Camel

A peculiar mechanical device for lifting a vessel over a bar; invented by the celebrated Hollander De Witt in 1688, and introduced into Russia by Peter the Great, and now in use at St. Petersburg for lifting deep draught ships over the bar of the harbor. The machine is composed of two watertight half-hulls constructed in such a manner as to permit them to be attached in a fore-and-aft direction to a vessel. The camel is filled with water until it sinks to the required depth, secured with chains to the hull of the vessel, then the water is pumped out, the camel rises and lifts the vessel. Camels vary in size from 50 feet to 150 feet in length, and from 10 feet to 20 feet in breadth, and have been known to lift a vessel 11 feet.