The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1892-12-21
POINTS ABOUT THE CAMEL,
An Animal That Is Particularly Adapted
to Desert Life.

to Desert Lie
There is an Arab tradition cited in
| Burton's Gold Mines of INDIAN" re-
garding the creation of the camel,
which illustrates the popular but err
roneous opinion that that animal is ugly
| in form and temper
| The story goes that when Allah de-
! termined to create the horse he called
the south wind and said: 81 desire to
draw from thee a new being; condense
myself by parting with thy fnidty.
The Creator then took handful of this
element, blew upon it the breadth Of
life, and the noble quadruped ap-
peared.
But the horse complained against his
maker. His neck was too short to
reach the distant grass blades on the
march; his back had no hump to steady
a saddle: his hoofs were sharp and
sunk deep into the sand, and he added
many similar grievances. Whereupon
Allah created the camel to prove the
foolishness of his complaint.
The horse shuddered at the sight of
what he wanted 10 become. and this is
the reason every horse starts when
meeting its caricature for the first
time.
The camel is found in Arabia, Per-
STA, Asia Minor, Afghanistan, Beluehi-
stan, Mongolia, western China and
northern India. as well as in Syria,
Turkey, north Africa and parts Of
Spain.
The camel is known by the same root
word in nearly all these lands: not
page scarcely of an Arabic lexicon but
has reference to the camel; the lam
guage itself, according to Hammer
Purgstall, knows him by 5,744 names.
The only reason why Scripture is COM
paratively silent is because the topog-
raphy of the holy land is such that in
most parts the use Of the camel is an
impossibility.
The two main distinguished species
among its hundreds of varieties are the
southern Arabian (one-humped cameD
and the northern Bactrian (two-hunped
cameD. Each is especially adapted to
its locality. The Bactrian camel is
long-haired, tolerant of the intense cold
Of the steppes, and is said to eat snow
when thirsty.
The Ara biau species is short-haired,
intollerant of cold but able to endure
extreme heat. The limbs and the struo-
ture of the foot differ also in each, TO
conform to desert caravan paths in the
one case and to mountain trails and
passes in the other.
Apart from the difference in species,
to enumerate the parts of the camel is
to catalogue instances of evident de-
sign. His long neck, giving wide range
of vision in desert marches and ena-
bling him TO reach far to the meager
desert shrubs on either side of his path
way.
The cartilaginous texture of his
mouth, enabling him to eat hard and
thorny plants-the pasture of the des-
ert. Ears very small and nostrils large
for breathing, but also specially capa-
BILE of closure by valve-like folds against
the fearful simeon.
Eyes prominent, but protected by
heavy overhanging upper lid, limiting
vision upward and guarding from the
direct rays of the MONDAY sun.
Cushioned feet, peculiarly adapted
for the ease of the rider and the ami
NAL alike. Five horny pads to rest on
while kneeling for burden or repsse on
the hot sand.
His hump-not fctional. but a real
and acknowledged reserve store Of
nutriment, as we'll as natures pack
saddle for the commerce of ages-havs
you ever thought of the relation be.
tween your morning cup of Mocha and
the hump of camel in Yemen?
His water reservoirs in connection
with the stomach-not as in the occi-
dental Arabian Nights, for thirsty
travellers, but for the animal himself,
and enabling him, when in good con-
dition, to travel for five days without
water.
Again. the camel alone Of all rumi.
nants has incisor teeth in the upper
Jaw, which, with the peculiar structure
of the teeth, make his bite the animals
first and main defense, most formida-
bic The skeleton of the camel is full
of proofs of design.
Notice, for example, the arched back
bone. constructed in such way as to
sustain the greatest weight in proper
ton to the span of the supports.
A strong camel can bear 1000 pounds
weight, although the usual load in Ye-
men is not more than 600 pounds
The sole support and only wealth Of
large desert population near the era
die of the human race and all that can
be obtained from the animals is of
value.
Fuel, milk, excellent hair for tents,
ropes, shawls and coarser fabrics are
obtained from the living animals, and
fresh food, leather. bones and other
useful substances from the dead. Even
the footprints of the camel, though soon
obliterated, are of special value in the
desert.
A lighter or smaller foot would leave
no tracks, but the camers foot leaves
data for the BedcIin science of Affair
the art of navigation for the ships OF
the desert Camel tracks are gossip
and science, history and philosophy, TO
the Arab caravan.
Is il not also remarkable that al
though many diseases attack the camel,
none, according to the Burkhardt, are
epidemic Thus has Providence pre-
vented the sudden impoverishment of
those who, without the camel, would
suffer OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES Iutelli-
gencer.
Thomas G. Hodgkins, Of Setauke.,