Story of the Bible Animals: A Description of the Habits and Uses of every living Creature mentioned in the Scriptures, with Explanation of Passages in the Old and New Testament in which Reference is made to themWood, J. G. (John George)
Religion
Story of the Bible Animals: A Description of the Habits and Uses of every living Creature mentioned in the Scriptures, with Explanation of Passages in the Old and New Testament in which Reference is made to them
Wood, J. G. (John George)
Animals in the Bible; Nature in the Bible
When the Camel kneels, it first drops on its knees, and then on
the joints of the hind legs. Next it drops on its breast, and then
again on the bent hind legs. In rising it reverses the process, so
that a novice is first pitched forward, then backward, then forward,
and then backward again, to the very great disarrangement of his
garments, and the probable loss of his seat altogether. Then when
the animal kneels he is in danger of being thrown over its head by
the first movement, and jerked over its tail by the second; but
after a time he learns to keep his seat mechanically.
As to the movement of the animal, it is at first almost as
unpleasant as can be conceived, and has been described by several
travellers, some of whose accounts will be here given. One
well-known traveller declares that any person desiring to practise
Camel-riding can readily do so by taking a music-stool, screwing
it up as high as possible, putting it into a cart without springs,
sitting on the top of it cross-legged, and having the cart driven at
full speed transversely over a newly-ploughed field.
There is, however, as great a difference in the gait of Camels as
of horses, some animals having a quiet, regular, easy movement,
while others are rough and high-stepping, harassing their riders
grievously in the saddle. Even the smooth-going Camel is, however,
very trying at first, on account of its long swinging strides, which
are taken with the legs of each side alternately, causing the body
of the rider to swing backwards and forwards as if he were rowing in
a boat.
Those who suffer from sea-sickness are generally attacked with the
same malady when they make their first attempts at Camel-riding,
while even those who are proof against this particular form of
discomfort soon begin to find that their backs are aching, and that
the pain becomes steadily worse. Change of attitude is but little
use, and the wretched traveller derives but scant comfort from
the advice of his guide, who tells him to allow his body to swing
freely, and that in a short time he will become used to it. Some
days, however, are generally consumed before he succeeds in training
his spine to the continual unaccustomed movement, and he finds that,
when he wakes on the morning that succeeds his first essay, his back
is so stiff that he can scarcely move without screaming with pain,
and that the prospect of mounting the Camel afresh is anything but a
pleasant one.
"I tried to sit erect without moving," writes Mr. Kennard, when
describing his experience of Camel-riding. "This proved a relief for
a few minutes, but, finding the effort too great to continue long in
this position, I attempted to recline with my head resting upon my
hand. This last manœuvre I found would not do, for the motion of
the camel's hind legs was so utterly at variance with the motion of
his fore-legs that I was jerked upwards, and forwards, and sideways,
and finally ended in nearly rolling off altogether.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account