C A M E L U S. 
650 
Of every fpecles of conveyance, that by camels is the 
cheaped and mod expeditions. The merchants and other 
paffengers unite in a caravan, to prevent the above infn 11s 
and robberies of the Arabs. Thefe caravans are often very 
numerous, and are always compofed of more camels than 
men. Each camel is loaded in proportion to hisdrength ; 
and, when overloaded, he refnfes to march, and continues 
lying till his burden is lightened. In thefe commercial tra¬ 
vels, their march is not hadened : as the route is often feven 
or eight hundred leagues, their motions and journeys are 
regulated. They walk only, and perform about from ten 
to twelve leagues each day. Every night they are un¬ 
loaded, and allowed to pafrure at freedom. When in a 
rich country, or fertile meadow, they eat, in lefs than an 
hour, as much as ferves them to ruminate the whole night, 
and to nourifh them during twenty-four hours. Their fa¬ 
cility of abftaining long from drink, proceeds not from ha¬ 
bit alone, but is rather an effeft of their ftntfture. Inde¬ 
pendent of the four domachs, which are common to rumi¬ 
nating animals, the camels have a fifth bag, which ferves 
them as a refervoir for water. This fifth (tomach is pecu¬ 
liar to the camel. It is fo large as to contain a vad quan¬ 
tity of water, where it remains without corrupting, or 
mixing with the other aliments. When the animal is 
preffed with third, and has occafion for water to macerate 
his dry food in ruminating, he makes part of this water 
mount into his paunch, or even as high as the cefophagus, 
by a (imple contraction of certain mufcles. Thus enabled 
to pafs many days without drinking, thefe inoffenlive crea¬ 
tures, at the fird fignal r bend their knees, and lie down to 
be loaded, which laves their conductor the trouble of rai¬ 
ling the goods to a great height. As foon as they are loaded, 
they rife fpontaneoufly, and without affidance. One of them 
is mounted by their conduftor, who goes before, and re¬ 
gulates the march of all the followers. They require nei¬ 
ther whip nor fpur. But, when they begin to be tired, 
their courage isfupported, or rather their fatigue charmed, 
by tinging, or by the found of fome indrmnent, or drum. 
Their conductors relieve each other in finging; and, 
when they want to prolong the journey, they give the ani¬ 
mals but one hour’s reft ; after which, refuming their 
fong, they proceed on their march for feveral hours more, 
and the finging is continued till they arrive at another 
refting place, when the camels again lie down ; and their 
loads, by unloofing the ropes, are allowed to glide off on 
each fide of the animals. Thus they fleepon their bellies 
in the middle of their baggage, which next morning is 
fixed on their backs with equal quicknefs and facility as it 
had been detached the evening before. 
Fatigue, hunger, third, and meagrenefs, are not the only 
inconveniencies to which thefe animals are fubjefted : to 
all thefe evils they are prepared by caffration. One male 
is only left for eight or ten females ; and the labouring 
camels are generally geldings. By this means they are 
more tractable, and at all feafons ready for fervice. The 
breeding females are not obliged to labour, but are allowed 
to pafture and produce at full liberty. The advantage de¬ 
rived from their produce, and their milk, is perhaps fupe- 
rior to what could be drawn from their working. In fome 
places many of the females are fpayed, in order to fit them 
for labour; aud it is alleged that this operation, inftead 
of diminifhing, augments their firength, vigour, and 
plumpnefs. In general, the fatter camels are, they are 
t He more capable of enduring great fatigue. Their bunches 
feem to proceed from a redundance of nourifhment ; for, 
during long journeys, in which their conduftor is obliged 
to luilband their food, and where they often fuffer much 
hunger and third, thefe bundles gradually diminifli, and 
become fo flat, that the place where they were is only per¬ 
ceptible by the length of the hair, which is always longer 
on thefe parts than on the red of the back. The meagre¬ 
nefs of the body augments in proportion as the bunches de¬ 
crease. The Moors, who tranfport all articles of merchan- 
dife from Barbary and Numidia, as faras ./Ethiopia, fet out 
with their catnels well laden, which are very fat and vigo¬ 
rous ; and bring back the fame animals fo meagre, that 
they commonly fell at a low price to the Arabs of the De- 
feit,. to be again fattened. By confidering, under one 
point ot view, all the qualitiesof this animal, and all the 
advantages derived from him, it mud be acknowledged 
that lie is the mod ufeful creature fubjefted to the fervice 
ot man. Gold and filk conditute not the true riches of the 
Ead. The camel is the genuine treafure of Alia. He is 
more valuable than the elephant; for lie may be faid to 
perform an equal quantity of labour at a twentieth part of 
the expence. Belides, the whole fpecies are under fub- 
jeftion to man, who propagates and multiplies them at 
plealure. But he has no fuch dominion over the elephant, 
which he cannot multiply, and the individuals of whom he 
conquers with great labour and difficulty. The camel is 
not only more valuable than the elephant, but is perhaps 
equal in utility to the horfe, the afs, and the ox, when their 
powers are united. In another view, too, the camel fu- 
perfedes all other beads of burden ; for the exhauded tra¬ 
veller, in cafes of extreme didrefs for food, indead of pe- 
rifliing of third and hunger, kills his camel, drinks the 
water remaining in the refervoir in his domach,a:id makes a 
meal on his flefh. Few travellers have had greater occa¬ 
fion to try the perfeverance of the camel, and receive all 
the fervices which this animal is capable of affording, than 
Mr. Bruce, on his return from Abyffinia to Cairo : on his 
way between Sennar and Seyne, in the deferts ead of the 
Nile, after a long and dreary journey, in which he and his 
attendants had exhauded their provifions, to the lad re¬ 
mains of “ their miferable dock of black bread and dirty 
water;” the drength of his camels was fo far overcome, 
that no arts nor ettorts could raife them from the ground ; 
or, at lead, prevail with them to dand but two minutes, 
without kneeling down again. In this hopelefs fituation, 
his only refource was, to kill two of tliofe fainting animals, 
to draw out the water that remained in their domachs for 
drink, each affording about four gallons, and to take a part 
of their fledt for food. Mankind owe alfo other benefits to 
this animal. The Arabs, and other nations among whom 
they are common, life their fledt and milk, not merely in 
cafes of extreme neceffity, but even for their ordinary 
food. The fledt is dry, but of an agreeable fade ; though, 
except for feads, none are ever killed but the old, and 
tliofe without any pains being taken to fatten them. The 
milk is wholefome, nouridting, and antileptic ; but always 
faintly acid in its tade. In the more temperate latitudes of 
Afia and Africa, the hair is of a filky finenefs, and fells at 
a confiderable price. It is wrought into many valuable 
duffs. His flfin is another article of great value. Camel’s 
dung is the only fuel which travellers ufe to kindle their 
fires in the defert. If dry, it kindles indantaneoufly, and 
affords a drong heat, and a bright flame. No wonder then, 
that the Arabians have, from the earlied ages, alliduoufly 
availed themfelves of the fervices which this animal is- 
qualified to afford. Six thoufand camels were part of the 
immenfe wealth of the patriarch Job ; to tend, to train, tb- 
improve the breed, and to multiply the numbers of. their 
camels, is to this day a chief employment of the Arabians.. 
In tracing tlie annals of remote antiquity, we cannot difeo- 
ver the period when camels exifted only in a wild date. But 
fo gentle an animal, would, the indant lie became known 
to man, be fubjefted to his authority. In Egypt, the camel 
has been perhaps as long known and ferviceable as in Ara¬ 
bia. He is there 11 fed chiefly as a bead of burden. A 
loaded camel travels between Cairo and Suez, a journey of 
46 hours, without needing either food or water. The 
food on which the Egyptians fudain him, is bruifed dones- 
or kernels of dates. Wild camels are faid to fubfid dill in 
the deferts, in the temperate latitudes of Afia. Mr. Kerr, 
in his Animal Kingdom, p. 288, informs us, that, on ex¬ 
amining an individual of this fpecies which was (hewn at 
Edinburgh, he obferved a peculiar conformation of the !kiu 
of the neck a little behind the head : a fpace about three 
inches by four was full of minute open pores, apparently 
the dufts of miliary glands, from which a heavy-duelling 
aqueous. 
