It is the camel--an animal made by God to endure these
dreadful regions, in which no other beast of burden can live and
travel. I dare say many of you have seen camels in menageries. They are
ugly animals, but very strong, swift and untiring. With a load of 800
pounds on his back, a camel will travel for days at the rate of eight
miles an hour, which is as fast as an ordinary ship can sail. More
wonderful still, he will do this without stopping for food or water.
Nature has provided him with an extra stomach, in which he keeps a
store of drink, and with a hump on his back, made of jelly-like fat,
which, in time of need, is absorbed into the system and appropriated as
food. Is it not strange to think of a creature with a cistern and a
meat-safe inside him? A horse would be useless in the desert, where no
oats or grass can be had; but the brave, patient camel goes steadily on
without complaint till the oasis is reached: then he champs his thorn
bushes, fills himself from the spring, allows the heavy pack to be
fastened on his back again, and is ready for further travel.
Now you know what sort of a ship it is that I am going to tell you
about.
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