called by the colonists
_kameel doorn_, or giraffe thorn, which is found chiefly on dry plains
and sandy deserts. The great size of this tree, together with its thick
and spreading top, shaped like an umbrella, distinguish it at once from
all others. The wood, of a dark red color, is exceedingly hard and
weighty, and is extensively used by the Africans in the manufacture of
spoons and other articles, many being ingeniously fashioned with their
rude tools into the form of the giraffe.

The class to which the giraffe belongs, is the deer tribe. It is, in
fact, as pointed out by Professor Owen, a modified deer; but the
structure by which so large a ruminant is enabled to subsist in the
tropical regions of Africa, by browsing on the tops of trees,
disqualifies it for wielding antlers of sufficient strength and size to
serve as weapons of offense. The annual shedding of the formidable
antlers of the full-grown buck has reference to the preservation of the
younger and feebler individuals of his own race; but, as the horns of
the giraffe never acquire the requisite development to serve as weapons
of attack, their temporary removal is not needed.

When looking at a giraffe, it is difficult to believe that the fore-legs
are not longer than the hind-legs. They are not so, however, for the
greater apparent length results from the remarkable depth of the chest,
the great length of the processes of the anterior dorsal vertebrae, and
the corresponding length and position of the shoulder blade, which is
relatively the longest and narrowest of all mammalia. In the simple walk
the neck is stretched out in a line with the back, which gives them an
awkward appearance; this is greatly diminished when the animals commence
their undulating canter. In the canter the hind-legs are lifted
alternately with the fore, and are carried outside of and beyond them,
by a kind of swinging movement; when excited to a swifter pace, the
hind-legs are often kicked out, and the nostrils are then widely
dilated. The remarkable gait is rendered still more automaton-like by
the switching at regular intervals of the long black tail which is
invariably curled above the back, and by the corresponding action of the
neck, swinging as it does like a pendulum, and literally giving the
creature the appearance of a piece of machinery in motion. The tail of
the giraffe is terminated by a bunch of wavy hair, which attains a
considerable length, but the longest hairs are