Show AUTO IN PLACE OF CAMEL TRAIN IN THE DESERT little by little the automobile Is replacing the camel as the freight aind nd passenger carrier of the near east and african deserts the newest automobile train put into service carries 35 passengers gers and three tons of freight fro from in damascus to bagdad in IS 18 hours as compared to the 10 days or two weeks ordinarily required by camels here is s an instance of a modern form ot of transportation competing with one of the oldest forms still in uso use camel trains have been journeying over the deserts south of the mediterranean since the dawn of history egypt and chaldea once exchanged go goods across the arabian wasteen wastes waste sn in this way later the persians then the romans and finally nomads from asia controlled the routes when europe was plunged into the darkness of 0 the middle ages the enlightened II 11 edans supervised a busy and prosperous traffic in the desert lands as amazed crusaders discovered long before the portuguese found the water route to india the camels had busied themselves carrying supplies of spices and precious goods northward from the ports of the red ked sea and the persian gulf night down to the present time tills this dependence upon the camel has continued the railroads which were begun never quite functioned and when lawrence mobilized the arabs against the turks during the world war it was camels that carried supplies for the army which took jerusalem so the appearance of the automobile in the deserts less than 10 years ago lias has meant a change in transportation methods which were hoary with ago when the wise men made the pilgrimage to bethlehem and for which no satisfactory substitute hafl had 1 lieen t n found since detroit free r press ress |