No horse or donkey could tread where the camel does. Their hoofs would
sink in the loose, dry sand. But the foot of the camel is like a broad
pad or cushion, and it spreads out as he puts it down, so that it
neither slips nor sinks. It has also a very thick sole to protect it
from the burning heat of the sand.
The camel is able to go for a long time without food or water. He can do
this because he carries with him a supply of both. The hump on his back
is a large lump of solid fat, which the camel is able, in some strange
way, to use as food. He does not bite it or take it into his mouth, but
it wastes away, and grows smaller and smaller, when he is making a long
journey with little to eat. If the poor camel is starved, his back
becomes quite flat.
The camel stores up a supply of water in his two stomachs, a part of
which is lined with masses of cells. When the camel drinks, he fills
these cells, keeping the water in them for future use so that he is not
thirsty again for a long time.
The camel's sense of smell is very acute. It is said that he can detect
water long before it is in sight.
When he is carrying a burden across the wild, barren places where no
green thing grows, he is fed with a few dates, beans, or cakes.
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