Once there was a merchant who had fine silks and rugs to sell. He wished
to send his goods to a country on the other side of the sandy desert.
The merchant owned a large caravan of camels, and he employed many men.
Camels were the only animals strong enough to travel over the desert
with the heavy loads.
For many days, Abdul the merchant and his men had been preparing for the
journey. The canvas tents and the poles were placed upon one camel.
Great leather bottles of water were loaded upon another camel.
Firewood and bags of rice and barley meal were placed upon still
another. It required many camels to carry the merchant's goods.
At last the caravan was ready for the journey. The sun shone steadily,
making the sand so hot that no one could walk upon it in the daytime.
But at night both men and camels could travel easily.
So Abdul the merchant said to the men, "Be ready to start after sunset
to-night. Give the camels plenty of water to drink, and feed them well,
for we shall have a long, hard journey."
Abdul and his men traveled all that night. One man was the pilot. He
rode ahead, for he knew the stars, and by them he could guide the
caravan.
At daybreak they stopped. They spread the canvas tents and fed the
camels. They built fires, cooked the rice, and made cakes of the barley
meal. During the day, the men rested in the shade of the tents.
After the evening meal, the caravan started again on its way.
They had traveled thus for three long, silent nights. Early on the third
morning, the camels raised their heads, stretched their nostrils, and
hastened eagerly forward.