Page 333 - Travels in Arabis (Vol I)

296 TRAVELS IN OMAN. [cH.

occasionally seen one of these animals per­
fectly black ; but the Bishyrean camel, on

the Nubian coast, is quite white. The eye of
the camel resembles that of the gazelle; it is

large, dark, soft, and prominent, and retains
its peculiar brilliancy under the fiercest glare
of the sun and sand. Its feet are large and

spreading, and covered at the lower part with
a rough, flexible skin, well adapted to a dry

soil, but they soon fail them in wet or slippery
places. Neither is the camel better pleased

with a loose sandy soil than other animals ;
it is a hard but fine gravelly plain in which

he delights; although, provided they are
rough, he can ascend the steepest and most
rugged paths with the same facility and se­

cureness of footing as a mule.
Camels bear a high price in Oman. I have

known one hundred and forty dollars paid
for one. Depth of chest and largeness of
barrel constitute their chief excellencies.

From thirty to fifty dollars is however their

average price.
The great length of the camel’s neck en­
ables the animal, without stopping, to nip the

thorny shrubs which everywhere abound on