THE CAMEL. 409 



and back again between sunrise and sunset ; the whole dis- 

 tance being equal to one hundred and thirty miles. In eleven 

 hours its strength failed, after having finished about one hun- 

 dred and fifteen miles^ and lost twenty minutes in twice 

 crossing the Nile in a ferry-boat ; but had it not been urged 

 to forced exertion, it would probably have performed one hun- 

 dred and eighty or even two hundred miles within the space 

 of twenty-four hours. Messengers have travelled in seven 

 days from Bagdad to Aleppo, which is a journey of twenty- 

 five ; and from Cairo by land to Mecca, which is forty-five 

 stations, in eighteen days, without changing their camels. 

 But the swiftness of this animal never approaches for short 

 distances even to that of a common horse : though it is per- 

 haps unrivalled for the ease with which it will despatch an 

 uninterrupted journey of several days and nights if allowed 

 its own natural pace. Twelve miles an hour is reckoned its 

 utmost degree of celerity in trotting ; at full speed it may gal- 

 lop from sixteen to eighteen, but it cannot support so violent 

 an effort for more than half an hour without showing symj>- 

 toms of distress. Niebuhr calculates that the larger ones 

 make nine hundred and seventy-five paces in half an hour, 

 and the smaller one thousand and fifty. In those used for 

 carriage, strength is the principal quality desired. In com- 

 mon cases the load is from four hundred to five hundred 

 pounds for a short journey, and from three hundred to four 

 hundred pounds for one of any considerable distance. Some 

 will carry fifteen cwt. ; but the longer the journey, and the 

 fewer wells on the route, the lighter is the burden. The 

 capability of bearing thirst varies considerably among the 

 different races. The Anatolian camel requires water every 

 second day : in Arabia, the utmost extent to which they can 

 endure in summer without drinking is four days, and in cases 

 of absolute necessity they may perhaps go five : but in the 

 caravans from Darfur they travel nine or ten days without 

 water. Burckhardt never heard that the Arabs, even in the 

 extremity of their distress, slaughtered this animal for the 

 sake of finding a supply in its stomach to allay their thirst ; 

 nor did he think it likely that they would resort to this expe- 

 dient, as their own destruction was involved in that of the 

 beast on which they rode. In Egypt they are guided by a 

 cord attached to a nose-ring ; but those of Arabia seldom 

 have their nose perforated, and ara more obedient to the 

 Vol. II — M m 



