333 



THE CAMEL. 



Many portions of the Orient would be uninhabitable 

 but for the single-humped Arabian Camel or Dromedary 

 and the Baeterian Camel with two bumps, now known only 

 in their domesticated state; for they are not only "the 

 ships of the desert," but the source to which the natives 

 look for their supply of milk, flesh and hides, and the 

 hair which is a valuable article of trade. 



Much could be written about the abilitj^ of these 

 animals to carry great burdens, and to travel many days 

 without drink, because of the reserve supply of water 

 they can carry in their peculiarly constructed cellular 

 stomachs ; but our present interest is with the represen- 

 tatives of the Llama genus of the Camelidae family 

 sometimes called Cameloids. The Camelus however seems 

 to be the one genus that has gone on through the cen- 

 turies without changing from its original form, but is 

 the same todaj^ as it was before it bore the "Wise Men 

 of the East" across the desert with their gifts of gold, 

 frankincense and myrrh. 



The Alpaca is so closelj^ allied to the Llama as to be 

 regarded by some as a smaller variety of that animal, 

 rather than a distinct species. It exists both in a dom- 

 esticated and wild state, and is found in its native state 

 in the Andes Mountains, especially in Chili and Peru. 

 It has a longer neck, but otherwise resembles the sheep 

 in form as w^ell as size although it belongs to the Camel 

 family. The long, soft wool of this animal, which is 

 straighter than that of the sheep and very shiny, is woven 

 into beautiful silky fabrics, but most of the fabrics sold 

 as alpaca today contain little if any alpaca, being made 

 of a mixture of cotton and different wools. 



The Llama (Lama-peruana) has an extremely long neck, 

 and stands from three to four feet high. The dense hair 

 of the adult is long and coarse, but that on the young 

 Llamas is soft and silky. Its wool is used to some 

 extent, but in Peru, where it is most abundant, the Llama 

 is used by the natives as a beast of burden. The usual color 

 is white, black or browm ; the legs being black on both 

 the black and brown varieties. 



