=Productions, Animal and Vegetable.=—The camel, ‘the ship of the desert,’ deserves the first mention. There he is indispensable; he is yoked to the plough, draws water from the well [328], bears it for his lordly master in _mashaks_, or ‘skins,’ in the passage of the desert, and can dispense with it himself altogether during several days. This quality, the formation of his hoof, which has the property of contracting and expanding according to the soil, and the induration of his mouth, into which he draws by his tongue the branches of the _babul_, the _khair_, and _jawas_, with their long thorns, sharp and hard as needles, attest the beneficence of the Supreme Artist. It is singular that the Arabian patriarch, who so accurately describes the habits of various animals, domestic and ferocious, and who was himself lord of three thousand camels, should not have mentioned the peculiar properties of the camel, though in alluding to the incapacity of the unicorn (rhinoceros) for the plough, he seems indirectly to insinuate the use of others besides the ox for this purpose. The camels of the desert are far superior to those of the plains, and those bred in the _thals_ of Dhat and Barmer are the best of all. The Rajas of Jaisalmer and Bikaner have corps of camels trained for war.[8.2.62] That of the former State is two hundred strong, eighty of which belong to the prince; the rest are the quotas of his chiefs; but how they are rated, or in what ratio to the horsemen of the other principalities, I never thought of inquiring. Two men are mounted on each camel, one facing the head, the other the rear, and they are famous in a retreating action: but when compelled to come to close quarters, they make the camel kneel down, tie his legs, and retiring behind, make a breastwork of his body, resting the matchlock over the pack-saddle. There is not a shrub in the desert that does not serve the camel for fodder. =The Wild Ass.=—Khar-gadha, Gorkhar, or the wild ass,[8.2.63] is an inhabitant of the desert, but most abounds in the southern part, about Dhat, and the deep _rui_ which extends from Barmer to Bankasar and Baliari, along the north bank of the great Rann, or ‘salt desert.’ =Rojh or Nilgae, Lions, etc.=—The noble species of the deer, the nilgae, is to be met with in numerous parts of the desert; and although it enjoys a kind of immunity from the Rajput of the plains, who may hunt, but do not eat its flesh, here, both for food and for its hide, it is of great use.[8.2.64] Of the other wild animals common to India they have the tiger, fox, jackal, hare, and also the nobler animal, the lion. =Domestic Animals.=—Of domestic animals, as horses, oxen, cows, sheep, goats, asses, there is no want, and even the last mentioned is made to go in the plough.