chine that should be best calculated to meet the
exigencies of the animal, where could we find a
better solution of it than in the construction of
the Camel? The pads, or sole-cushions of the—spreading feet, are divided into two toes without
being externally separated, which buoy up, as it
were, the whole bulk with their expansive elasticity from sinking in the sand, on which it advances with silent step,—the nostrils so formed
that the animal can close them at will, to exclude
the drift-sand of the parching simoom ;—the powerful upper incisor teeth for assisting in the division
of the tough prickly shrubs and dry stunted herbage of the desert;—and above all, the cellular structure of the stomach, which is capable of being converted into an assemblage of water-tanks,—bear ample testimony to the care manifested in the
structure of this extraordinary quadruped.” [1]
The head of the Camel is long and somewhat uncouth; placed at the end of a lengthened but ungraceful neck; the orbits of the eyes are protuberant; the ears are small; the upper lip is tumid and cleft. There are callous bosses upon the breast, and upon the bending points of the limbs; a provision for the protection of the animal, when it kneels or lies down upon the burning sand, for repose, or for the reception of its burden.
The Arabian Camel (Camelus dromedarius, Linn.) the species best known to us, is distinguished from its only congener by having but a single hump upon the back, by being rather smaller, and more slightly made, and by the hair being less profuse and closer. Its colour is usually pale brown, but individuals are seen cream-coloured or white. We
- ↑ Penny Cycl. Art. Camel.
