- 

 tion : (1) the way in which they are secured to the 

 saddle ; (2) the angle at which they are slung ; and, 

 last but not least, (3) the adjustment and balance. All 

 three want looking to and putting to rights ; and 

 when this is properly done the motion will be dimin- 

 ished, and the patient will subsequently suffer less. 

 The balance particularly requires to be preserved, 

 because without it it would be impossible to secure the 

 first two points, and if on one side a man happens to 

 be much heavier than the other and you cannot get 

 two men of equal weight the difference ought to be 

 made up by artificial means. I can speak feelingly, 

 because on one occasion, for a journey of 200 miles, my 

 companion was a far heavier man, and while he was 

 close to the ground I was right up on the animal's 

 back. That we both suffered extremely I need scarcely 

 say. These are, however, questions that strictly con- 

 cern the broader subject of transport, so I will say no 

 more about them. 



Precau- Each camel should be served out with a saddle 



saddle* 8 fitted and stuffed especially to suit it, and to avoid 



mistakes its own number should be stamped on the 



saddle. The greatest care should be paid to this to 



