I am not sure which felt the heat most, poor little Val or the buck.  He, curiously enough, seemed more affected by it than we were.  At night he drank more than we did, and then was not satisfied.  Sometimes when waiting on ahead he used to squat down and scoop out a hole in the ground to reach the cool sand beneath; with this he would anoint himself.  Sometimes he would make a mixture of sand and urine, with which he would smear his head or body.  Poor Val was in a pitiable state; the soles of her paws were worn off by the hot sand; it was worse or as bad for her to be knocked about on the top of one of the loads, and although by careful judgment she could often trot along in the shade of one of the camels, she was as near going mad as I imagine it possible for a dog to go.  Poor little thing!  She used to yell and howl most agonisingly, with her eyes staring and tongue hanging.  We had, of course, to pack her on a camel when her feet gave out, and by applying vaseline alleviated her pain.

Our guide took us to two dry wells and watched our disgust with evident satisfaction, and I had to resort to the unfailing argument of allowing him no water at all.  He pleaded hard by sounds and gesture and no doubt suffered to some extent, but all was treated as if unnoticed by us.  Thirst is a terrible thing; it is also a great quickener of the wits, and the result of this harsh treatment, which reduced the poor buck to tears (a most uncommon thing amongst natives), was that before very long we were enabled to unload and make camp in one of the most charming little spots I have ever seen.  A veritable oasis, though diminutive in size; but not so in importance, for without its life-giving aid it is hard to say how things would have gone with us.  The weather, as I have said, was scorching, the country destitute of feed, almost waterless, most toilsome to cross, and our camels were worn to skeletons from starvation and incessant work, and had they not been fine specimens of an exceptionally fine breed must have long since succumbed.  Surely this is one of the noblest of creatures and most marvellous works of the Creator!

Brave, dumb heroes, with what patience and undaunted courage do they struggle on with their heavy loads, carrying what no other animal could carry in country where no other could live, never complaining or giving in until they drop from sheer exhaustion!  I think there are few animals endowed with more good qualities than the much-abused camel—­abused not only by the ignorant, which is excusable, but by travellers and writers who should know better.  Patience, perseverance, intelligence, docility, and good temper under the most trying conditions, stand out pre-eminently amongst his virtues.  Not that all camels are perfect—­some are vicious and bad tempered; so far as my experience goes these are the exceptions.  Some few are vicious naturally, but the majority of bad-tempered camels are made so by ill-treatment.  If a camel is constantly