Birds and Nature Vol. 10 No. 5 [December 1901]

The Camel varies nearly as much as do the horses of our own country. There are many grades and degrees from the ordinary baggage Camel to the high-toned thoroughbred which corresponds to our high-class race horse. These racing Camels are long-legged and long-necked, the hump stands upright; is conical in shape and covers about one-fourth of the length of the body; the head is rather short, the eyes large and dull, and the ears very small but mobile. The hair is especially fine and soft.

A friend of ours who owned a fine saddle Camel was able to make from eighty to ninety miles a day if his Camel was well fed and watered and was allowed a rest at noon. This pace he was able to continue without injury for three or four consecutive days, and after a well earned rest he could repeat the journey.

A baggage Camel, carrying a load of perhaps three hundred pounds, would not make over thirty miles a day, but could often march twelve hours or longer without rest. However, a man of position would never condescend to ride on a baggage Camel.

Our friend told us that in buying saddle Camels for our desert ride we would be obliged to pay about sixty-five dollars each, and that we must look for those with soft backs, those which did not require the whip and would not cry when getting up or lying down. But he added that with these excellent traits we must not expect too much, for the best Camel was capable of every fault associated with a vicious disposition. And, indeed, when, some days later, our favorite Camel, when passing an Arab riding a donkey, turned his head suddenly and gave the man’s arm a vicious bite, we were well satisfied that our friend’s estimate of the Camel’s disposition was absolutely correct. The wound inflicted by our animal was very severe, as the bite of a Camel usually is. We sought our friend’s aid in adjusting the matter and he related some of his experiences with this ungrateful animal.

At one time he was the owner of a Camel to which he had always been especially kind. He started on a journey across the desert, and after annoying him in every possible way with a continued persistence surprising in so stupid a beast, the Camel, in a fit of rage, broke into a gallop, throwing the gentleman from his saddle to the ground, trampled upon him and then galloped away at its own sweet will. We were also told that when the natives found that their Camels had a grudge against them, they so feared the revengeful beasts that they would place their clothing before the Camel and hide themselves behind bushes. The animal would then expend its rage upon the clothing, trampling and tearing it; the injury, real or imagined, would then be forgotten.

As it is about impossible to retain one’s seat on a galloping Camel, they are trained only to trot. “The steady, alternating movement of the legs on the opposite side of the animal stops the sideways jolting motion, and if the rider skillfully lies back in his saddle, he experiences no more inconvenience from the still somewhat violent shaking up than he would if he were on horseback.”

After purchasing our Camels, we began to study the habits and needs of our new acquisitions. We found ourselves obliged to provide food of a kind that caused us some surprise. Our Camels were far from fastidious. In fact, the poorer the food, the better it seemed to suit the needs of these peculiar beasts for the dryest of vegetation was acceptable. Shrubs and thorny branches were rapidly disposed of and one wondered that even their callous mouths could take them without injury. They were also fond of small beans, peas and vetches and were not averse to making a juicy meal on cultivated fields. But this indulgence was to be avoided, as it was liable to produce inflammation and death.

The idea that Camels when working could go very long periods without food and water, we found to be erroneous. The true ruminant has four stomachs; the Camel has three divisions only. The first two divisions are provided with cells or pouches which can be closed by strong muscles. These contain fluid only and it is on account of this peculiar construction that the animal can go several days without water, but when traveling in the heat of an African desert, at least every four days, the Camel must have water, nourishment and rest.

On account of their acute smell, they will detect water at some distance and it is really an interesting sight when thirsty, tired-out Camels draw near to a well or river. They lift their heads high in the air, inhale long breaths with half-closed eyes, lay their ears back and then start to run, so that one has to sit firmly in the saddle if he does not wish to be thrown out. When the beasts finally reach the well they crowd to the water and give themselves up to the enjoyment of drinking.

The food supply, which assists the Camel in times of fasting is stored in the hump, which is really one great lump of fat. In times of plenty this is firm and pyramid-like in form, and may weigh as much as thirty pounds, but after prolonged hunger it will nearly disappear; weighing perhaps only four to six pounds.

This provision of nature, added to its peculiar stomach, makes the Camel in many respects the most useful of domestic animals. It has been domesticated from very early times. We know that they were owned in great numbers four thousand years ago. Pharaoh gave them as a present to Abraham and the patriarch Job had at one time a herd numbering six thousand.

A baby Camel is a misshapen little thing, but like all young animals it is playful and interesting. It is about three feet high when it enters the world, but in a week’s time is much larger. It is able to follow its mother soon after birth. She will defend her own to the extent of her strength if needful.

The Camel is a true animal of the desert and only thrives in hot, dry localities. It is of little use in a mountainous country, as it is a poor climber and cannot remain in health when fed on luxuriant vegetation.

In the water it is of still less use. Perhaps because the desert is its “native heath,” it holds an antipathy for water and either cannot or will not swim, so the crossing of a stream with a caravan becomes a serious undertaking. Sir Samuel Baker recounts his experience in crossing the Atbara river (about three hundred yards wide.) “Water-skins were inflated and passed under the belly of the Camel like a girth. A man sat upon its back while one or two swam by its side as guides. As the current of the river was rapid, the animal was usually half a mile down stream before gaining the opposite bank.”

Some time after we became acquainted with the one-humped Camel (the Dromedary) of Africa, our journeyings took us to the regions of Central Asia and there we met for the first time the Bactrian or two-humped Camel. This varies somewhat from the Dromedary as it has a larger body, shorter legs, longer and thicker hair and is able to live in a cooler climate and at a greater elevation. Although stupid in intellect, like the Dromedary, we must give it the credit of having a much better disposition. It is of the greatest use to its owners. Its hair, milk, skin and flesh are all put to use. It is not only used as a pack animal, but is harnessed to carts as well. Put to use when five years old, it will, with good treatment, continue to work until its twenty-fifth year. With its help, its owner is able to climb mountains thirteen thousand feet high, and to cross treeless wildernesses where horses would soon perish. It could not be replaced by any other domestic animal. “The horse is the companion of the inhabitant of the steppes,” but the Bactrian Camel, the “Ship of Asia,” is his faithful servant.

John Ainslie.

THE HILL SUMMIT

This feast-day of the sun, his altar thereIn the broad west has blazed for vesper-song;And I have loitered in the vale too longAnd gaze now a belated worshipper.Yet may I not forget that I was ’ware,So journeying, of his face at intervalsTransfigured where the fringed horizon falls, —A fiery bush with coruscating hair.And now that I have climbed and won this height,I must tread downward through the sloping shadeAnd travel the bewildered tracks till night.Yet for this hour I still may here be stayedAnd see the gold air and the silver fadeAnd the last bird fly into the last light.Dante Gabriel Rossetti.

THE ZEBRA

When passing through the zoological garden one summer afternoon, my attention was called to the antics of the fun-loving, shy and graceful Zebra which was delighting the children with his original performance. There was no ringmaster to indicate the various evolutions, but Zebra Joe was furnishing a sort of circus all by himself. He seemed to have forgotten that he was a stranger in a strange land, and could he have been transported to his own country in South Africa, I hardly imagine he would have seemed gayer or more free.

The Zebra is of all things a freedom-loving animal. He will go like the wind and, if pursued singly, cannot be caught. It is true that large herds are overtaken, as they impede each other’s progress, but it is a shame that these beautiful creatures should be hunted at all. The European will try to kill them with bullets, the natives with javelins, but more frequently these dainty animals are caught in pitfalls and then captured or slain according to the will of the pursuer.

They live gregariously and are found in groups of from ten to twenty, though there are accounts of large herds. Probably these were migrating. When running, they usually go in single file, the stallions leading. They are not very fastidious in regard to their food, but if the supply fails in one place they seek another locality. The Zebra defends itself from other animals by biting and kicking, and the lion is about the only foe which can overcome it.

Of the three species, the mountain Zebra or true Zebra lives farthest south. It ranges over the mountainous country of Cape Colony. It is the smallest of the three varieties, and is distinguished from the others, not only by the peculiar markings, but by the large ears, short mane and scantily haired tail. It is the only variety where the transverse markings of the legs extend to the hoofs.

It is a very curious fact that the different species of Zebra are never found together. Perhaps they fear each other, but they do not fear other animals, for all agree that in the herds of quagga (which is grouped with the Zebra) are nearly always found spring-boks, gnus, ostriches and also buffalos. Ostriches, especially, are the companions of this species of wild horse, which takes advantage of the vigilance and sagacity of these great birds. Some species of the Zebra follow the horses of traveling parties and graze among them, seeming to have a certain friendship for the one-hoofed domestic animals.

The Burchell’s Zebra is the largest and noblest appearing of the species. It is a rover of the plains and does not seek the mountainous districts where the true Zebra is found. It stands about four and one-half feet in height at the shoulders. The general ground color of the hair varies from white to yellowish brown and the stripes are brown or black. The hoofs are more like those of a pony than the other species. It is not found south of the Orange river and it is not known how far north its range extends.

Our illustration shows an example of Chapman’s Zebra. This, in reality, is a variety of Burchell’s Zebra and should not be considered apart from it.

The third species is called Grévy’s Zebra. More slender than the true Zebra, it is somewhat like it in its markings. “Colonel J. A. Grant, who first met these Zebras in the mountains north of Victoria Nyanza, writes that they were found in herds comprising from two to nine individuals.” He says that “one of their number, probably the largest male, takes general charge of the herd; and it was noticed that a large antelope kept watch and gave the alarm on our appearance. They are rarely found outside the forest, preferring it to the open plain, which is generally bare of grass; or they frequent a country with clumps of dense brushwood, or with outcrops of granite, around which they get abundant food, and they were never seen far from running water or hills.”

“They showed much sympathy when a comrade was wounded, lingering with the hurt one at the risk of their lives; they lingered with our laden donkeys one day on the march.” These Zebras are sometimes found at an elevation of two or three thousand feet.

There is a variety of opinion in regard to the possibility of taming the Zebra. Undoubtedly many incompetent persons have made the attempt and failed. It is claimed that others have succeeded. There is a record that a couple of beautiful animals in England could be harnessed to a light carriage and used like horses. On the other hand, there is told the story of a rich settler in Cape Colony who had reared several Zebras. He had perfect confidence in their docility and he thought one day that he would have them harnessed to his carriage. This he did, taking the reins himself. The details of the ride are lost to posterity, but in a very short time the gentleman found himself in their stable together with the remnants of his carriage. This so discouraged his friends and neighbors that they unanimously declared the Zebra to be untamable and they made no further attempt.

“All who have seen Zebras in their native haunts, speak of the beautiful appearance presented by a drove, as they stand for a moment to gaze at the hunter, and then wheel round to seek safety in flight. It has been stated that, when standing on sandy ground in full moonlight, a Zebra harmonizes so exactly with the color of its surroundings as to be quite invisible at a short distance.”

John Ainslie.

ASPIRATION

Oh, for a soul that fulfilsMusic like that of a bird!Thrilling with rapture the hills,Heedless if any have heard.Or, like the flower that bloomsLone in the midst of the trees,Filling the world with perfume,Careless if anyone sees.Or, like the wandering wind,Over the meadow that swings,Bringing wild sweets to mankind,Knowing not that which it brings.Oh, for a way to impartBeauty, no matter how hard!Like unto nature, whose artNever once dreams of reward.– Madison Cawein, in Lippincott’s Magazine.