Confederate Camels
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Title |
Confederate Camels |
Subject |
Camels |
Transcript |
Confederate Camels Jefferson Davis had a thing about camels. Before he became president of the Confederacy, he was secretary of war for the United States. And he came up with the idea of importing camels to haul supplies across the deserts of the Southwest. After the war with Mexico, the U.S. acquired vast new territories that required a chain of forts to protect traders and settlers. Hauling supplies to these far-flung outposts was a perennial problem. Davis, in 1855, decided that instead of using longer mule trains, the Army needed animals that could carry more weight. The answer was Arabian camels. A total of 34 one-humped and two-humped camels were bought in Egypt and Turkey and shipped to Indianola. They arrived on June 4, 1856. Most of the people of Indianola turned out to see these exotic animals. It was as good as a show. The camels had been stabled between-decks for three months; when their hooves touched dry land, they went wild, breaking halters, jumping over each other's backs, crying out with joy. An Army officer gave a demonstration. A camel was made to kneel and two bales of hay were placed on his back. The bales weighed 600 pounds. People expected the camel to keel over from the weight, but then two more bales were strapped on, giving the camel a load of 1,200 pounds. The camel rose to its feet and trotted off. The camels were taken to Camp Verde, near Kerrville. Experiments were conducted until the Civil War intervened. The Confederates inherited the camels, but Col. Rip Ford, in command of Camp Verde, had no use for them. The camels were sold after the war. Some were turned loose to fend for themselves. For years afterwards, wild camels were hunted for sport in various places in South Texas. Murphy Givens: KEDT Radio Scripts |
Author |
Murphy Givens |
Publisher |
KEDT Radio |
Date |
August 22, 2003 |
Type |
Sound Recording |
Format |
WMA; Length: 2 min. 26 sec. |
Language |
English |
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