Editing Camel train (section)

===Camels===
[[File:Lugou-Bridge-east-end-relief-3577.jpg|thumb|A modern sculptor's depiction of (the head of) a caravan approaching [[Beijing]], complete with a camel-puller and a mounted caravan master, head cook, or ''xiansheng'' riding next to him. In the deserts of Mongolia, one would not see a dignitary in a [[sedan chair]] travelling along, nor would a baby camel accompany its mother.<ref>According to Lattimore (1928/9, p. 207), while pregnant female camels could travel as part of the caravan with a full load, any baby camel born in the desert would have to be abandoned, since, if the camel cow were to [[lactation|nurse]] the young one, she would become too thin for work.</ref> However, [[Mildred Cable]] and [[Francesca French]] in their book ''The Gobi Desert'' (1942) describe how a young camel can be carried in a wooden cradle on its mother's back. After the first week it is capable of walking beside her with periods of rest in the cradle; as it grows older it becomes capable of carrying a load of lighter articles needed by the caravan but at four years old can carry a full load.<ref>Cable, M. & French, F. (1942) ''The Gobi Desert''. London: Hodder & Stoughton; p. 162</ref>]]

Caravans originating from both ends of the Hohhot-Gucheng route were composed of two-humped [[Bactrian camels]], suitable for the climate on the area, although very occasionally one could see single-humped [[Dromedary|dromedaries]] brought to this route by [[Uyghur people|Uighur]] ("Turki", in Lattimore's parlance) caravan people from [[Hami Prefecture|Hami]]<ref>Lattimore (1928/9), p. 151.</ref> A caravan would be normally composed of a number of files ({{zh|c=连}}, ''lian''), of up to 18 camels each. Each of the rank-and-file caravan men, known as the ''camel-pullers'' ({{zh|c=拉骆驼的}}, ''la luotuo-de''), was in charge of one such file. On the march, the camel-puller's job was to lead the first camel of his file by a rope tied to a peg attached to its nose, each of the other camels of the file being led by means of similar rope by the camel in front of it. Two files (''lian'') formed a ''ba'', and the camel-pullers of the two files would help each other when loading cargo on the camels at the beginning of each day's march or unloading it when halted. To do their job properly camel-pullers had to be experts on camels: as Lattimore comments, "because there is no good doctoring known for him [a camel] when he is sick, they must learn how to keep him well." Taking care of camels' health included the ability to find the best available grazing for them and keeping them away from poisonous plants; knowledge of when one should not allow a camel to drink too much water; how to park camels for the night, allowing them to obtain the best possible shelter from wind-blown snow in winter; how to properly distribute the load to prevent it from hurting the animal; and how to treat minor injuries of the camels, such as blisters or pack-sores.<ref>Lattimore (1928/9), pp. 108–115</ref>

The loading of camels was described by [[Mildred Cable]] and [[Francesca French]] in their book ''Through Jade Gate and Central Asia'' (1927): «In the loading of a camel its grumblings commence as the first bale is placed on its back, and continue uninterruptedly until the load is equal to its strength, but as soon as it shows signs of being in excess, the grumbling ceases suddenly, and then the driver says: "Enough! put no more on this beast!"»<ref>Cable, M. & French, F. (1937) ''Through Jade Gate and Central Asia''; 6th ed. London: Hodder & Stoughton; p. 21</ref><ref>Cable, M. & French, F. (1942) ''The Gobi Desert''. London: Hodder & Stoughton; pp. 161–164</ref>

[[File:Bilma-Salzkarawane1.jpg|thumb|[[Azalai]] salt caravan practiced by [[Tuareg]] traders in the [[Sahara]] desert. The French reported that the 1906 caravan numbered 20,000 camels.]]