Texas Camels
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Title |
Texas Camels |
Subject |
Camels |
Transcript |
Texas Camels One spring day in 1856, a cargo of camels was unloaded at the port of Indianola. The cargo consisted of two- hump Bactrians, one-hump Arabians, and mule camels called "booghdee." The camels had been at sea for three months, stabled between decks. When their hooves touched dry ground, they went wild, bumping and biting each other, crying out, breaking loose in their exuberance to be ashore. Once they were settled down, an Army officer gave a demonstration for the people of Indianola. A one-hump Arabian was made to kneel down and two bales of hay were strapped to his back. The two bales weighed 600 pounds. The onlookers expected the camel would keel over from the weight. Then another two bales were added to the camel's load, making a total of 1,200 pounds. The camel rose to his feet and trotted away. That's why the Army brought in the camels. They could carry a big load across the deserts of the Southwest. It was the idea of Jefferson Davis, secretary of war. This first herd left Indianola on June 4, 1856. They were taken to Camp Verde, near San Antonio' Experiments were conducted by sending the camels out with loads over rough terrain. Camels were used in one mission to survey routes to California. At the beginning of the Civil War, Texas took over Camp Verde, but the commander, Col. Rip Ford, didn't have much use for the camels. After the war, they were sold, some of them to Ringling Brothers, and others to a man who wanted to start a freight line. Some of the camels were turned loose and went wild. They were frequently sighted, and often hunted for sport, in various parts of South Texas for many years. Murphy Givens: KEDT Radio Scripts |
Author |
Murphy Givens |
Publisher |
KEDT Radio |
Date |
4/19/2002 |
Type |
Sound recording |
Format |
MP3; Length 2 min. 8 sec. |
Language |
English |
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