Australian Thoughts at the Weekend 4th July 2009

Australian Thoughts at the Weekend 4th July 2009

Camels

There are a couple of stories about camels that our family love to tell. The first one is told by my mum. Apparently, when I was quite a small boy, our family visited Adelaide Zoo during a holiday there. All went well during the visit until I came to look at the camels. One of them decided just at that moment to snort. Mum says she looked around and what she remembers is seeing my blue shorts disappearing as fast as my legs could carry me out of there.

The other story which my wife and I tell is the introduction of our young daughter who was about two and a half to the Sydney Zoo. We had planned it to be a great outing. We would travel by bus, inner city underground train and then ferry across Sydney Harbour to reach the zoo.

All went well until we entered the gate and started showing the animals to our daughter. It probably did not help that we started with the snakes and lizards but she wanted to be out of there. We showed her a few other animals but the crying and screaming persisted. We told her we had to walk down through the Zoo to get the ferry home. This was true.
So we took our crying young daughter towards the bottom gate, pointing out some different animals on the way.

We came around a corner and there were camels peering down on us. Suddenly, our daughter’s mood changed. She exclaimed, ‘My friends, the Camels!”. She was all smiles. She was happy to stand and look. The tears soon dried. We stood and looked at the camels as long as she wanted to. After that we moved off and looked at the “camel’s friends”, all the other animals.

It has been estimated that there are more than half a million camels roaming the remote and dryer areas of Australia. Some estimates are that the number is over a million. These are feral animals as camels are not native to Australia.

The first camels were imported from India to Australia from 1840 to provide transport and pack animals to help with exploration of the dry inland. They were imported with “Afghan” handlers.
A website on camels in Australia (http://www.camelsaust.com.au/history.htm) gives the following information:

Camel studs were set up in 1866, by Sir Thomas Elder at Beltana Station in South Australia. These studs operated for about fifty years and provided high class breeders. Working camels bred in Australia were of superior quality to those imported. Imports continued until 1907 from Palestine and India as there was a need for large numbers of cheap animals.

An estimated 10,000 to 12,000 camels, imported into Australia between 1860 and 1907, were used as draft and riding animals by people pioneering the dry interior. They were also used in the tropical north carrying supplies to gold and tin mines. They could carry more than a pack horse and could also go longer without food and water. Grass, necessary to feed horses, was almost non-existent in the rain forest areas, so camels were preferred as they could cross the areas to where feed was available.

The camels brought into Australia were almost exclusively the one-humped camels (Camelus dromedarius) which are found in hot desert areas and are highly suited to the climate in Australia. Only about 20 of the two-humped camels (Camelus bactrianus) normally found in cold deserts were imported into Australia.The very big camel teams in Western Australia and the Centre consisted of 70 camels and 4 Afghans. Normally they travelled between 20 and 25 miles a day in desert country. The teams would collectively carry between 16 and 20 tons on their backs. A large bull camel was expected to carry up to 12 hundredweight (600 kg), and small camels from 6 to 8 hundred weight (300-400kg).

Central Australia used camels in the construction of the Overland Telegraph line, the supply of goods to Alice Springs and to cattle and sheep stations, missions and Aboriginal communities. Camels hauled wagons loaded with wool to the railhead at Oodnadatta, pulled scoops and ploughs to build dams or perform other heavy jobs.

Most of the camels were released in the mid 1920s, when motor vehicles began operating in the central areas of Australia. They established free-ranging herds in the semi-arid desert areas of Australia.

In the late 1960s renewed interest occurred in camels and by 1970 Australia had two camel tourist businesses both operating in Alice Springs. 1971 saw the inaugural Lions Club Camel Cup race in Alice Springs. There are now several camel races held around Australia. These races are over about 1 km as compared to the long distance races (10km+) in Saudi Arabia.

The slaughter of camels for human consumption commenced at Alice Springs in the 1980s. (End of quote).

The “Afghan” drivers also continue to provide interest in Australia. They were probably Australia’s first Moslems and lived apart from the white population and the aboriginal population in many outback towns. It is said that they very rarely married a white person but marriages with aboriginal people was more common. Ahgain information on these Afghans comes from a website: “Although these, and later camelmen, came from different ethnic groups and from vastly different places such as Baluchistan, Kashmir, Sind, Rajastan, Egypt, Persia, Turkey and Punjab, they were collectively known as Afghans” (http://www.southaustralianhistory.com.au/afghans.htm).

Today, the contribution of the camels and their Afghan handlers are remembered with the name of the north south railway across central Australia. The main passenger train carrying tourists from all over the world is known as the Ghan. Originally, the Ghan ran between Adelaide and Alice Springs but in recent years the line and the service has been extended to Darwin (see: http://www.gsr.com.au/our-trains/the-ghan/the-journey.php). This provides Australia with it’s first north south rail service, a distance of almost 3,000kilometres (1860 miles).

In a Bible study on camels I read : Camels are found throughout the Bible where they were considered very useful and valuable. They were used for personal transportation (Genesis 24:61), as a beast of burden (Genesis 37:25), and in war (1 Samuel 30:17). The number of camels someone owned was sometimes used as a measurement of personal wealth (Genesis 30:43), and were considered to be a respectful gift (Genesis 32:15). However, unlike cattle which were acceptable for food according to the Levitical dietary regulations camels (along with horses) were not to be eaten (Leviticus 11:4).
Jesus sometimes used the camel in parables. To the Disciples who were considering those people who saw worldly wealth as more valuable than obeying God, He said,
"…Do you have any idea how difficult it is for the rich to enter God's kingdom? Let me tell you, it's easier to gallop a camel through a needle's eye than for the rich to enter God's kingdom." (Matthew 19: 23-24. The Message).
(Matthew 19:24 RSV), and to the hypocritical Pharisees who placed great importance on observing minor religious regulations while at the same time living a life of sin, He said, "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! …You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel!" (Matthew 23:23-24 RSV).

One of the things we remember is that John the Baptist wore a coat of camel hair or skin: John dressed in a camel-hair habit tied at the waist by a leather strap. He lived on a diet of locusts and wild field honey. People poured out of Jerusalem, Judea, and the Jordanian countryside to hear and see him in action. There at the Jordan River those who came to confess their sins were baptized into a changed life. (Matthew 3: 4-6. The Message).

The days when camels were important to our economy are long gone. Today at best they are a tourist attraction here in Australia. As I consider the changes which have come, I can also consider the persistence of camels, in that there are probably thousands more in Australia now than when they had an economic value as means of transport.. Times do change.

I cannot find any reference to camels in our Song Book. Not even in carols associated with the Wise Men from the east. However at least one song tells of things changing but Jesus remaining the same.

Oft our trust has known betrayal,
Oft our hopes were vain,
But there's one in every trial
Constant will remain.

Chorus
Yesterday, today, forever,
Jesus is the same:
We may change, but Jesus never;
Glory to his name!

Like a rock 'midst dashing billows
Holding fast its place,
Jesus is in all life's sorrows
When we trust his grace.

Do your duty, shirk it never,
Leave the rest with God;
Stand your ground, today, forever;
Victory through the blood!
Authors: Richard Slater (1854-1939) (verses),
Albert Benjamin Simpson (1843-1919) (chorus)
The Salvation Army Song Book: Song Number: 750


````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Thank you for your prayers and support for OzThoughts Internet Ministry.

If you invite friends to subscribe they do it by sending an email (without a message) to :
OzThoughtsInternetMinistry-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.au (Tell them to check their junk box for the reply if it does not seem to come).


`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
You can also receive OzThoughts from the following groups (which you are welcome to join):

SalvationArmy3: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/salvationarmy3/

SALVATIONARMY3 was born in August 2004 because we felt that there was a need for a place on the Internet where Salvationists and Christian Friends could come together and talk about things concerning The Salvation Army, their Faith, and all that is involved within it.

We are now the largest and most active Salvation Army Group on the Internet with over 870 members.

We wanted a place where we could discuss how we can be better people in this world because of …
• Our belief and trust in God the Father.
• Our love for Jesus and all that He means to us day by day.
• Our experience of The Holy Spirit in our everyday lives.

As the founder of SALVATIONARMY3 wrote when we first came into being ...“It is my Prayer that this group stays a Holy place, where JESUS is the Focus of every Conversation, and "OTHERS" is the reason we meet.
I Love JESUS and THE SALVATION ARMY and want a great place to meet others who feel the same”...

If you feel you would like to be part of a vibrant and active Salvation Army group, please come in and join us. A Welcome awaits you.

This is an unofficial website and does not necessarily reflect the position of "The Salvation Army"




Subscribe: OzThoughtsInternetMinistry-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.au

Unsubscribe: OzThoughtsInternetMinistry-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com.au

OzThoughts
Writer (Only): OzThoughts@yahoo.com.au