It was early morning when Ben casually took his coffee and went to the window that looked out into the yard, but the sight that greeted him made him gasp and take a step back. He blinked, then he looked again to make sure that he was really seeing what he thought he was seeing.

He was.

Quickly he put his coffee cup down on the desk and strode toward the door. He glanced over to the dining area where his sons were just sitting down to breakfast and Hop Sing was putting food on the table.

“Boys…Hop Sing…come outside with me…NOW!,” Ben called out.

His sons looked back at him in surprise. But they recognized the tone that demanded instant obedience. Adam, who was just opening his mouth to take a bite of a buttery biscuit, immediately put it down and rose from his chair. Joe had not even sat down completely, but his father’s command caused him to straighten up abruptly without even thinking. Hoss cast a longing glance at the plate of pancakes that Hop Sing had just set down and reluctantly joined his brothers in moving toward the door. The cook muttered something unintelligible under his breath and brought up the rear as they all made their way outside.

And then, there they were, all lined up in a row in the yard and staring wide-eyed at the remarkable scene before them. Or, rather, at the remarkable creature standing there next to the watering trough. The beast had four long spindly legs with knobby knees, supporting a large round body with a prominent hump and shaggy brown hair. Its long neck ended in an elongated head with large eyes that looked around in apparent bewilderment.

Hoss was the first to shake off his astonishment enough to speak. “Well, will ya look at that! I ain’t never seen the like, that’s fer sure. Doesn’t look like it belongs around here, does it? Anybody know what it is?”

I believe it’s a CAMEL,” Adam answered him drily.

“Well of course it’s a camel!,” Ben interrupted with asperity. “What I want to know is…what is a camel doing on the Ponderosa?”

Adam watched as the animal lowered it’s head to the water trough. “Well, Pa, it looks to me like it’s taking a drink,” he said, trying to suppress an amused smile and not quite succeeding.

Ben glared at his oldest son. “And can you also enlighten us as to how this…creature…comes to be here taking a drink in the first place?,” he said in an annoyed tone.

Adam shrugged. “I’m afraid that’s one answer I don’t have, Pa.”

Ben turned to the others. “Have any of you heard about any circus or traveling show in the area that it could have escaped from?”

Hoss and Joe looked at each other for a moment, then they both shook their heads.

“I sure haven’t,” said Joe.

“An’ I ain’t neither,” added Hoss.

Ben looked to Hop Sing as a last hope, but the Chinese man shook his head adamantly. “Hop Sing know nothing of strange creature.”

An expression of dismay came to Ben’s face. “So…what are we supposed to do with it?,” he demanded plaintively.

Adam raised a finger to his lips thoughtfully. “My suggestion would be that we should try to herd it into the corral and hold it there. Then somebody should go and tell Roy Coffee about what we’ve found. If anyone in the area is missing an animal like this the sheriff would probably be the first to know. In any case, he might have some ideas about tracking down it’s origin.”

Ben was relieved at having a definite course of action to pursue. “That sounds good to me, son. Now, who’s going to ride into town to talk to Roy?”

“That’s one job I can’t say as I’m eager for, Pa.” Hoss admitted sheepishly.

“Whoever tells him about it, Roy’s liable to think he’s not right in the head,” Joe agreed.

“I think I’ll take that chance,” Adam interjected. “Actually, I’d like to see the look on his face when he hears about this,” he added, his eyes gleaming with amusement.

And so it was decided. Adam went back inside to get his hat, jacket and gun belt, then headed for the barn to saddle Sport while the others set about trying to maneuver the reluctant camel into the corral. As the Cartwrights and Hop Sing moved to surround it, the camel began to move about uneasily. Then the creature let out with a strange bawling sound that caused its pursuers to jump slightly.

Hoss stepped forward, speaking soothingly to try to calm the creature. The camel’s jaws worked nervously And then, suddenly, it spat out a gooey mess that splashed right across the front of Hoss’ shirt!

Hoss looked down at his shirt in dismay, then back up at the camel. “Dagnabbit!,” he cried. “First ya make me miss my breakfast and now ya go and ruin my new shirt! If you ain’t the dadgum orneriest critter I ever did come across…” Hoss paused, unable to find the words to adequately express his indignation.

The camel simply stared back at him and blinked its eyes.

****************

A few hours later Adam returned from his mission to town, still chuckling at Roy’s reaction to his news. “Oh he raised his eyebrows at me all right,” he reported. “But at least he didn’t accuse me of having lost my mind. He hadn’t heard any reports of any show that had lost a camel, or anyone else for that matter. But he did say he’d contact some of the other sheriffs in the region to see if they had heard anything. And there were a couple of other ideas he wanted to follow up on. He promised to let us know right away if he found out anything.”

“I just hope something turns up very quickly,” Ben declared. “I don’t want to get stuck taking care of that animal indefinitely.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t worry too much, Pa,” Adam said. “I’m sure that we can find some use for it…if it comes to that.” As he took in the frown his father was giving him the young man was hard pressed to keep a straight face.

So, for the next several days the camel remained penned up in the corral. Hoss took on the primary responsibility for its care, making sure it had food, water and SALT. After his initial irritation had passed Hoss actually began to develop a kind of fascination for the creature. While Ben hoped every day that someone would be found to take the animal off their hands Hoss was beginning to hope that it would stay around for a while. Still, there was no word from Roy Coffee.

Then, one evening, while the Cartwrights were sitting on the porch after dinner, Roy Coffee rode into the yard, accompanied by an army captain and two of his men. As Roy and the captain dismounted, Ben stood up and stepped down into the yard to meet them, followed by his sons.

“Hello, Roy. It’s good to see you.” Ben glanced curiously at the army men. “Does this mean you finally have some news about our visitor?”

“Well, Ben, I guess I do,” Roy replied. “This here is Captain Harlan and he and his men are here to take the camel back to Texas. It seems that what you’ve got here is a refugee from the Army Camel Corps.”*

“Army Camel Corps?” Ben’s expression was quizzical.

“That’s right, Mr. Cartwright,” Captain Harlan said. “It’s not widely known among the general public, but the Army has in fact been experimenting with the use of camels as pack animals under certain conditions. Thirty-four animals were imported from Egypt for the purpose a couple of years ago and brought to Texas.” He glanced over at the corral where the camel was standing quietly and eyeing the activity of the humans with interest. “That camel there is evidently one that managed to escape from its handlers some weeks ago and has been wandering on its own ever since. There had been several reports of sightings, but no one had managed to capture the animal until now. We are indebted to you for its return, sir.”

“I’m just happy to find out where it belongs and to be able to send it back there,” Ben assured him.

“Captain, I’m very interested in this experiment the Army is conducting,” Adam said. “Tell me, how has it been going?”

“Mixed results so far, I’m afraid,” the Captain answered him. “The camels can carry much heavier loads of supplies or FREIGHT than mules or horses and can handle desert conditions better, being able to go without food or water for extended periods. However, they do not seem to be well regarded by the men who work with them. The men find them bad tempered and bad smelling. And the camels SPIT.”

Hoss nodded sagely. “They do that all right.”

“Well, Captain, it’s getting on toward dark,” Ben said, moving the conversation back to practical matters. “You and your men are welcome to stay here for the night and leave at your convenience in the morning.”

“We appreciate your hospitality, Mr. Cartwright,” the Captain replied. “Let me just give some orders to my men.” And he moved away.

“I’ll be heading back to town, Ben” Roy Coffee said. “I’m glad everything worked out all right. Be seein’ you all, I’m sure.” And with a wave Roy mounted his horse and rode away.

As the army men began to lead their horses toward the barn with his father and brothers accompanying them, Hoss laid a hand on Captain Harlan’s arm and drew him aside.

“Captain, about that camel there. Do you know if it’s got a name?”

“I believe she’s called Scheherezade,” the Captain answered.

“That’s quite a mouthful, aint it?,” Hoss opined.

“I suppose it is.” Captain Harlan chuckled lightly. “Good night, sir.”

“ ‘Night, Captain,” Hoss murmured as he watched Harlan RACE to catch up with the others.

Dusk was falling as Hoss wandered over to the corral where the camel was still standing quietly.

“Well, Scheherezade,” he said sadly. “Looks like you’re gonna be leavin’ in the morning. I’m gonna miss you, gal. Spite of everything, I really am.”

Sheherezade looked at him with sad eyes…and sent a gob of spit flying to land at his feet.

“Dadburnit, you crazy critter!” Hoss cried.

THE END

*The Army Camel Corps was real, founded in 1856 with the importation of animals from Egypt and disbanded in 1865. There was a comedic movie based on the story starring James Garner some years ago, though I don’t remember the name. Information relating to the Camel Corps was found on the internet.

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