"Isn't it hard work training a camel to obey you, and to kneel at your command?"
"Father said he had to use a great deal of patience at first. The camel kicked and fought and grumbled before he could be made to bend his knees. Even now, he scolds a good deal about obeying, as you children know."
"Esther and I saw a camp of Bedouins on our way here," said Solomon. "They were tending a flock of beautiful sheep. One of the shepherds was holding a new-born lamb in his bosom."
"Those fierce Bedouins are tender to their flocks, but cruel to men," said Levi. "You cannot trust them for a moment. They look down upon us village people. But in our hearts we scorn them."
"They are dreadful thieves," said Rebecca. "When I was up in Jerusalem, the other day, I heard a story about a Bedouin woman who went last summer into a rich man's garden. The owner of the place was just coming into the entrance when he met the woman with a basket of lettuce on her head. She was a relation of one of his servants. He stopped and asked her several questions about her errand there. She told him she had just been to his place to try to sell her lettuce, but she could not do it, as the garden contained all his family could use.
"The gentleman supposed she was telling the truth. What was his surprise, then, when he found out after she was safe out of sight that the woman had stolen every head of lettuce out of his garden!"
"It is just like the deceitful creatures," said Levi. "I dislike the sight of them."
"Are you going to have much honey this year?" asked Solomon.
"Yes, I have several swarms of bees, and I hope they will do well."