F32 TOTO73338012 LIBRARY OF PRINCETON UNIVERSITY HANDBOOKS PREPARED UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE HISTORICAL SECTION OF THE FOREIGN OFFICE.-No. 63 MESOPOTAMIA LONDON: PUBLISHED BY H.M. STATIONERY OFFICE. 1920 It must be understood that, although the series of volumes was prepared under the authority, and is now issued with the sanction, of the Foreign Office, that Office is not to be regarded as guaranteeing the accuracy of every statement which they contain or as identifying itself with all the opinions expressed in the several volumes; the books were not prepared in the Foreign Office itself, but are in the nature of information provided for the Foreign Office and the British Delegation. The books are now published, with a few exceptions, substantially as they were issued for the use of the Delegates. No attempt has been made to bring them up to date, for, in the first place, such a process would have entailed a great loss of time and a prohibitive expense ; and, in the second, the political and other conditions of a great part of Europe and of the Nearer and Middle East are still unsettled and in such a state of flux that any attempt to describe them would have been incorrect or misleading. The books are therefore to be taken as describing, in general, ante-bellum conditions, though in a few cases, where it seemed specially desirable, the account has been brought down to a later date. > G. W. PROTHERO, General Editor and formerly Director of the Historical Section. January 1920. No] Mesopotamia. 63- 7 TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE : I. GEOGRAPHY PHYSICAL AND POLITICAL (1) Position and Frontiers (2) Surface, Coast, and River System Surface Lower Mesopotamia Upper Mesopotamia Coast River System... Euphrates ... Tigris ... (3) Climate ... (4) Sanitary Conditions (5) Race and Language 16) Population Distribution ... Towns... Movement ... : : : : : : :::::::::: :::::::::: : : : :: ::: : ... II. POLITICAL HISTORY Chronological Summary ... . (1) Introduction (2) Early Period of Turkish Occupation, 1638–1834. (3) Later Period of Turkish Occupation, 1834-1914. (a) Relations with Persia ... ... (6) British Influence... ... (c) Influence of other European Powers (d) Internal Conditions (4) Commercial Development ... (a) Navigation (6) Railway Communication... (c) Oil Concessions ... ... ::: : III. SOCIAL AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS (1) Religious ... (2) Political ... (3) Educational P. S. 696. Wt. 6325/735 1000 6/20 F.O.P. (3347) : :: : : TABLE OF CONTENTS. (No. 83 PAGY 41 (4) General Observations (a) Irrigation ... (6) Labour ... (c) Capital (d) Conclusions :: :: :::: : IV. ECONOMIC CONDITIONS (A) MEANS OF COMMUNICATION (1) Internal (a) Roads, Paths, and Tracks (6) Rivers and Canals (c) Railways ... ... (d) l'osts, Telegraphs, and Telephones (2) External (a) Ports Basra ... Nahr Amr (6) Shipping Lines ... (c) Cable and Wireless Communication ... و : : (B) INDUSTRY (1) Labour ... ... (2) Agriculture (a) Methods of Cultivation ... (6) Products of Commercial Value ... Dates ... .... .... Rice, Wheat and Barley Cotton, Tobacco, &c. ... Fruits and Vegetables, Timber Animals (c) Land Tenure ... (3) Minerals ... Building-stone, Coal ... Copper, Gold, Gypsum, Iron Ore, Lead Oil and Bitumen Orpiment, Ozokerit Potash, Salt, Tin .. !4) Manufactures ... Boat-building, Distilling, Metal-working Pottery, Brick-making, Silk and other Textiles ... Tanning :::::::: Monopotamia] TABLE OF CONTENTS. PAGE 98 105 109 109 110 :::::::::::::::::::: 111 ::::::::::: (C) COMMERCE . (1) Domestic (a) Towns Amara ... ... ... ... Baghdad ... Basra, Kirkuk, Kut el. Amara ... Mosul ... Suleimanie, other Towns (6) British Interests ... (c) Methods of Economic Penetration (2) Foreign . ... (a) Exports ... Dates, Cereals ... Seeds, Opium .. Horses and other Animals Ghi, Hides and Skins ... Wool, Mohair ... ... Carpets, Gall-nuts Gum tragacanth, Liquorice (6) Imports ... ... ... Cotton, Sugar ... Iron and Steel, Machinery, Wood Woollen Goods ... . Yarn and Twist, Gunnies, Petroleuin Coal, Rice, Coffee Indigo, Aniline Dyes, Matches, Copper, Leather and Leather Goods .. Provisions, Spices, Stationery ... Tea, Tobacco (D) FINANCE (1) Public Finance ... (2) Currency ... (3) Banking ... (E) GENERAL REMARKS ... APPENDIX Table I. Exports to Principal Countries from Baghdad ... „ 11. Imports from Principal Countries to Baghdad .. „ III. Principal Exports from Busra „ IV. Principal Imports into Basra 111 111 112 112 113 113 114 115 115 116 ... 117 118 118 119 119 120 122 128 129 130 131 AUTHORITIES MAPS 132 134 GEOGRAPHY (No. 63 drop of 20-50 ft., marking a former coast line, anil the great alluvial plain of Irak begins. This district, lying between the Euphrates and Tigris, is exceedingly fertile; its area is about 35,000 square miles. In general the surface of the upper plain country de- creases in fertility from north to south. Lower Mesopotamia.--In Irak the only noticeable eminences are the mounds that mark the sites of dead cities, the high banks of old canal-beds, and here and there knolls or slight ridges of gravel or sand. The slope of the Irak plains from the neighbourhood of Baghdad to the Persian Gulf is very slight. Baghdad is 105 ft. above sea-level, Kut el-Amara on the Tigris 55 ft., Nasrie on the Euphrates 15 ft., Basra 8 ft. There are also very gradual transverse inclines away from the rivers (due to the heightening of the river- beds by the deposit of silt), and a slope from the foot of the Persian hills to the neighbourhood of the Tigris; these, in so far as they determine the present flood- areas and marshes, have great importance for the culti- vation of the country as it is to-day, and also for pro- jects of irrigation. The soil is mainly an argillaceous, calcareous loam of great fertility; but by far the greater part of the country is either marshland or arid waste. In the southern part of Irak there are extensive permanent swamps, the water of which rises and falls with the season. In addition, the winter and spring floods of the rivers overflow into wide inundations, which gener- ally dry up in the latter part of the summer, but some- times, when they have no adequate outlets, may remain standing for some years. The position and extent of these temporary flood areas vary, within certain limits, from year to year. Where and when the country is not swamp, it is for the most part open plain. Cultivation is almost entirely limited to the neighbourhood of the rivers and canals. The Arabian desert, where it borders on south- western Irak, is a fairly hard gravelly plain, broken in places by belts and patches of sand. It is inter- Mesopotamia] SURFACE sected by wadis (water-courses, dry except after rain) running towards the Euphrates. The rains produce some grass vegetation, which for a time affords a fair amount of camel-grazing. The usual low desert scrub is also found. West of the Euphrates, from Hit down to Nejef, the Syrian desert (Hamad) has the same general character. Upper Mesopotamia.- The plains of the Jezireh (El-Jezire, “the island”), which lie between the Tigris and Euphrates, extend to about 48,000 sq. miles. They are generally more or less undulating, though they contain some wide expanses of flat country. Here and there they are traversed by ranges of hills; most of these are quite low, but the Jebel Sinjar, a line of basalt hills west of Mosul, rises to some 3,000 ft. above the surrounding country; the surface of the plains is open and treeless. A great part of the northern Jezireh has a good soil, and large areas could be brought under cultivation by means of irrigation works. South of the Jebel Sinjar and the lower Khabur the plain becomes increasingly arid, and towards its lower end turns to a hard desert, the surface of which is composed of gravel, gypsum, marl, borax, or sand. mom w w wpose I. & aver, sypus There are also large areas in which water from wadis collects, and on evaporation leaves an incrustation of salt. · On the western and eastern sides of the Jezireh the Euphrates and Tigris have cut for themselves shallow valleys or troughs 1 to 5 miles wide, bordered by low hills or cliffs. At the bottom of these valleys occur stretches of alluvium where the rivers have deposited their sediment in flood-time. Parts of the Euphrates trough are moderately cultivated; elsewhere the valley is either bare or filled with tamarisk and other scrub. There is a considerable amount of cultivation along the banks of the Tigris between Mosul and the mouth of the Great Zab. South of the Lesser Zab, down to the beginning of the alluvial plain near Beled, the river valley is mostly untilled. The southern plains, east of the middle Tigris, are open steppes of clay and GEOGRAPHY (No. 63 gravel, clothed with grass in spring. The country in the region of the Zabs has a fertile soil. The lower hill-country, east of Kifri, Kirkuk, Altun Keupri, and Erbil, consists either of rolling downs or of lines of rocky heights in which sandstone pre- dominates. In spring the downs and valleys have much grass on them. Between this region and the higher ranges are the well-watered upland plains of Sulei- manie and Rania. Along the Persian frontier is the high mountain country of southern Kurdistan. It is well watered by numerous streams flowing through deep valleys or gorges into the Lesser Zab. Central Kurdistan is the most difficult section of the mountain barrier that divides Mesopotamia from Armenia and north-western Persia. The mountains rise to heights of 11,000 to 14,000 ft., their sides are generally barren and sparsely wooded; the valleys and lower slopes contain patches of cultivable ground. The plain of the Jezireh is bounded on the north by the Jebel Tur or Tur Abdin plateau (east of Mardin), and by the hill-country which has its centre and highest point in the Karaja (Qarajeh) Dagh. . On the western side of the plateau there is a depression, which affords an important line of communication between Diarbekr on the north and the great Mesopotamian plain. The soil of the Jebel Tur, though much overlaid with stones, is often fertile; but water is scarce in summer. The least stony and best-watered part of the plateau is the north-western, towards Diarbekr. The country bordering the middle Euphrates valley on the west is arid desert in its southern part, and becomes gradually less arid towards the north. Coast Mesopotamia touches the sea only on a narrow front at the head of the Persian Gulf. Desert, marsh, and inundation make the coast difficult of access from the land. Shallows and mud-banks obstruct approach Mesopotamia) Mesopotamia) SURFACE; COAST; RIVERS from the Gulf. The bar at the mouth of the Shatt el- Arab needs dredging to make it passable at all tides by large ocean-going steamers. West of the Shatt el- Arab the Khor Zobeir, which runs up into the desert towards Basra, has fairly deep water for a part of its length; but its approaches from land and sea, its con- figuration and dimensions, appear to make it unsuit- able for regular use as a harbour. River System The Euphrates and Tigris drain the Armenian table- land, the western side of the Persian plateau, the hill country of northern Mesopotamia, and the Mesopo- tamian plains. The two rivers unite at Kurna into a single stream, which reaches the Persian Gulf under the name of the Shatt el-Arab. The volume of water in the Euphrates and Tigris varies considerably at different periods of the year. The great increase during certain months is caused by rainfall and melting snow in the highlands of Armenia, Kurdistan, and Persia. The low-water season may be said to last from July to November, the high-water season from December to June. Both rivers, and especially the Tigris, are liable to rise in sudden and violent spates, and bring down a great quantity of sediment in the high-water season. The Euphrates between Feluja and Diwaniya flows at a higher level than the Tigris between Bagb- dad and Kut el-Amara, and the country between the rivers in north-western Irak is therefore flooded mainly from the Euphrates. Just below Museyib (70 miles by river below Feluja) the Euphrates divides into two large branches, called the Shatt Hindie and the Shatt Hilla, which join again 110 miles further down near Samawa. Between 1865 and 1890 the main stream shifted from the eastern (Hilla) branch to the western (Hindie). After several unsuccessful at- tempts to check the process, which was threatening to dry up the Hilla branch altogether, the new Hindie barrage and the Hilla regulator were constructed GEOGRAPHY (No. 63 (1913) to regulate the flow of water down the two channels. From Nasrie downwards the Euphrates, now flowing at a lower level than the Tigris, receives from the north a great quantity of Tigris water, which finds its way through the canals and marshes between the two rivers. The volume of the Euphrates, thus increased, is beyond the capacity of the channel leading to Kurna (called the Old Channel), and most of the Euphrates water is forced southwards, and forms a large area of open water and swamp, through which the New Channel drains into the Shatt el-Arab at Gurmat Ali, a few miles above Basra. The Tigris is liable to flood more or less of the neighbourhood of its banks from above Baghdad down to Kut el-Amara. At the latter place a large channel, the Shatt el-Hai, branches southward from the right bank of the Tigris and reaches the Euphrates just below Nasrie. Below Kut el-Amara more and more flood- water drains southwards into swamps, and fears have been expressed that unless preventive measures are taken the Tigris may altogether leave its present bed below Amara. (3) CLIMATE The climatic conditions of Mesopotamia are those of a sub-tropical area which lies at a distance from any ocean, and they are, therefore, in the plains and lower uplands, of a semi-arid type. The following tables give the mean daily maximum and the mean daily minimum temperature in the hottest and coldest months respectively. Mean daily maximum, July and August:- Basra, 104° F. (40° C.). Baghdad, 110° F. (43° C.). Mosul, 109° F. (430 C.). Mean daily minimum, December and January :- Basra, 47° F. (8° C.). Baghdad, 40° F. (40°C.). Mosul, 36° F. (2° C.). (430°C) Mean dail: 1090 F. GEOGRAPHY (No. 68 summer months fatiguing work in the open, espo cially in a humid atmosphere, is likely to bring on heat stroke. Epidemics of cholera and bubonic plague occur from time to time. On the whole, however, if proper precautions can be taken, particularly with regard to water, the health conditions for Europeans, outside malaria-infested districts, may be regarded as fairly good. Under Ottoman rule the towns have been left in a most unhealthy condition. Almost the only sanitary measures taken by the Turkish authorities have been those of quarantine. (5) RACE AND LANGUAGE The numbers of the various races which form the population of Mesopotamia may be estimated roughly as follows :: Arabs .. .. 1,450,000 | Armenians .. 57,000 Kurds 380,000 Yezidis .. 21,000 Turks and Turkomans 110,000 Chabaks .. 10,000 Persians , 70,000 Circassians .. 8,000 Jews 60,000 Sabians 2,000 Syrian Christians .. 60,000' Miscellaneous 10,000 Total .. .. 2,238,000 The floating population of pilgrims to the Shiah shrines, which may number 150,000 to 200,000 in a vear, is not included in the above estimate. The Arabs are, both numerically and politically, the dominant element in the population. They number probably about a million and a half, and if united among themselves would constitute a factor of the highest importance in the general situation. Differ- ences, however, of religion, character, pursuits, and interests constitute intersecting lines of cleavage which have effectually prevented any enduring combination. Those Arabs who are dwellers in the towns, or settled on the land as agriculturists, are for the most part In the absence of reliable statistics, no accurate estimate of the population can be given. 10 [No. 6 GEOGRAPHY traffic is held up, crops are destroyed, and the banks of the rivers are broken down. The Arab is generally intelligent, quick, and im- pressionable; often he has a certain subtlety of mind which is capable of a high degree of cultivation. But he is slovenly and uncreative in practical matters, and is lacking in the power of co-operation and of sus- tained labour in the face of difficulties. He has a natural bent for intrigue, is much under the sway of personal ambitions and jealousies, and is very much of a time-server. For the wilder tribesman blackmail and thieving are normal and proper ways of earning a living. The Marsh Arabs, or Ma'adam, who are found on both banks of the Tigris between Amara and Kurna and in the neighbourhood of the lower Euphrates below Suk esh-Sheyukh, are a peculiar people, non- Arab in origin, living mainly by fishing and the pro- duce of their herds of buffaloes, but cultivating here and there a little rice. The Kurds predominate in the hills, and, since nany of them dwell in Persian territory, their lawless- ness has occasioned much trouble on the Turko-Persian frontier. They have little tribal cohesion, and are addicted to blood feuds. The Kurd has not the in- telligence, subtlety. and imagination of the Arab, but of the two he is the more industrious and capable worker. In danger he is cooler and steadier, he has a better physique, and altogether has greater physical and mental stamina. But he is also more callous than the Arab, and is extraordinarily reckless about taking human life. He has the makings of a good cultivator and a good workman, but has generally neither the good nor the bad qualities that are likely to make a successful trader. The Turks, as the governing race in Mesopotamia, occupied the majority of the official positions, both civil and military. A few thousand of the inhabitants of Baghdad claimed Turkish origin, often without justification. There is a Turkoman population in the Monopotamia) 11 OTHER RACES neighbourhood of Tuz Khurmatli, Kirkuk, and Altun Keupri. Turkomans are also found in the plains east of Mosul, and west of Mosul at Tel Afar. The Persians in Mesopotamia are concentrated especially at the Shiah holy cities in Irak; thus at Kerbela they form the majority of the population, and at Nejef about a third. They number several thousands in Baghdad, where they are for the most part engaged in trade. There are a few Persians in the towns towards the Turko-Persian frontier, and some have recently come from the Gulf coast to work as labourers in southern Irak. There are Jewish communities in the principal towns of Mesopotamia, particularly in Baghdad, where the Jews number perhaps about 50,000. They form an important element in commercial affairs, and the trade of Baghdad and Basra is much under their control. The Syrian Christians dwell principally in northern Mesopotamia. There are also a few thousand in Baghdad. Armenians are found chiefly in the Diarbekr vilayet; there are also a certain number in • Baghdad, where many are wealthy men of business. There are some thousands of Yezidis in the Jebel Sinjar, and also in the neighbourhood of Mosul. They form a marked group, owing to their peculiar religion. Very few are left of the Circassians settled in Mesopotamia by the Turkish Government after the Russian War of 1877. Their numbers have been reduced by their failure to adapt themselves to the climate, and by quarrels with their neighbours. Other groups, such as the Sabians, Chabaks, Indians, Afghans, Pathans, and Lurs, number only a very few thousands, and are of no political importance in the country. The total number of Europeans resident in the country before the war was perhaps about 200; they were missionaries (French, British, and American), representatives of commercial enterprises and engi- neers (chiefly British and German), consuls, and [3347] С 12 (No. 63 GEOGRAPHY archæologists. The missionaries were principally in upper Mesopotamia, the Europeans engaged in busi- ness or engineering work were mostly in Irak and in Arabistan over the Persian boundary. The principal European business communities were at Baghdad, Basra, and Mohammera. Except among the mission- aries, there were few Europeans who could be regarded as permanently settled in the country. The distribution of languages 'in Mesopotamia follows the distribution of races. Arabic naturally predominates, but Persian is of considerable 'impor- tance for commerce, and Kurdish dialects are commonly spoken in certain districts. The Arme- nians have their own language. Syriac is spoken by the Christians of the Central Kurdish highlands. Various dialects of Turkish are spoken by Turks and Turkomans. As regards European languages, the commercial and social predominance of French in other parts of the Turkish Empire has its influence on Mesopotamia. A certain acquaintance with French is to be found among members of the wealthy, business class in the chief trade-centres; and the higher Turkish officials usually had some, though often a very imperfect, knowledge of the language. Some knowledge of English is possessed by persons -chiefly Christians of northern Mesopotamia—who have visited America or have been educated in American Mission Schools. A few men of business are acquainted with English, but it seems to be much less widely known than French, even where, as at Baghdad, British commercial influence has been predominant. Mesopotamia) 13 POPULATION (6) POPULATION Distribution The population of Mesopotamia has been roughly estimated at 2,238,000; of this number it is calculated that 1,511,000 inhabit Irak, and the remaining 727,000 are distributed in upper Mesopotamia. In Irak probably over 90 per cent. of the popula- tion is grouped along the rivers and canals. The rural population is on the whole densest in the follow- ing areas : (i) along the Shatt el-Arab; (ii) along and near the Euphrates, especially between Museyib and Diwaniya on the Hilla branch and Kufa on the Hindie branch, and again in the Nasrie Suk esh-Sheyukh area; (iii) on and near the Shatt el-Hai; (iv) to the north and north-east of Baghdad, along the Tigris, and in the country watered by the Khalis Tawila canal between the Tigris and the Diala and in the Bakuba district; (v) in the country around Amara on the lower Tigris. The neighbourhood of the Euphrates is, owing to natural conditions, far more densely inhabited than that of the Tigris. The number of pure nomads whose movements are confined to Irak is very small, but the desert south and west of the Euphrates is visited by tribes from the Nejd and elsewhere at certain seasons of the year, and in Irak itself a proportion of the inhabitants still keep to a semi-nomadic life. In the plains of upper Mesopotamia the sparse population is distributed chiefly in the following areas: (i) parts of the middle Euphrates valley, which in the past forty or fifty years has been gradually re- covering a settled population, after being nearly emptied by anarchy; (ii) between the rivers on the north-western and northern sides of the plain; (iii) between the rivers, in the Jebel Sinjar and the country at the foot of that range to south and east; (iv) east of the Tigris, in the Mosul-Erbil plains and south- wards to the Lesser Zab; also at various points under [3347] C 2 14 GEOGRAPHY (No. TIX Vn the Kurdish foothills from Altun Keupri down to Kifri. Both in the plains and the hill-country of upper Mesopotamia nomadic and semi-nomadic tribes cir- culate on their yearly rounds. Towns The position of the chief town of Irak, Baghdad (200,000),' is eminently favourable to the existence of a great city. On Baghdad converge naturally, in con- formity with physical features, all the lines of com- munication which enter Irak from the north-west, the north, and the north-east; to the south there is easy communication with the thickly-populated Kerbela- Hilla region; and lastly there is the waterway of the Tigris leading from the Persian Gulf, and navigable up to Baghdad by river steamers. For its food sup- plies Baghdad can draw easily both on the Euphrates to the south and on the Bakuba-Khalis canal area to the north. Basra (80,000) is the port at the southern gate of Mesopotamia ; ocean-going steamers can ascend to it by the Shatt el-Arab. Kerbela and Nejef (50,000 and 40,000) are pilgrim-centres which attract Shiahs from all parts of the Mohammedan world, but chiefly from Persia and India; Nejef is also the starting-point of a pilgrim-route to Mecca, and both Kerbela and Nejef, situated on the edge of the Arabian desert, are markets for the Beduin. Samarra (3,000) is a place of pilgrimage for Shiahs, but much less important than Kerbela and Nejef. Of the other towns, some are markets along the Euphrates, Tigris, or Shatt el-Hai, the centres of fertile districts, or situated at the junc- ion or diverging-point of waterways; others are trung along the great Baghdad-Kermanshah road; and others are in oases. i The figures given for the population of towns must be taken as guesses, giving perhaps some rough indication of their size; they may often be wide of the truth by some thousands. 16 (No. 63 GEOGRAPHY mouth of the Khabur, but the Syrian desert to west of it, and the Jezireh to east, being less arid here than farther south, are traversed by caravan-routes, from Deir to Damascus on the one hand, and from Deir to Mosul on the other. Movement As there are no statistics of births, deaths, or migration, nothing definite can be said about any change in the total number of the population. On the whole, it seems to have been growing slowly in the years preceding the European War, but the increase in some districts had been at least partly counter- balanced by a decrease (generally due to disorder) in others. There was a tendency among the nomadic popula- tion to settle down and take to cultivation. The Turkish Government tried to encourage this tendency, but also in some degree checked it by failing to create .confidence or to give adequate protection against disorder. Mesopotamia) II. POLITICAL HISTORY CHRONOLOGICAL SUMMARY 2200 B.C. Hammurabi makes Babylon centre of Empire: 539 Cyrus conquers Mesopotamia. 629 A.D. Disastrous floods. 636 Moslems defeat Persians at Kadisiyah. 637 Kufa and Basra founded. 749 Fall of the Omayyads. 762 Caliph Mansur founds Baghdad c. 836 Decline of Abbasid dynasty. 1258 Capture of Baghdad by Mongols. Fourteenth century. Tamerlane's invasion. 1520-66 Suleiman I. 1534 Annexation of Erivan, Van, Mosul, and Baghdad by Turks 1603 Shah Abbas of Persia conquers Mesopotamia. 1623 Persians occupy Baghdad. 1638 Murad IV recaptures Baghdad. 1638 Bishop of Babylon appointed. “ Permanent peace" between Persia and Turkey. East India Company estab- lishes factory at Basra. 1730-46 Intermittent wars. 1740-94 Bishop of Babylon ex officio French Consul at Baghdad. 1796-97 - French political mission at Baghdad. 1798 British Residency at Baghdad established. 1802 British Resident recognised by Sultan. 1835-37 Colonel Chesney's expedition. 1837 Destruction of Mohammera by Turks. 1847 Treaty of Erzerum. 1861 Formation of Euphrates and Tigris Steam Navigation Com- pany. 1881 Russian Consulate established at Baghdad. 1888 Railway Concessions in Asia Minor granted to German Syndicate. 1903 Baghdad Railway Convention. 18 (No. 63 HISTORY 1913 Conclusion of negotiations respecting' Turko-Persian fron- tier, and navigation of Tigris, Euphrates, and Shatt el- Arab. 1914 Conclusion of Anglo-Turkish negotiations respecting rail- ways, irrigation, and oil concessions. Anglo-German Agreement initialled. Demarcation of Turko-Persian frontier completed. (1) INTRODUCTION : ISAIAH, writing of Mesopotamia, speaks of “the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees' excel- lency.” A recent report describes the same region as "a miserable wilderness of barren desert, alternating with vast swamps."'. Such is the change that has been wrought in the course of time. The natural resources of the land in early ages brought wealth to its inhabi- tants, and led to the development of civilization in the very dawn of history. For about two thousand years before, and nearly three thousand years after Ham- murabi made Babylon the capital of his empire (about 2200 B.C.) Mesopotamia was a centre of dominion and civilizing influence. The great powers of the ancient world, Sumerian, Assyrian, Babylonian, obtained their riches and extended their sway from the land of the two rivers, which has been considered one of the four earthly paradises. In 539 B.C. Cyrus the Great conquered Mesopotamia, and incorporated it in the Persian Empire. Neither Achæmenian, Macedonian, nor Seleucid rule affected the general prosperity of the country; a large popula- tion continued to flourish; huge canals and dykes were kept in repair; and the crops yielded “ for the most part two-hundredfold, and at the best even three- hundredfold."?? Babylon continued to be the greatest city in the world until the death of Alexander the Great, when Seleucia, on the Tigris, became the centre of Hellenistic civilization in the Seleucid Empire and 1 Isaiah, ch. xiii. Herodotus, I, 193. Mesopotamia] INTRODUCTION the greatest commercial city of the East. Ctesiphon, on the opposite bank of the Tigris, was the residence of the Parthian Arsacids, and continued under the Sasa- nian dynasty of Persia to be the royal capital. For seven centuries Rome fought Parthia and Persia for the possession of this coveted land; there were con- stant changes of frontier; but from the second century A.D. the north was more or less continuously held by the Romans and the south by the Persians under the Sasanian Kings. Subsequent efforts by the Romans to extend their conquests, particularly under the Emperor Julian in 363 A.D. and under Heraclius between 624 and 627 A.D., produced no permanent alteration in the status quo. The rise of Islam was responsible for the next change of rule in Mesopotamia. In 628 A.D. Mohammed called upon the Persian King to embrace the new religion or prepare for war; various causes combined to postpone the campaign, but in 636 the Moslems defeated the Persians in the Battle of Kadisiyah, and proceeded to occupy the valleys of the Euphrates and Tigris. The Arabs eventually extended their conquests to the Taurus Mountains. The physical conditions of Mesopotamia have altered considerably at different periods. Eridu, the prin- cipal seaport of the Sumerians, was 130 miles from the present coast-line; and in Babylonian times the Euphrates and Tigris reached the sea as separate rivers. The alluvial area that now stretches from Beled, north of Baghdad, to the head of the Gulf has been formed by deposits of silt, and is said to increase at the rate of about 72 ft. per annum. Changes have also taken place in the courses of the rivers as the result of floods and the formation or decay of different canal systems. About the year 629 A.D. great floods burst the banks of the Euphrates and Tigris; in spite of the efforts of the Sasanian King to reclaim the land, the swamps thus formed became permanent, and in the ensuing years of warfare the irrigation works fell into disrepair. HISTORY (No.463 During the rule of the Orthodox and Omayyad Caliphs, Mesopotamia was a province of the Arabian Empire. Kufa and Basra were founded as Arab strongholds in 637 A.D., and the country was ruled by governors appointed by the Caliphs. It was on the fall of the Omayyads in 749 that the hegemony passed from Syria to Irak. The Abbasid Caliphs bestowed great care on the irrigation system of the country, and under their rule its ancient prosperity was renewed. In 762 the Caliph Mansur founded Baghdad, which soon rose to a position of eminence and became un- rivalled for splendour throughout Western Asia. Northern Mesopotamia paid Harun-al-Rashid as great a revenue as did Egypt, and its cotton commanded the market of the world. The seat of government was tem- porarily removed in 836 A.D. to Samarra, and the decline of the Abbasid dynasty set in at about that time. The Caliphs were then dominated by their Tur- kish guard, and Turkish soldiery became the chief power in the country. About the year 1005 A.D. several petty States arose in Mesopotamia; but, in spite of wars and disturbances, Baghdad remained until the Mongol invasions “the metropolis of Islam and the centre of learning and culture." Early in the thirteenth century a vast confederation of Mongolian nomad clans was formed in Central Asia. These swept westward, spreading ruin and devasta- tion; the Persian principalities were overthrown; a huge horde under Hulaku Khan invaded Irak, and in 1258 captured Baghdad. The city was sacked and burnt; the inhabitants were massacred; the whole system of irrigation was ruined. A second invasion under Tamerlane 'in the fourteenth century com- pleted the depopulation of the country; and for the next two hundred years Mesopotamia practically dis- appears from history. In the reign of Sultan Suleiman I (1520-66) the Ottoman Turks engaged in several wars against the Browne, Literary History of Persia, p. 211. Mesopotamia] TURKISH OCCUPATION 21 Persians. Erivan, Van, Mosul, and Baghdad were added to the Turkish Empire; and the Tigris and Euphrates became the boundary between Turkish and Persian dominions. In 1603 Shah Abbas of Persia conquered the greater part of Mesopotamia; and twenty years later the Persians occupied Baghdad. In 1638 Sultan Murad IV undertook an expedition for the recapture of the city, which was effected in Decem- ber of that year, after a siege of some weeks. In the massacre that ensued almost the whole Persian garri- son and 30,000 of the inhabitants are said to have perished. A strong Turkish force was left in Bagh- dad, which remained from that date until 1917 con- tinuously in Turkish hands. (2) EARLY PERIOD OF TURKISH OCCUPATION, 1638-1834 Since its occupation by the Turks, Mesopotamia may be said to have been without a history. This, however, is no matter for congratulation; rather it is a case of “ ubi solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant." For two centuries after the fall of Baghdad affairs in Europe commanded the attention and the resources of the Otto- man Empire; and the government of Mesopotamia was relegated to the Pashas of Baghdad and Basra, who were supported by a force of Janissaries, and were generally, until 1834, appointed by the Sultan from the ruling families of the country. In the year 1639 a “ permanent peace” was signed between Turkey and Persia, and the common frontier was defined in general terms. This did not entirely put an end to friction between the two nations; the aggressive policy of Nadir Shah led, in 1730, to a war which continued intermittently until 1746 (when the treaty of 1639 was reaffirmed); and on two separate occasions the Persians were in occupation of Basra for a series of years. On the whole, however, neither Turks nor Persians were capable of sustained effort on this frontier. 22 (No. 6 HISTORY The influence of European Powers began to be felt in Mesopotamia during this period. The Portuguese, through their position in the Gulf, were able to assert themselves occasionally at Basra; but by 1757 they had disappeared entirely from Turkish Irak. The Dutch had for many years a Residency at Basra, but it was withdrawn about 1752, and they never again estab- lished themselves in the country. In 1638 a French Carmelite was appointed the first Latin Bishop of Babylon; and in 1679 Louis XIV by a decree appointed the Superior of the Carmelites at Basra to be ex officio French Consul there. About 1740 the office of Bishop of Babylon was combined with that of French Consul at Baghdad; and the double duties appear to have been discharged by a succession of bishops until 1794. In 1796-97 a French political mission visited Baghdad and a “ Commissioner for Commercial Relations” was appointed to act as French Consul there. No Euro- pean Power, however, possessed interests at this time in Mesopotamia in any way comparable with those oi Great Britain. British intercourse with Mesopotamia arose from the dealings of the East India Company's servants with the local Government. The Company established a factory at Basra in 1639; and the agent stationed there to protect commercial interests came to occupy the position of British Resident, and to acquire consider- able influence over the local authorities. In 1798 a British Residency was permanently established at Baghdad; and in 1802 the Resident was formally recognised by the Sultan. After its capture by the Turks in 1638, Baghdad contained only 14,000 inhabitants, and its trade suf. fered considerably from the massacre of many of the richest merchants. Basra at this time formed a separate Pashalik, the possession of which was fre- quently disputed by the Arabs and Persians, both of whom occupied the city at different times for periods varying from a few months to several years. The ravages of plague and flood, which the Administration Monopotamia] 23 TURKISH PATION was unable to combat, increased the disorganisation and anarchy occasioned by the rebellious tribes in Mesopotamia. The dangers of the situation were aggravated by the war with Persia, the aggressions of the Chaab tribe in the south and by the fear of a Wahabi invasion from Central Arabia. By 1834 it was reported that the population of the Pashalik of Baghdad had decreased almost beyond belief; the cultivation had more than proportionately diminished; and almost every vestige of the ancient prosperity of the country had disappeared. TEI (3) LATER PERIOD OF TURKISH OCCUPATION, 1834-1914 Between 1834 and 1914 increasing attention was directed towards Mesopotamia, both by the Central Government at the Porte and by the Great Powers of Europe. This interest, however, was aroused less by the condition of the country than by its relation to questions of international importance, and may be attributed chiefly to the changed attitude of the Porte towards provincial administration, to the prominence of the Turko-Persian boundary negotiations, and to the development of British interests in the country, com- bined with a growing connection between Mesopotamia and India, which incited other Powers to rivalry with Great Britain. (a) Relations with Persia Conditions in Mesopotamia during this period were adversely affected by the disturbances in the Persian frontier districts. The line of boundary was the chief point in dispute; but the territorial question was com- plicated by religious considerations. The hostility between Shiah and Sunni Mohammedans became in- vested with a political character, and was aggravated by the attitude of the Turkish authorities towards Persians in Turkish territory, particularly the 24 (No. 63 HISTORY pilgrims to Kerbela and Nejef, the Holy Cities of the Shiahs. The destruction of Mohammera by the Turks in 1837, combined with the Persian occupation of the district of Zohab, brought matters to a crisis, and a request was made for the mediation of Great Britain and Russia. Under their auspices a con- ference between Turkish and Persian representatives was held at Erzerum in 1843; and in 1847 the Treaty of Erzerum was signed, providing for the determina- tion of the frontier by a Turko-Persian Commission, including British and Russian delegates. After many delays and obstructions, an identic map was submitted in 1869 to the Ottoman and Persian Governments, re- presenting a zone of country from 20 to 40 miles broad, within the limits of which it was stated that the boun- dary lay. A special Commission was appointed for the demarcation of the frontier within this zone, but their efforts towards a settlement were unsuccessful. In 1905 the situation became disturbing owing to the advances by Turkish troops east of the zone in which the frontier was said to lie. The Turks appeared to covet all territory occupied by Sunnis, and induced many tribes in Persian territory to claim Turkish nationality, with the result that whole districts were in a state of anarchy. Turkish aggressions continued; but Great Britain and Russia finally succeeded in se- curing the signature, on November 17, 1913, of a Pro- tocol, to which they, as well as Turkey and Persia, were parties, laying down the general line of frontier, and giving specific directions for the settlement of certain details by a Delimitation Commission. The British and Russian delegates on this Commission were em- powered not merely to mediate but to arbitrate in cases of dispute between their Turkish and Persian col- leagues. In September 1914 the demarcation of the frontier by this Commission was completed. Mesopotamia] 25 BRITISH INFLUENCE (b) British Influence The period from 1834-1914 was remarkable for a great expansion of British interests in Mesopotamia, together with increased difficulty in protecting them. This difficulty arose partly from the inevitable multi- plication of points of contact and friction; partly from the bureaucratic influence of Constantinople in Baghdad affairs; and partly from the overweening and chauvinistically Turkish spirit of the Pashas now posted to Baghdad by the central authorities. The part, played by Great Britain in the Turko-Persian boundary disputes tended to increase her influence, but not to improve her relations with the Turkish authori- ties. The latter, however, continued, as before, to appeal for British assistance in difficulties; at the beginning of the Crimean War there appeared a pro- bability that Persia might join Russia against Turkey, but the despatch of two British warships to Basra had a tranquillising effect not only upon Persia but also upon certain rebellious Arab tribes in Turkish terri- tory British official activity was further extended by the influx of British Indians into the Holy Cities in con- sequence of the Oudh Bequest. This instrument, agreed on by the King of Oudh and the Governor- General of India in 1825, came into operation in 1849, and provided for the monthly payment of sums amount- ing to £10,000 a year to Shiahs at Kerbela and Nejef. Owing to complaints that the funds were being mis- appropriated to political or personal ends, the Bequest was in 1852 made payable from the Baghdad Treasury, and the British Resident came to exercise a certain supervision over the expenditure. The development of British and British-Indian trade in Mesopotamia, the navigation by British vessels of Mesopotamian waters, and the measures taken for the suppression of piracy and the protection of traffic on the Shatt el-Arab gave to the British Government “ a paramount local influence." This was strengthened Reported by Colonel Rawlinson in 1852. 26 [No. 63 HISTORY by the institution, in 1862, of a British mail service between Irak and India and the construction by British agency of lines of telegraph from Baghdad to India, Constantinople, and Teheran. In the latter part of the century, however, the development of British com merce and influence, together with the emphasising of British protection over the Sheikhs of Koweit and Mohammera, aroused considerable hostility on the part of the Turkish authorities. This attitude became increasingly pronounced with the growth of German influence at Constantinople. (e) Influence of other European Powers Until 1881 the only European Power represented at Baghdad besides Great Britain was France, who had no local interests except such as were connected with the Roman Catholic religious orders. Russia obtained a certain influence through her mediation in the Turko- Persian frontier disputes. A Russian Consulate was created at Baghdad in 1881, and was raised in 1901 to a Consulate-General; but the material interests of Russia in Irak were small. Belgium, Germany, Spain, Sweden, and the United States of America each acquired certain commercial interests in the country, and established Consulates at Baghdad. During the reign of the Sultan Abdul Hamid, Germany was the only foreign country maintaining constant good rela- tions with Turkey. The beginning of modern German interest in Ottoman affairs may be traced in the writings of List, von Moltke, and others; and when Bis- marck had in some measure secured the maintenance of Germany's position in Europe he allowed the rising stream of commercial prosperity to follow its own course. This resulted in the eighties and nineties in the Drang nach Osten, which took more definite shape in 1898 on the occasion of the Emperor's visit to Con- stantinople. Thenceforth Germany's influence was directed towards the furtherance of her designs in the Mesopotamia] 29 NAVIGATION Company in the early part of the seventeenth century; the continued navigation by British vessels of Meso- potamian waters has been responsible for the develop- ment of British trade and influence, for the measure of improvement effected in the economic condition of the country, and, in a large degree, for whatever has been accomplished in the way of the suppression of lawless- ness and the establishment of security of traffic. In 1639 the East India Company made their first attempt to trade with Basra; and British ships navi- gated the Tigris and Euphrates throughout the eighteenth century. No opposition on the part of the local authorities is recorded; on the contrary, the assist- ance of the Company's warships was frequently sought and obtained by the Pasha of Baghdad in his opera- tions against Arabs and Persians. From 1820 or earlier Government vessels, under the British flag, were attached to the British Residency at Baghdad; and in 1840, after Colonel Chesney's expedition to Mesopo- tamia, a British armed flotilla of four vessels was formed for use on the Tigris and Euphrates. Under the command of Lieutenant Lynch, of the Indian Navy, this flotilla navigated and surveyed the rivers, assisted in maintaining order, and regularly carried the British mails up the Tigris to Baghdad. For many years previously, British merchant vesselsunder the British flag, had plied be- tween Basra and Baghdad; and an agreement exe- cuted by the Pasha in 18238 indicates that the usage 11835-37. This expedition was undertaken for the purpose of surveying the route, in order to test whether steam navigation could be established via the Euphrates for the conveyance of the Indian mails from the Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf. 2 Three of the vessels were withdrawn in 1842, but the remain- ing steamer continued to carry on its duties as before without restrictions. 3 This agreement stated that “no tax, except one previously well defined and arranged, should be levied on boats the property of British subjects or protégés; such, for instance, as pass between Basra and Baghdad.” [3347] D 2 30 [No. 63 HISTORY wa was recognised by the Ottoman Government. From 1842, however, the Turkish authorities showed a dis- position to curtail the privileges hitherto enjoyed by British merchant ships; and constant disputes arose over the illegal exaction of transit duties. An agree- ment was therefore concluded in 1846 between Great Britain and the Porte formally recognising the right of British vessels to navigate Mesopotamian waters. In 1861 Messrs. Lynch Brothers formed the Eupbrates and Tigris Steam Navigation Company, whose first steamer was placed on the Tigris in the fol- lowing year. All attempts to extend or facilitate British commercial navigation in Mesopotamia met, however, with constant opposition from the Turkish authorities. In 1867 a line of steamers was con- stituted under the Turkish flag and under official direction, and from the time of Midhat Pasha's rule at Baghdad these steamers were used almost exclusively for commercial purposes, with the object of driving the British boats off the river. In spite of the resulting competition, the Euphrates and Tigris Steam Naviga- tion Company continued to carry the British mails, to develop trade, and to extend British influence in Meso- potamia. . From 1907 a fusion of this company with the Turkish Government Company was projected, but negotiations were abandoned in 1910. The Porte then declared that the navigation of the Tigris and Euphrates would be thrown open to Otto- man subjects only; and various permits were issued, to which His Majesty's Government took exception as unfair competition in view of the restric- tions imposed upon the British company. As the general position was far from satisfactory, it was insisted, in the negotiations between the British and Ottoman Governments which resulted in the Declaration signed at London July 29, 1913, that the rights enjoyed by Lynch Brothers should be specified in express terms and in treaty form, and be recognised as permanent. It was also arranged that all other commercial navigation by steamships should be the 32 (No. 63 HISTORY further steps were taken. In the latter part of the nineteenth century British influence with the Porte declined; and Germany seized the opportunity to make a bid for political expansion under the guise of econo- mic development in Asiatic Turkey. In 1888, when direct railway communication was established between Berlin and Constantinople, a German syndicate secured valuable railway concessions in Asia Minor; and in consequence the Anatolian Railway Company was constituted. Further concessions were granted in 1893; and in 1899 a Convention was signed conceding in principle rights subsequently defined by the Bagh- dad Railway Convention of 1903. By this Convention the Ottoman Government granted to the Anatolian Railway Company? a concession for the prolongation to Baghdad and Basra of their existing line. Provision was made for certain branch lines, including one to a point on the Persian Gulf to be subsequently deter- mined. The Company was to be allowed to work all minerals found within 20 kilometres on either side of the line, to establish ports on the Persian Gulf, and to navigate the rivers in the service of the railway. Further, it was stipulated that no section of the line between Baghdad and Basra might be worked before the completion of the main line from Konia to Bagh- dad; from which it appears that the economic develop- ment of Mesopotamia was of secondary importance to the linking up of Constantinople (and thereby Berlin.) with the Middle East. German proposals for British participation in this concession were not such as to find acceptance. In 1911 the right to continue the line from Baghdad to the Gulf was surrendered to a suit- able Ottoman company, but with the reservation that ? It was provided that the Anatolian Company should form an Ottoman joint stock company, under the title of the Imperial Ottoman Baghdad Railway Company, which should take the place of the Anatolian Company in all that concerned the new line from Konia to the Persian Gulf. 2 For the financial arrangements of the Baghdad Railway Con- vention, see below, p. 60. Mesopotamia] 33 RAILWAYS the Baghdad Railway Company should participate therein to an extent not less than any non-Turkish element; the possibility of British predominance in this section of the line was thus eliminated. In 1912, after prolonged negotiations, His Majesty's Government in- timated to the Ottoman Government that they were prepared to withdraw their request for British partici- pation in the Gulf sections of the Baghdad Railway, and would agree to an increase in the Turkish Customs if certain specific points at issue could be satisfac- torily settled. An arrangement was concluded with the Ottoman Government in 1913, which stipulated, inter alia, that, (a) There should be no differential treatment on any railway in Asiatic Turkey. (6) Two British representatives, approved by His Majesty's Government, should be admitted to the Board of the Baghdad Railway Company. (c) The terminus of the Baghdad Railway should be at Basra. (d) No railway should be constructed from Basra to the Gulf without the sanction of His Majesty's Government. Both Great Britain and Germany pledged themselves to endeavour to secure that these provisions should be carried into effect, and further arranged that the con- struction and exploitation of ports at Basra and Baghdad, authorized by the Convention of 1903, should be carried out by a separate Ottoman Ports Company. The German Government agreed not to oppose the ac- quisition by British interests of 40 per cent. of the share capital of this Ports Company. In return, the Baghdad Railway Company were granted a certain participation in the new Ottoman Company for River Navigation. The Anglo-German Agreement was initialled in London on June 15, 1914, but its ratifica- tion depended upon the conclusion of the negotiations between Germany and Turkey, which had not been effected on the outbreak of the European war, 34. (No. 63 . HISTORY (c) Oil Concessions. A German expert, who in 1901 visited the oil-bearing districts of Mosul and Baghdad, reported that “these petroleum regions are among the richest in the world, and subsequent re- ports tend to confirm this view. The concession of these oil wells was granted by firmans in 1889 and 1898 to the Turkish Civil List, transferred in 1908-9 to the Ministry of Finance, and has since been the property of that Department. In consequence of a provision in the Baghdad Rail- way Convention of 1903, an agreement was signed in 1904 between the Anatolian Railway Company and the Civil List for working certain mines in Mosul and Baghdad, the option for which was to be open for two years. At the end of that time the Civil List invited a German syndicate to take up the option, but the offer was declined. A British subject, Mr. D'Arcy, who had consider- able oil interests in Persia, started negotiations at Constantinople in 1902 with a view to acquiring the oilfields of the two vilayets, and received from two Grand Viziers the promise that the concession would be transferred to him. From 1912 onwards attempts were made to effect a fusion of British and German interests, and an agreement was drawn up in 1914. In pursuance of this agreement, a company was incor- porated in Great Britain under the name of the Turkish Petroleum Company, Limited; and the British and German Ambassadors at Constantinople were in- formed that the Porte agreed to lease to the company the oilfields in the vilayets of Mosul and Baghdad. No definite settlement as to the terms of the lease was reached before the outbreak of the European war; and in November 1915 the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, re- presenting Mr. D'Arcy's interests, were informed that the agreement no longer possessed legal validity. 1 The oil-belts of Mesopotamia are described below, p. 84. Konopotamia) III. SOCIAL AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS (1) RELIGIOUS THROUGHOUT the Ottoman Empire the State religion is Mohammedanism; and since 1517, when Selim I in- duced the Caliph Mutawakkil to transfer the Caliphate to the Ottoman Sultan and his successors, the Sultan has claimed the position of spiritual head of all orthodox Moslems. The phrase "spiritual sovereignty," as applied to the Sultan, is debatable, for, while his executive and judiciary powers are unlimited, he has never possessed “legislation.” For the Moslem, “legis- lation" means merely the interpretation of the divine law itself by the ‘ulama. It is, therefore, difficult to say in what the authority of the Sultan over Islamic populations resident in non-Turkish countries con- sists. In Mesopotamia, the home of the Abbasid Caliphs and early stronghold of Islam, Moham- medans constitute an overwhelming majority, and are reckoned to outnumber the adherents of other creeds in the ratio of 10 to 1. Religion in Mesopotamia is for the most part a question of race; with few excep- tions, all Arabs, Kurds, Turks, and Persians are, Moslems; all Armenians and Syrians are Chris- tians; and Jews, Yezidis, Sabians, and Chabaks have their own distinctive religions. · The Koran shows little tolerance for non-Moslems; and, although the law of the Tanzimat (1839) and the Hatt-i-Humayun of 1856 guaranteed freedom of religious worship and per- fect equality among all Ottoman subjects, the provi- sions of these laws were frequently disregarded, and ? See Nallino, C. A. Appunti sulla Natura del “ Califfato " in genere e sul presunto “Califfato Ottomano," pp. 5-12. Rome, 1917. ? See Turkey in Europe, No. 16 of this series. 36 PRESENT CONDITIONS (No. 63 the Koran continued to be both the religious and civil code. In Mesopotamia, however, there appears to have been little persecution; and it has been reported that in Baghdad the Christian and the Jew enjoyed a “rare freedom in comparison with other Mohammedan towns." Notorious Moslem outrages against Chris- tians have occurred in the north, as a rule by the agency of the Kurds; but on the whole the animosity between the two chief Mohammedan sects, the Sunnis and the Shiahs, is more marked than that between Moslems and non-Moslems. The Turks and Turkomans, the Kurds, and the Arabs of the Jezireh are Sunnis, and are estimated at 1,037,000 persons; the Persians and most of the Arabs of Irak are Shiahs, and are calculated to number about 1,173,000. The political significance of this cleavage is emphasised by the refusal of the Shiahs to recognise the Sultan as Caliph. Further, since the Shiah doctrine is the national creed of Persia, the religious bond between Shiahs in Persia and Mesopotamia has fre- quently been a cause of serious embarrassment to the Turkish authorities. Feeling between the two sects runs particularly high at the time of the pilgrimages, and in the neighbourhood of the Holy Cities. The principal Shiah shrines are at Nejef, Kerbela, and Kazimain; there is a great influx of pilgrims to these places, particularly during the winter months, from Persia, India, and other Mohammedan countries. The numbers are believed to amount to 150,000—200,000 in the year. The Mujtahids, or chief men of the sect, exercise considerable influence, both religious and poli- tical. The Mujtahids, of Nejef and Kerbela have authority superior to that of any other Mujtahids throughout the entire Shiah world. The most important Sunni shrine in Mesopotamia is at Baghdad, and is the resort of pilgrims from regions so remote as Afghanistan and India. The Nakib of Baghdad, the hereditary custodian of the shrine and official head of the Arab community in the city, has a widespread influence among his co-religionists. Mesopotamia] 87 RELIGIOUS The Christian sects in Mesopotamia may be divided into three groups: (1) the independent Asiatic Churches; (2) the Uniates, in communion with the Roman Catholic Church; (3) the Protestant communi- ties. The most important of these religious bodies have at various times obtained the recognition of the Turkish Government, and have been constituted as authorized communities, or Millets. The Turkish Government appointed the spiritual head of the Church as civil administrator of the Millet, and although his functions were considerably reduced as the law of the Turkish Courts became less entirely based upon the Koran, yet the patriarch remained primarily respon- sible to the Government for the political control of the Millet. The independent Asiatic Churches include the Gre- gorian Church of Armenia, the Nestorian or East Syrian, and the West Syrian or Jacobite. The Churches which acknowledge the spiritual supremacy of the Pope are the Armenian Uniat, the Chaldean or East Syrian Uniat, and the West Syrian or Jacobite Uniat. Mention should here be made of the connexion between the West Syrian or Jacobite Uniat Church and the ancient Christian community of Southern India, which is a factor of considerable importance in Malabar and Travancore. This community acknow- ledges the Patriarch of Antioch as its supreme autho- rity; its bishops are appointed from Syria, and the connexion may be noted as constituting an existing link between Syria and the British Empire. Each com- munity has its separate hierarchy, although the Pope exercises some limited power in the appointment of the bishops and patriarchs. Communities of various Roman Catholic religious orders have been established by the Italians and the French in northern Meso- potamia and in Baghdad and Basra. The Protestants in Mesopotamia are mainly Armenians, but include other converts of the American and Anglican missions. The number of Jews in the country is said to be about 60,000; they are almost exclusively confined to 38 PRESENT CONDITIONS (No. 63 the towns, particularly Baghdad, where they outnumber the Turks and Arabs. The Yezidis, who are estimated to be about 21,000, are chiefly found in the Mosul vilayet. They have suffered much persecution, and are considered by the Moslems and Christians as idolaters. They have no central ecclesiastical autho- rity, but a hierarchy of castes and sects. The Chabaks (10,000), the Sabians (2,000), and members of other creeds are of comparatively slight importance, and carry no political weight in the country. (2) POLITICAL The internal administration of Mesopotamia was conducted from 1869 on the vilayet system, which was ! introduced into the country by Midhat Pasha. Zor, Diarbekr, Mosul, Baghdad, and Basra formed separate vilayets, which were sub-divided into sanjaks and cazas. Each vilayet was governed by a Vali, assisted by an Administrative Council. The Vali of Baghdad took precedence of the other Governors, but each vilayet was placed directly under the central Govern- ment at Constantinople. The Vali had no authority over the regular troops in the province, but could call upon their commander for support; attempts at effec- tive action were, however, constantly paralysed by the , division of authority. In times of peace the mainten- ance of law and order depended upon the gendarmerie, who were under the control of the Turkish War Office, but were distributed as military police under the orders of the civil authorities. The Valis had no power to appoint their subordinates, and had no control over the Courts of Justice, the Departments of Land Records, Posts and Telegraphs, Religious Endowments, Cus- toms, Public Debt, the Tobacco and Salt Monopolies, Public Instruction, and Sanitary Service. The local chiefs of these Imperial Departments received their orders direct from Constantinople-an arrangement 1 Zor was technically a mutessariflik. Mesopotamia) 39 POLITICAL x which had certain advantages, but was frustrated by the difficulties of communication. In each vilayet the Vali was the political representa- tive of the Ottoman Government, and as such con- ducted all dealings with foreign Consular officers and with the chiefs of the semi-independent tribes. He also controlled the Provincial Departments, of which the most important was that concerned with the col-1 lection of taxes and the keeping of the general accounts. The Turks employed the system of farming the taxes, with the result that bribery and corruption were rife. It has been stated on good authority that in the vilayet of Basra alone, which contained a relatively large settled population, seven-tenths of the people success- fully escaped all taxation. The late Sultan, Abdul Hamid, converted into his private property some 30 per cent. of the best cultivated lands in the vilayets of Basra and Baghdad, and con- siderable areas in the northern provinces. This estate was called the Da'irat es-Saniyeh. In 1909 the Young Turkish party transferred it from the Civil List to the Ministry of Finance, the management was taken over by the State, and the revenues were expended in the interests of the Committee of Union and Progress. (3) EDUCATIONAL The Department of Public Instruction under the Ottoman Government maintained in every sanjak and caza a primary school, in which Turkish and Arabic were taught. There were, in addition, a secondary school for boys and a primary school for girls at Baghdad and at Basra. These were all Government institutions, where instruction was given free of charge. There were also a primary and a secondary military school at Baghdad, and industrial schools at Baghdad and Basra. The committee which managed the Da'irat es-Saniyeh maintained primary schools on some of the rural parts of the estate. 1 See below, p. 82. Mesopotamia] IRRIGATION (4) GENERAL OBSERVATIONS (a) Irrigation The question of irrigation is intimately connected with the past prosperity of Lower Mesopotamia, and with its present poverty. The ancient civilisations of Babylonia obtained their wealth from the land, and expended this wealth in constructing vast irrigation works, which obtained for the country the title of “ the granary of the world.” The Mongol invasions of the thirteenth and four- teenth centuries and the Turkish conquest in 1638 de- stroyed the irrigation works, and with them the pros- perity of the country and its powers of recuperation. Attempts have occasionally been made by the Ottoman authorities, particularly by Midhat Pasha when Vali of Baghdad, to irrigate the country, but through lack of resources or a strong administration no success was attained. In 1909 Sir William Willcocks, as Adviser to the Ottoman Ministry of Public Works, submitted a scheme for the irrigation of 31 million acres at a total capital cost of 26 million pounds. The first portion of the scheme, including the erection of the Hindie bar- rage, was undertaken by the British firm of Sir John Jackson, Ltd., in 1911, and the barrage was formally inaugurated in December 1913. Tenders for about a third of the whole scheme were invited by the Ottoman Government in 1912, and submitted by two British firms only. The Ottoman Government, for financial reasons, did not then proceed with the work, but in 1914 arranged with His Majesty's Government that all irrigation works in Mesopotamia, other than those already tendered for, should be put up to open tender. It is held by some competent authorities that the per- sistent destruction of forests in the highlands of Armenia and Kurdistan by goats (see Armenia, No. 62 of this series) has materially affected the rainfall of sistent held by some should be puh. 0 Menopotamia] 43 LABOUR; CAPITAL country has discovered as a result of the war that there was a political side to the commercial and industrial enterprise of Germans in its territories. In Turkey, where German trade increased tenfold between 1889 and 1912, and has long been openly fostered as a means to political ascendancy, this policy of commercial pene tration' has been especially significant for two reasons. Firstly, it has been relatively easy of accomplishment, owing to the temperamental disinclination and ad- ministrative inability of the Turks to conduct large coinmercial enterprises themselves; secondly, it has been openly and widely advocated in Germany as a menace to Great Britain's command of the sea, and as a peril to her connection with Egypt and the East. A con- structive commercial and financial policy is the best antidote to German penetration. (d) Conclusions The ancient prosperity of Mesopotamia, revived under the Caliphs, was finally destroyed by the Mongol invasions, the effects of which were perpetuated by the Turko-Persian wars and subsequent years of Turkish misrule. During the whole period of its inclusion in the Ottoman Empire Mesopotamia suffered from a cor- rupt administration, internal strife and rebellion, in- justice and oppression, poverty and want. It appears to be agreed that the elimination of all Turkish parti- cipation in the future administration is imperative; a return after the war to the status quo ante would be fatal to the interests of the country. No Power in the world has any claim comparable with that of Great Britain to control the destinies of Mesopotamia. For over two centuries Great Britain has performed countless services, involving the sacrifice of many lives and the expenditure of much money, in the development of international trade, in the estab- lishment of communication by steamship, post and 1 This question is dealt with in detail below, p. 98. [3347] E A4 (No. 63 PRESENT CONDITIONS telegraph, in the protection of traffic, and in the sup- pression of lawlessness and piracy on the rivers of Mesopotamia and in the Persian Gulf. The conse- quently unique position of Great Britain in this region, the peculiar interests—strategic, political, and com- mercial--which she has at stake, and the intimate connection between Mesopotamia and India combine to make the future administration of the country a matter of vital concern to the British Empire. More- over, the great improvements effected during the recent military occupation, the millions of money ex- pended upon the port of Basra, the work on the Hindie barrage and canal system, by which 300,000 acres were brought into cultivation in 1918, and the friendly relations established between the British authorities and the Arabs, point to continued progress in the future under British auspices. Mesopotamia) VERN IV. ECONOMIC CONDITIONS (A) MEANS OF COMMUNICATION (1) INTERNAL (a) Roads, Paths, and Tracks MESOPOTAMIA abounds in tracks, but before the war had very few roads, and those of an indifferent kind, metalled only in small sections. Only upon the trade routes radiating from Mosul and Baghdad was wheeled traffic general, and even upon these much of the trans- port was carried on by means of camels, mules, donkeys, and, to some extent, baggage ponies.. In Irak or Lower Mesopotamia, when the Tigris and Euphrates are in flood, the roads and tracks are, gener- ally speaking, impassable, but this condition of affairs is less serious than might be supposed, because it is at the time of flood that navigation on the rivers and canals is at its best. During the low-water season wheeled traffic can use the roads between Baghdad and Kut, Hilla, Kerbela, and Nejef. Away from the rivers, the main difficulties of move- ment are due to the desert and waterless character of most of the country. Though the going is often rough and (after rain) heavy, the ground is usually more or less passable for wheels in the plains and rolling country of the Jezireh, the Syrian Desert, and the area between the Tigris and the mountains on the east. The main routes of Mesopotamia are those used either for trade or by pilgrims visiting the different shrines situated in the Delta, of which the most impor- tant are those at Kerbela, Nejef, and Baghdad. The [3347] E 2 46 (No. 63 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS roads can therefore most conveniently be grouped round Baghdad and Mosul, the most important trading centres of the interior. The chief roads round Baghdad are as follows:- (1) Baghdad and Khanikin.-This is the main route for trade to Kermanshah in Persia from the west and south, and is also largely used by pilgrims visiting the shrines of Mesopotamia. The size and importance of the pilgrim traffic on this route may be judged from the fact that in 1905 no less than 95,000 pilgrims paid sani- tary taxes to come into Mesopotamia at Khani- kin, bringing with them some 8,000 corpses for burial, some 60,000 beasts of burden, and up- wards of 10,000 packages of merchandise. All these pilgrims have to return carrying with them merchandise from Baghdad and the holy places. The distance from Baghdad to Khani- kin is about 94 miles, and to Kermanshah about 222 miles. The complete journey to Kermanshah takes about twenty days for camels and about fourteen days for horses or mules. In dry weather the road is suitable for wheeled traffic right into Persia; in wet weather the sur- face becomes in places impossible for wheeled traffic. A motor service was running between Baghdad and Bakuba (about 31 miles) in 1913. (2) Baghdad and Mosul.—Here there are two routes:- (a) Along the line of the Jebel Hamrin, via Kifri, Altun Keupri, and Erbil (293 miles). Though the longer, this is the better and more frequented route, as it is less subject to floods than the lower route along the Tigris Valley, and passes through a well- watered and populous district. The cross- ings of the rivers which flow down to the Tigris present difficulties, but this route is generally suitable for wheeled traffic, and the Mesopotamia] ROADS, &c. entire journey has been accomplished in a motor-car. Following the right bank of the Tigris, via Samarra, Tekrit, and Kalaat Sherghat (230 miles). North of Samarra the route was before the war a mere track, not suitable for wheeled traffic. According to a German map recently captured, it is now fit for wheeled traffic for its whole length.. Baghdad and Aleppo, via Feluja, Hit, Abu Kemal, Deir ez-Zor, and Meskene. This is a regular route for caravans, which make the journey in from twenty to twenty-five days; a carriage can cover the distance in about fifteen days, and the section between Ana and Aleppo has been traversed by motor-car in 31 hours. The route follows the Euphrates from Feluja to Meskene, at which point it leaves the river and goes west across the plain to Aleppo. (4) Baghdad and Damascus or Homs, following route (3) to Deir ez-Zor, and thence proceeding south-west to Tadmur (Palmyra). This is a regular caravan route, both goods and passenger traffic being fairly regular Caravans cross each way every forty or sixty days. The three chief routes round Mosul are as follows :-- (1) Mosul and Baghdad (see above). (2) Mosul to Rania, via Erbil and Keui Sanjak, and thence into Persia. This route is suitable for wheeled traffic only as far as Rania, from which point the route into Persia degenerates into a track. (3) Mosul and Diarbekr, vic Nisibin and Mardin, whence there are good roads leading north to Erzerum and south-west to Aleppo and Alexandretta. Before the war this was the chief route from the Mediterranean to Mesopotamia, ECONOMIC CONDITIONS. (No. 63 (b) Rivers and Canals The important rivers of Mesopotamia are the Tigris, the Euphrates, and the river formed by the confluence of these two at Kurna and known as the Shatt el-Arab. Of less importance are the four tributaries which join the Tigris from the Persian hills on its left bank, the Great and Lesser Zab, the Adheim between Mosul and Baghdad, and the Diala just below the latter town. The length of the Tigris between Mosul and Kurna is about 723 miles, that of the Euphrates between Meskene and Kurna about 1,002 miles; the length of the Shatt el-Arab is 107 miles. . From the economic point of view, the main interest in Mesopotamia centres round the Tigris and Euphrates. Mesopotamia owes its past importance to the wealth won from the rich soil of the Delta by means of the ancient systems of irrigation, of which abundant evidence exists even to-day, and the future progress of the country depends upon the proper utilisation of its rivers for irrigation and navigation. The Shatt el-Arab is navigable by ocean-going steamers. At Fao the average width of the river is 1 mile, decreasing gradually to 1 mile at the mouth of the Karun River, which flows in on the left bank 49 miles above Fao; above this point the river imme- diately decreases to a' mean breadth of 600 yards. Between Basra and Kurna the river gradually narrows to 250 yards. Its utility for navigation is at present impeded by a bank of silt known as the Fao bar, which lies across the mouth of the river at Fao, and gives at low water a maximum depth of 11 feet only, with the result that vessels of larger draught are compelled either to wait for the tide or to trans-ship a portion of their cargo to lighters outside the bar. The depth of water over the bar at spring tides is 20 ft., at neap tides 17 ft. Beyond the bar there is a depth of from 30 to 40 ft. up to Basra, except at two places, of which the more serious is the Mohammera bar, just below the confluence of the Karun River. Vessels drawing Mesopotamia] RIVERS (SHATT EL-ARAB; TIGRIS) 49 not more than 15 ft. can get up as far as Kurna.' Native craft used on the Shatt el-Arab are mostly bellams, long, narrow boats which can be sailed, rowed, or, as is more usual, punted or towed, and which can carry a load of 50 tons. The only places of importance on the Shatt el-Arab are the Persian port of Moham- mera, at the junction of the Karun River with the Shatt el-Arab; Basra, the sea port of Mesopotamia; and Nahr Umar, which is on the right bank, 20 miles above ^ Basra, and has been developed as a port since the British military occupation. The Tigris, from the point of view of navigation, can most conveniently be considered in two sections: first, the section between Kurna and Baghdad, which is at present the upper limit of steam navigation; secondly, that between Baghdad and Mosul. The distance from Kurna to Baghdad, following the general direction of the river, is under 300 miles; but the frequent bends make the distance by water about 448 miles. Owing to the river's winding course, the silt deposited during the season of flood forms banks which, when the water is low, constitute a great hindrance to navigation. .. In high-water season, steamers of not more than 5 ft. draught can navigate the Tigris from Kurna to Baghdad; and the difficulties of navigation are mainly those caused by the swiftness of the current, which, according to some authorities, reaches 6 miles per hour at the height of the flood. At low water, vessels drawing more than 3 ft. cannot navigate the section between Ezra's Tomb and Kale Sale, where the river has been much damaged as a waterway by native cultivators, who have thrown out brushwood groynes in order to assist irrigation or to reclaim the land, and have done other damage by cutting irrigation channels at the concave sides of the bends. Sir William Willcocks, who was called in to advise the 1 For the terms of the agreement of 1913, under which the navigation of the river was to be surveyed by a special Com- mission, see above, p. 81. 60 (No. 83 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS Turkish Government as to the best method of irrigat- ing the Delta of the Tigris and Euphrates, expressed the opinion that the Tigris would soon cease to be navigable between these two points unless steps were taken to remedy matters. The rest of the river up to Baghdad is navigable at all seasons of the year by vessels drawing not more than 5 ft. of water. There are bridges of boats crossing the river at Kale Sale, Amara, Kut, Gerara, and Baghdad. For steamers with a speed of 10 knots the journey from Baghdad to Basra takes about 47 hours, and from Basra to Baghdad about 78 hours in the low-water season, and about 100 hours in flood-time. . Before the war steam navigation on the Tigris up to Baghdad was carried on by Lynch Bros., Ltd., by the Turkish Government River Administration, and by the Agra Jaffer Conipany. The last-named com- pany ran three steamers, towing one barge each, on the Tigris, and another on the Shatt el-Arab, between Basra and Mohammera. The Turkish Government, immediately before the war, had a fleet of seven or eight steamers trading on the Tigris. Lynch Bros. have for many years had the right to maintain on the Tigris two steamers, each towing two barges; and recently they were allowed to put on a third steamer, also with the right of towing two barges, on condition that it sailed under the Turkish flag. Some of their steamers could, in favourable conditions of the river, - take a cargo of as much as 400 tons. Of other vessels trading on this part of the river the most important types were the native craft known as sa fineh and quffeh. The safineh are the more important, being large boats, drawing from 3 to 41 ft. of water, and capable of carrying a cargo of 100 tons; they can be sailed or rowed with the stream; up-stream they are usually either punted or towed. The quffeh is a large coracle, used for the conveyance of passengers. It cannot be used satisfactorily against the stream. The interruption of navigation by the hostility of the Arab tribes inhabiting the river banks has been much less Mosopotamia] 51 RIVERS frequent of recent years, but is reported to have inter- fered with the trade of the river below Baghdad in 1907, 1908, and 1909. The rates of steamer freight on the river for the four years before the war aver- aged 27s. 6d. per ton from Basra to Baghdad, and 15s. a ton from Baghdad to Basra.' In 1913 the Turkish Government granted a con- cession to Lord Inchcape for navigation on the Tigris and Euphrates as far as Mosul and Meskene respec- tively. The main provisions of this concession are given on pp. 96-7. Above Baghdad the bed of the river is alluvial up to Beled, above which town the river flows over a bed of either clay, sand, hard conglomerate, or shingle, and there are numerous rapids, islands, and rocks, which render navigation up-stream impracticable by steamers, though a small launch plied between Bagh- dad and Samarra (90 miles) before the war, and there is a record of a steamer having, in 1838, reached a point 28 miles below Mosul. Commercial traffic on the river between Baghdad and Mosul is carried on, down- stream only, by native keleks. These are large rafts of timber or poles and brushwood, supported on in- flated skins, and are floated down on the current, being kept in the stream by two rough sweeps. They can carry 5 to 35 tons, according to their size. On arrival at their destination, these rafts are broken up, the timber sold, and the skins taken back to the point of departure. When the river is in flood the journey from Mosul to Baghdad takes three or four days; at low water, when rafts have to lie up at night, it takes between ten and twelve days. The distance froin Baghdad to Mosul is 275 miles. The river is crossed by boat bridges at Mosul, Samarra, and Kazimain. Of the tributaries of the Tigris, the Diala is navigable from the beginning of December to April as far as Bakuba (about 52 miles), and the Lesser Zab . These rates have been very considerably increased during the war. 52 (No. 63 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS for rafts down-stream from Altun Keupri (74 miles). Neither the Adheim nor the Greater Zab is navigable. The Euphrates.-It is doubtful whether the Euphrates has ever been used for navigation to any considerable extent, except by small native craft. Immediately before the war its use as a commercial waterway was insignificant, and was attended by some dangers owing to the attitude of the Muntifik Arabs. A glance at the map makes the idea of the commercial use of the Euphrates between Basra and Meskene very attractive, but it is clear that, before any such scheme could be put into practice, prolonged study of the river would have to be undertaken, and no doubt very large engineering works would be required. It will be convenient here to consider the navigation of the Euphrates in three sections, the first from Kurna to the Hindie barrage, the second from the Hindie barrage to Hit, the third from Hit to Meskene. (i) Kurna to the Hindie Barrage.-Owing to the numerous irrigation canals, which have been cut without system and allowed to fall into dis- repair, the river has ceased to be navigable below Nasrie except in flood-time, and Sir William Willcocks reported that the old channel of the Euphrates, from Suk esh-Sheyukh to Kurna, had ceased to carry any considerable quantity of Euphrates water, and that the water was finding its way through the Hammar lake to the Shatt el-Arab at Gurmat Ali. Looking at the question solely from the point of view of irrigation, he proposed to use the old channel merely as a drain for water diverted from the Tigris below Amara for irrigation purposes. Shortly after the British military occupation of Lower Mesopotamia, steps were taken to render navigable this old channel, and for this purpose the Chubaish bar was cut through, and dredging was begun at the northern end of the Hammar lake. This work was, however, discontinued for military Mesopotamia] 53 RIVERS (EUPHRA reasons, and the river is in about as bad a con- dition as before. Between Nasrie and Samawa the river flows in a firm bed, the familiar obstacles to navigation are absent, and a minimum depth of 5 ft. of water can be obtained at all times of the year. Between Samawa and the Hindie barrage all the diffi- culties of navigation found in the lower stretches of the river recur in an aggravated form. The Hindie branch of the river (the only one upon which navigation can be carried on all the year round) is surrounded by khors, or marshes, which are sometimes above and sometimes below water level, and water is drawn off by numerous canals. In consequence, the river between Samawa and the barrage can, at certain seasons of the year, be navigated only by vessels drawing less than 2 ft. of water. There are two locks at the Hindie barrage, which are designed to take vessels of about 5 ft. draught at the period of lowest water. (ii) Hindie Barrage to Hit.—This section is navig- able by steamers drawing not more than 4 to 5 ft. at all seasons of the year, though, until the wash of steamer traffic has helped to clear the channel, navigation at some points might be difficult. The river flows between high banks, and its width varies from 150 to 500 yards. The current, which at low water is about 11 miles per hour, increases to 5 miles per hour in' flood. Hit to Meskene.—Above Hit the bed of the river ceases to be alluvial, and there are rapids at various places, especially between Hit and Ana, which render navigation extremely diffi- cult and dangerous, except when the river is in flood. Banks of shingle and sand are also found. From April to July, when the river is full, its descent would be easy for light-draught steamers, and could be accomplished at a great (iii) 54 (No. 63 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS speed, but the journey up-stream would be very slow, and between Hit and Ana would proba- bly be impossible for any steamer whose speed was less than 12 knots an hour. At present practically all traffic on this section is down- stream, and is carried on by shakhturs, flat- bottomed boats built at Birijik, which when loaded do not draw more than 11 ft. of water. These craft carry a load of about 5 tons, are steered by clumsy sweeps in the bows, and are floated down-stream loaded and towed up-stream empty. Of the channels which take off from the Tigris and Euphrates many are navigable by small native craft at certain seasons of the year, but only the Shatt el-Hai, which leaves the right bank of the Tigris at Kut, and the Saklawie, which runs from the Euphrates, about 10, miles above Feluja, to the Tigris at Baghdad, are navigable for large craft. "In flood-time both these are navigable by bellams, and it is stated that the Saklawie has been navigated by steamers as recently as 1916. With the future of navigation in Mesopotamia are involved two questions—first, the requirements of water for irrigation, and secondly, the competition be- tween river navigation and railways. The former would affect navigation from Tekrit and Ramadie downwards, the latter might threaten its very exist- ence as a commercial proposition. Down to the summer of 1914 the only expert report bearing on these problems was that made by Sir W. Willcocks to the Turkish Government upon the possi- bilities of reviving the irrigation of Mesopotamia. Sir W. Willcocks' conclusions are summed up in the words “rivers for irrigation, railways for com- munications"; and his report proposed seven large schemes for the irrigation of the Delta between the line Feluja—Tekrit and Fao, and for the prevention of floods, and one small scheme for the improvement : 56 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS (No. 63 the Euphrates and their present unsatisfactory con- dition are due to three causes :- (1) An enormous quantity of silt is carried in sus- pension in times and seasons of flood, and is de- posited in the bed of the river and over the country in the immediate neighbourhood as soon as the current is lessened from any cause, in consequence of this the level of the river bed has, in the course of centuries, been raised above the surrounding country, so that it is difficult to control floods. The ignorant Arab methods of irrigation have been allowed to go on unhindered for centuries. írrigation cuts made during the low-water season have developed in flood-time to broad rivers, spreading uncontrolled over the country, which, by lessening the flow in the river bed, have caused silt to be deposited in such quantities that by degrees the original bed of the river in places has become only a channel for carrying flood-water; of this there are instances both on the Tigris and the Euphrates, the best known being that which has occurred at Hindie, where the main Euphrates river has ceased , except during the high-water season, to flow down the Hilla branch, past the site of Babylon, and now goes down the Hindie branch. (3) The Arabs had a system of building out bunds (hurdle-work projections) into the river, either for the purpose of assisting irrigation, or in order to collect silt, and thereby reclaim land for cultivation. Owing to the military situation at the time he made his report, Sir George Buchanan had no opportunity of considering in detail the problems presented by the Euphrates; moreover, the whole question of the regene- ration of the rivers is one upon which reliable conclu- sions can only be reached after more careful study of the rivers than has been possible hitherto. But the experi- 58 (No. 63 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS would not be difficult to render the Euphrates navi- gable between Hit and Meskene. The obstructions to navigation to-day are chiefly caused by stone aqueducts, used for carrying water for irrigation from water- wheels working in the river, and, to a less extent, by rocks and the ruins of old bridges in the bed of the river. The actual cost of removing these obstructions would probably be small, but it would be necessary to provide other means for irrigating the land after the removal of the water-wheels and aqueducts. There is to-day a considerable traffic down-stream, but the traffic up-river is very small. Lynch Brothers are of opinion that a river transport service on the upper · Euphrates would in time be commercially profitable. With regard to the Tigris, Lynch Brothers consider that it would be possible at moderate cost to make the river navigable as far as Shirghat (about 80 miles below Mosul). Blasting operations would be necessary, in order to remove rocks in the channel, and a certain amount of dredging would also be involved, but these operations would not be costly. Between Shirghat and Mosul it would probably be found essential to construct some canals and dams, in order to make navigation practicable across the rapids. As to how far the initial capital outlay on the work of improving the channel could be made remunerative, it is difficult to obtain a reliable opinion. There is no reason to doubt that much of the produce which now goes by caravan to Aleppo would be diverted to Bagh- dad, and that there would be a large export of grain, wool, &c. On the other hand, the continuation of the Baghdad Railway from Mosul to Samarra would naturally have an important bearing on the com- mercial possibilities of river transport services. All questions of navigation must hinge on the ques- tion of railway competition. How far railways will in the future supersede navigation in Mesopotamia it is impossible to forecast. Sir George Buchanan expresses the opinion, based on his experiences in India, where the same problems have arisen, that a Monopotamia) THE BAGHDAD RAILWAY. 61 financial situation permitted, the concessionnaires should issue bonds of their own to replace the bonds issued to them by the Imperial Government. The receipts of the line were apportioned between the Turkish Government and the Company as follows: (1) The first 4,500 francs per kilometre were to go to the Company in relief of the Government's obligation to cover the working expenses at the agreed rate. (2) The surplus above 4,500 francs per kilometre up to 10,000 francs per kilometre was to.go to the Turkish Government. (3) Of any excess over 10,000 francs per kilometre the Government was to get 60 per cent, and the Company 40 per cent. From the point of view of the concessionnaires the bargain was a good one, provided the bonds of the Turkish Government could be realised at a fair price. The bonds necessary to secure the kilometric guarantee were issuable to the concessionnaires on the signature of the .special convention relating to each section; consequently the concessionnaires were not under the necessity of finding any money themselves if they could succeed in placing the Turkish bonds upon the European market, and the liberal payment per kilo- metre allowed for by the terms of the convention gave them an ample margin for doing this. How far the arrangement was financially sound from the Turkish point of view is matter of opinion. The amount of the bonds issued by the Turkish Government to cover the kilometric guarantee on the first section was 54,000,000 francs, on the second section 108,000,000 francs, and on the third section 119,000,000 francs, or a total of 281,000,000 francs, involving an annual sum for interest of over 11,000,000 francs. It is argued that the kilometric guarantee undertaken by the Turkish Government when the Anatolian Railway was [3347] F 2 62 (No. 63 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS constructed was higher than that undertaken in this case, and that nevertheless that line has proved a source of profit to the Turkish Government. If the develop- ment of agriculture in the districts to be tapped by the Baghdad Railway is equally rapid, the burden which the Turkish Government has undertaken may not prove more than the country can carry, but the large amount of bonds issuable in respect of the guarantee must of necessity prove a hindrance to financial operations required for other purposes. İt is impossible to do more than generalise as to the economic prospects of the line. It will tap a large area, which possesses enormous agricultural possibilities; and its branch lines to the Persian frontier and else- where will put it into immediate touch with the places where traffic is most capable of expansion. The flow of pilgrims to Baghdad, Nejef, and Kerbela is also expected to provide an abundant source of revenue. There is a provision of economic importance under which the concessionnaires may work any mines dis- covered within a zone of 20 kilometres on each side of the line; but this right does not give them any privilege or monopoly. The Company paid dividends up to 5 per cent. regularly down to 1912, and at the end of that year's working had a reserve of over 6,000,000 francs. The war has naturally had disastrous effects, and at the meeting of the Company held in February 1918 the chairman stated that the receipts for 1916 had been nearly 15,000,000 francs less than those for 1915; he was silent as to the result of the year 1917. He stated, however, that the contract with the construction com: pany had been denounced, and that the railway company was in urgent need of financial help. Other Railways in Mesopotamia completed or unde! construction are all the work of the British army of occupation, and have been built for military purposes. With the exception of a small 2ft. 6in. line between Sadiyeh on the Tigris and Shahroban on the Khanikin road they are all of 1-metre gauge. Monopotamia] 63 RAILWAYS; POSTS, &c. Proposed railways.-As has already been said, Sir William Willcocks, in connection with his irrigation schemes, proposed the construction of a considerable system of railways in Lower Mesopotamia, and of a trunk line, connecting Baghdad by the Euphrates valley with either Homs or Damascus and the Medi- terranean. Commercially all these proposed lines depend upon the development of Mesopotamia and the adequacy or otherwise of the rivers for the conveyance of goods; and upon these points it is at present impossible to arrive at any useful con- clusions. (d) Posts, Telegraphs, and Telephones The Turkish postal service in Mesopotamia was extremely uncertain; special messengers, travellers, - and passing muleteers were much used to supplement it. There used to be a fortnightly camel-post from Hit to Damascus for letters only, but this was discontinued in 1912 owing to the frequency of attacks by Beduins; between 1912 and 1914 the Baghdad-Damascus post adopted the long Aleppo route, of which the Baghdad- Aleppo section alone required eight days in summer, ten in autumn, and fourteen in winter. • There was a parcel-post from Europe to Baghdad either by Brindisi, Bombay, and Basra, or by Beirut and Aleppo; the former, being safer, was usually preferred. Money orders could be obtained from the Anglo- Indian Post Office at Baghdad; the Turkish Post Office would only issue money orders for inland use. Fao is the terminus of the Indo-European Telegraph Department (cf. Persia, No. 75 of this series); the office, formerly Anglo-Turkish, is now wholly British. · Before the war the Turkish main telegraph lines ran as follows: Mesopotamia) SHIPPING LINES; LABOUR 67 The British India Steam Navigation Co., Ltd. The Ellerman and Bucknall Steamship Co., Ltd. The Strick Line. Marcus Samuel & Co. Andrew Weir & Co. The Arab Steamers, Ltd. . The Boinbay and Persia Steam Navigation Co., Ltd. The Haji Sultan Ali Shustari Line. The Hamburg-Amerika Line. The Russian Steam Navigation Co. The quarantine regulations for vessels entering Basra from India used to be very onerous and involved considerable delay, but in 1909 they were modified so as to enable all vessels not less than ten days out from India to obtain free pratique after medical inspection. (c) Cable and Wireless Communication There were wireless stations at Baghdad and Basra before the war. Cable communication with all parts of the world was available from Fao. (B) INDUSTRY (1) LABOUR The agricultural development of Mesopotamia is con- ditioned and limited by the capacity, character, and temperament of the inhabitants; agricultural regenera- tion can only be effected if labour is available, not only for the construction and upkeep of irrigation works, but for the constant and exacting toil upon the land which the extension of cultivation will involve. The population of the vilayets of Baghdad and Basra does not exceed 1,500,000, and is probably not more than 1,000,000; this gives a density of less than 10 persons per square mile, which is quite insufficient for any far- reaching scheme of agricultural development. Of this population Arabs form the vast majority, but Kurds, Turkomans, Persians, Jews, and Armenians are Mesopotamia] LABOUR; AGRICULTURE 69 and for the fluctuating requirements of agri- culture at different seasons, no unwillingness is shown in meeting it. Arab labour is extremely efficient and can com- mand high wages on piece-work. Those respon- sible for the recent organization of this labour pay high testimony to its merits. They say that the Arab is cheerful, uncomplaining, and wil- ling, that he does more than the average Indian coolie, and is easy to handle if properly treated, and provided that somebody is placed over him to whom he can explain his grievances in his own language, and scrupulous attention is paid to tribal distinctions. . The Arab is less conservative than the Indian coolie, is easily taught, and readily adapts himself to modern methods. There has been from time immemorial a certain amount of immigration of the surplus Arab population into Mesopotamia, and even to-day the Shammar tribe, which is settled on the right bank of the Tigris south of Mosul, is looked upon as part of the tribe of the same name which is found in central Arabia. Immigration of this kind will no doubt con- tinue, and will provide some additional small sources from which labour will be available. . The rates of wages for unskilled labour before the war were from 3 to 4 G.S.P.: (6d. to 8d.) per day. Skilled labour was paid from 5 to 10 G.S.P. (10d. to 18. 8d.) per day. (2) AGRICULTURE According to Herodotus, the yield of the soil of Mesopotamia in his time was as high as 200 or even 300 to 1. Even to-day, although a great part of the country is an arid waste, the chemical constituents of the soil are such that only irrigation and tillage are 1 Grand Seigneur piastres. 70 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS (No. 63 necessary to bring out its potential fertility, and repro- duce former conditions. In north Mesopotamia agriculture is in a less deplor- able condition than in the south and is improving, but there the soil is more stony and less fertile, the rivers do not lend themselves so easily to irrigation, and the country suffers from drought. The latter difficulty is to some extent being overcome by the introduction of centrifugal pumps driven by oil engines. The decay of agriculture in Lower Mesopotamia has been progressive since the beginning of Turkish rule in the year 1258. Under the Turks both irrigation and river conservancy have been neglected, and tract after tract of once fertile land has fallen out of use, until to-day only about 1/25th of the country is cultivated. The richest soil is found in the alluvial plains of Irak, but only 5 per cent. of the cultivable area of Basra vilayet is now tilled. Great permanent swamps have been formed, and, even where the swamps are not per- manent, the evaporation of flood-waters has left in the soil deposits of salt, which are detrimental to agricul- ture, whilst the lack of irrigation has turned thousands of acres of fertile land into desert. German writers have variously estimated the sabad, or rich alluvial soil of Mesopotamia, at from 25 to 60 million acres in extent; but these are probably over-estimates; in any case, from 2! to nearly 5 million acres are continually flooded. Of the other causes which have contributed to the decay of the country the following are the most im- portant:- (a) In the days of her prosperity Mesopotamia was the centre of trade between the East and the · West. The course of trade, however, was altered by the discovery of the route by the Cape of Good Hope, and subsequently by the construc- LIOL OI une suez Canal, and Mesopotamia 1S to-day in a backwater. (6) No attempt has been made until quite recently to develop adequate internal communications. Mesopotamia) AGRICULTURAL METHODS 71 Turkey has been quite apathetic about the needs of the country in this respect, and even so late as 1912 was placing every possible difficulty in the way of an adequate steam transport service on the Tigris. (c) The absence of a Government strong enough to prevent the feuds between neighbouring tribes, and incursions of Kurds from the hills, has created a sense of insecurity fatal to the develop- ment of agriculture. The vagaries of the rivers also contributed to this feeling, because districts which in one year were rendered fertile by irri- gation might in the next year be either arid wastes or under water for months together. (d) Owing to the uncertainty of land tenure, there has been no incentive to improve the soil. Even the sheikhs rarely held land on more than a five years' lease, and their tenants often only yearly. (e) The Government system of farming out its land taxes offered every opportunity for exaction and oppression. (f) The scarcity and uncertainty of labour fre- quently caused the postponement of wheat and barley sowing till long past the date when it was most advantageous to sow. Moreover, it pre- vented attention being given to the intensive cultivation of cotton, tobacco, &c. The lack of agricultural credit facilities dis- couraged the cultivator. (a) Methods of Cultivation In Mesopotamia there are two harvests. Wheat, barley, and miscellaneous crops, such as beans, are sown in the autumn or winter, and are harvested in April and May; rice, peas, and maize are sown during the spring floods, and are harvested between August and November. Cultivation is primitive, and intensive methods are unknown outside the immediate vicinity of the towns. This is largely due to the uncertainty of tenure, but (9) Mesopotamia] AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS 73 The higher ground is only irrigated at the time of full flood, and is always dry during the cold weather; the intermediate slopes can usually command water for irrigation during most of the spring and summer; the low land is always wet. There is, therefore, from every channel a graduation of slopes, of which the higher are suitable for growing wheat and barley, the inter- mediate for such crops as millet and maize, after the floods have somewhat subsided, and the lower for rice. The rice land is again sub- divided into two classes, the higher land which can command water throughout the rice season, but is not always under water, and the lower land which is always under a certain amount of water. In the higher land rice is sown broadcast, while in the lower it is transplanted. (b) Products of Commercial Value Dates.-The cultivation of the date palm is the most important branch of agriculture in Mesopotamia, for dates are the chief article of food, and usually the most valuable export. The export averages about 60,000 tons annually, and is capable of considerable expansion. It has been said that Mesopotamia grows 80 per cent. of the world's total produce in dates. Dates require a plentiful supply of water, and there- fore their cultivation is general only in the alluvial tracts bordering the rivers in Lower Mesopotamia, although the date palm is found elsewhere also. On the other hand, flooding is bad for the trees, and causes “ date fever.” Consequently the groves have to be pro- tected against floods by large dykes or sudds. The fertilisation of the blossom is done by hand, a few male trees being planted among the female. The chief centres of cultivation are:- (1) The Shatt el-Arab Belt. On the right bank the date palms form a continuous grove, half a mile to two miles wide, between the river and the 74 (No. 63 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS tinuouswith. ceft, an is the desert. On the left bank the groves are younger and more broken. The immediate neighbour- hood of Basra is probably the finest date-grow- ing region in the world. The date gardens of the Shatt el-Arab are intersected by irrigation trenches, connected with creeks along which fresh water is forced by the rise of the tide, and by this means fairly satisfactory irrigation is obtained. The Baghdad Belt. On the right bank of the Tigris at and below Baghdad there are eleven miles of date groves; north of the town they become less continuous until at Beled only isolated palms are met with. (3) On the Euphrates Kufa, Kefl, and Kerbela are centres of date-growing, and so is the coun- try watered by the Dujeil Canal. Groves also occur in patches as far north as Rawa, opposite Ana. The date groves of the Euphrates have suffered from the drying-up of the Hilla branch of the river. The Mesopotamian date is inferior in quality to those of Egypt and Algiers, but varieties from these countries could be introduced into Mesopotamia. The finest are said to come from Mendali, near the Persian frontier, where satisfactory irrigation is obtained by a canal taking off from the Ab-i-Gunjir. Dates are not only the staple diet of the Arab, but are used as fodder for cattle and for the manufacture of a native spirit called araq (see infra, p. 87). The packing is done by women and desert Arabs in temporary huts built along the river banks. The fruit is packed damp, and evaporation causes the crystal- lization of the sugar present; no sugar is added. Wood for date-boxes is imported. The total crop in 1913, if we estimate it as being twice the export, would be nearly 128,000 tons. The average crop is probably about 91,500 tons; much higher figures have been given, but these are probably over-estimates. Mesopotamia) DATES AND CEREALS 75 The date palm supplies timber for building and fur- niture, but it is difficult to fell, and too valuable to be freely cut. The foot stumps furnish fuel and fibre from which cordage is made, while the leaves are used for matting, beds, and thatch. Dry branches are also used as firewood. Rice of coarse quality is grown in large and increas- ing quantities in Irak, where its importance is second only to that of the date palm. It is also grown, but to a considerably smaller extent, in Upper Mesopotamia. As has already been said, rice is grown on the lowest of the slopes which descend from the raised river channels to the swamps. It is very difficult to form any accurate estimate of the area under rice. At a very rough estimate it may be said that, in the Basra vilayet, it amounts to about 100,000 acres, from which the total production averages about 195,000 tons. Rice is cultivated in the land bordering upon the marshes of the Tigris below Amara, and in the marshy districts of the Euphrates between Hilla and Suk esh-Sheyukh. For the rice fields of the vilayet the markets are Amara and Qual’at Salib. The figures of production of rice in the vilayet of Mosul are very uncertain; it is all sold within the coun- try at absurdly low prices. It is impossible to say what the production of rice to the acre is; the natives have the vaguest ideas of measurements, and their estimates show great varia- tions. In any case the yield is very heavy, and the rice tribes are by far the wealthiest. Rice is the rival of wheat and barley, and, though primarily grown for home consumption, is exported to an in- creasing extent; 67,000 tons were loaded at Basra in 1912. Wheat and barley are the chief crops of northern Mesopotamia, that is, of the vilayet of Mosul and the Mutessariflik of Zor, but the difficulties of transport have hitherto rendered impossible any considerable export from these districts, and much of the crops is [33477 Mesopotamia] CEREALS; OTHER CROPS 77 over Mesopotamia, wherever corn is grown. In Bagh- dad there are over 100 mills, and Mosul boasts more than 300. The only modern mill is that at Baghdad, recently owned by the Turkish Government. Two kinds of cotton are at present grown, one from native seed and the other from Bombay seed. The latter is of much better quality, but does not easily work off the native carding instrument, and is there- fore little grown. Egyptian seed has given good results, but is not popular commercially. The best cotton is grown in the Khanikin districts; it is also grown on a small scale at Shakhlawa, near Rania, and in the irrigated plain near Feish: Khabur; the total area under cultivation for cotton is probably not much more than 1,000 acres. The · product is used for stuffing pillows and coarse clothing; none is exported. The possibilities of cotton- growing in Mesopotamia are discussed on p. 126. Tobacco is grown round Kerbela and Nejef, in the Diala valley, and in the north-east of Mosul vilayet, where the chief collecting centres are Golan, Keui San- jak, and Taktak; the two latter stand on the Lesser Zab, and send tobacco down that river and the Tigris to Baghdad. The Public Debt Administration has a monopoly of the manufacture and sale of tobacco, which business it manages through the Tobacco Monopoly, or Régie, whose officials supervise the cultivation and col- lect the taxes. Of the crop the State gets approxi- mately 1/6th, the proprietor 4/6ths, and the cultivator 1/6th. The total output is probably about 1,550,000 kg. per annum. This output could be increased with expert instruction and more intensive cultivation. Baghdad, Mosul, and Suleimanie are the distri- buting centres. Other important crops are opium and hemp, both successfully grown in the Belikh Delta, north of Rakka, lubiyeh, a kidney pea cultivated in Irak on river banks and land liable to floods, and mash, a sort of vetch or pea (sometimes described as a lentil), which grows in damp, sandy plains, and requires little water. [3347] G 2 Mesopotamia) FRUITS; TIMBER; ANIMALS Tigris, speaks of that river as flowing between high, well-wooded banks. To-day, the only trees remaining in Irak are date palms, tamarisks, and a few poplars, which provide a scanty supply of fuel. Northern Meso- potamia has occasional oak-groves, especially east of Suleimanie; the slopes of the Kurdish hills were for- merly well-wooded, but are being stripped; and the herds of goats kept by the Kurds do much damage to young growth. Pistachio trees, poplars, planes, and sycamores are found, but the staple tree is the stunted oak, chiefly valuable for gall-nuts. Large areas of tamasisk shrub line the middle course of the Euphrates. It is known that in ancient days trees abounded in Mesopotamia, and the reafforestation of Irak will no doubt form part of any plan for the regeneration of the country, both as a means of assisting the control of floods, and as an important adjunct to the schemes for increasing the humidity of the soil. Animals.-Live-stock is the principal or sole source of wealth of many of the inhabitants of Mesopotamia. There are, however, no reliable statistics as to the number of animals or their distribution before the war, and the following table should be taken merely as a rough indication :- Baghdad. Basra. Zor. Mosul. :: Cattle Buffaloes Horses Donkeys Mules Camels Sheep Goats ::::: 155,000 80,000 85,000 100,000 4,000 95,000 2,100,000 4,000 120,000 10,000 500,000 80,000 4,000 88,000 1,700 260,000 110,000 8,500 6,000 16,000 125,000 4,000 90,000 1,200,000 | 450,000 11.500.000 The wholly nomad Arabs in the western desert, the Upper Mesopotamian plains, and the drier parts of 80 (No. 68 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS Irak keep and breed camels, horses, sheep, some goats, and donkeys. The semi-nomad Arabs own camels, horses, cattle (in proportions varying with the nature of the district they frequent), sheep, some goats, and donkeys. The settled cultivators own cattle (buffaloes in the marshes), sheep, goats, donkeys, horses, and a few camels. In the hill country of northern Mesopo- tamia the semi-nomadic or nomadic Kurds breed sheep, goats, cattle, horses, and mules. The settled popula- tion of the hills and the edges of the plain own chiefly cattle (including buffaloes), sheep, goats, and mules. The camel may be said in general to be characteristic of the dry, uncultivated plains (desert or steppe). The nomad tribes who breed camels depend on them for travel in the desert, for milk (the basis of the nomad's diet), and for hair for cloth-weaving. Different types of camel are bred, suitable respectively for riding and for transport purposes. Good breeds of Arab horses are found both in northern and southern Mesopotamia, though they are said not to be up to the standard of the best breeds of the Nejd and Syria. The Kurdish horses are small, but are said to be strong and serviceable. Sheep are kept in immense numbers by the Arabs. In Irak the most common breed is the arabi or sheffal, yielding a fine wool. The awassi breed, a cross between the arabi and the coarse-fleeced karadi sheep of the hill country, is found in the plains of Upper Mesopotamia. Goats are chiefly kept by the hill tribes. The common type is the mohair, which yields a fine silky wool of considerable commercial value. Cattle are found in the plains, chiefly in the better- watered grazing grounds near the rivers. They are used for ploughing, irrigation, and draught work, as well as for their milk and hides. The hill cattle are generally small. Buffaloes are characteristic of the marshes, where they are kept in great numbers, and form the main wealth of the inhabitants. In parts of Mosul buffaloes are used for agricultural work. Donkeys are very common in Irak. The ordinary Mesopotamia] Mesopotamia) LAND TENURE; MINERALS 83 Ministry of Finance, and was nominally administered as State property for the benefit of the Exchequer. (3) MINERALS LS Little information is available with regard to the minerals of Mesopotamia. Lack of means of transport, insecurity, and other causes have combined to hinder their exploitation; and the deposits which have been worked have been dealt with by more or less primitive methods. Scientific examination of mineral fields has only been carried out in a very few districts, and the statements as to the existence of oil are largely based upon conclusions arrived at from a knowledge of the general geological structure of Mesopotamia, supported by the uncertain evidence of surface indications of oil or bitumen in different places. In these circumstances it is impossible to do more than indicate the regions in which minerals are reported to exist. There is apparently a good deal of borax in the desert north-west of Baghdad. Building-stone is rare in Irak. It is reported that below Baghdad stone is found only at Samawa, and at the Jebel Sinam, about 30 miles south-west of Basra. Limestone can be quarried at Hit, and accessories for building, such as sand, shingle, and lime, can be ob- tained on the edges of the desert. In Upper Mesopo- tamia the principal quarries are those in the hills near Mosul, where a hard limestone and a soft marble are obtained. Building-stone can be found in the Euphrates valley between Feheme and Ana, and farther north at Deir ez-Zor and Kishla Maden. Basalt is common in the hill country south of Diarbekr, and in parts of the northern Jezireh plain. Lime, plaster, and marble are found in Kurdistan along the Turko-Persian borderland. Coul is worked at Nasale, near Kifri, and there is said to be a good deal in the hills near Halebja, south- east of Suleimanie. 84 (No. 63 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS North of Mosul deposits of coal exist over a fairly wide area. They are reported in the Dohuk district, at Harbol and Sheranis, north of Zakho, and farther east, in the country north of Amadia. The quantity in the neighbourhood of Harbol is said to be large, but the quality is at present poor. Brown coal has been noticed in the neighbourhood of Mardin. Copper is reported from the Shemdinan and Oraniar districts of central Kurdistan, and also in the Dohuk district, south-west of Amadia. Gold was worked in the past in the Bohtan valley, but the enterprise was abandoned for want of trans- port. Gypsum of poor quality abounds along the Persian foothills from the Persian Gulf to the neighbourhood of Kirkuk, and is also found on the edge of the Arabian Desert, where the deposits have been worked to a small extent. Iron ore is found in the Sergusa hills, to the north of Amadia; it used to be worked, but the mine was abandoned owing to insecurity. It is said that there are large quantities of the ore. Other deposits are reported east of Amadia and in the Dohuk district. Iron is also found in the Bohtan valley. Lead occurs in the neighbourhood of Amadia, and in the valleys of the Bohtan and Zab. It is said that there are also valuable deposits in the hills south and south-west of Diarbekr. Oil and Bitumen.'—There are extensive belts of coun- try in Mesopotamia where the presence of oil is known or suspected, but the examination of those belts is still very incomplete. Thorough geological examination and testing have been carried out by the Anglo-Persian Oil Company near Shushtar in Arabistan, and there seems to have been careful inspection of the country round Kasr-i-Shirin, on the Persian side of the fron- 1 The history of the oil concessions in Mesopotamia 1889-1915 is summarized above, p. 34. Mesopotamia) 85 MINERALS. (OIL, &c.) tier near Khanikin. So far as such investigation goes, the results are said to be promising Elsewhere there has been thorough examination only at a few scattered points. The petroliferous areas may be conveniently considered in three main belts:- (a) The belt between Kirkuk and the Persian Gulf. -This belt, extending north-westwards to Kirkuk from the Gulf, is certainly petroliferous in some parts, and may be in others also. One large section (the Shushtar- Ahwaz—Ramuz district) falls outside the boundaries of Mesopotamia, and is dealt with in Persia, No. 75 of this series. Exploitation work has been done in the Kirkuk—Mendali-Kasr-i-Shirin area, north of Bagh- dad, and though; production has not been attempted on any scale in this region, some experts are inclined to think that it may prove richer than the Shushtar area. It lies on the line of the caravan route, between Baghdad and Kermanshah, and is also easily accessible from Mosul. Down to the outbreak of war, the wells on the Turkish side of the frontier had not been exploited by modern methods. The springs were apparently owned by the Turkish Government, and were leased to con- tractors. The oil was collected in skins from pits and was carried by donkeys to the refineries. There are stills at Kirkup, Tuza Khurmatli, and Mandali. The vield has so far been very small; the Kirkuk wells, in 1910, were producing only about 130 gallons per day, and those at Tuza Khurmatli about 150. The refined oil was used, according to quality, for illumination, lubrication, or as a specific for mange. (6) The Middle Tigris belt.—This belt extends up the river from the Fatha gorge in the Jebel Hamrin almost to Mosul. At present oil is worked only at Kaiyara (Guyara), about 50 miles south of Mosul by river and 40 miles by road. There are oil oozings in the warm springs of Hammam Ali (15 miles south of Mosul), and at El-Hadhr, and at the Fethah gorge. It is possible that the whole line of the Hamrin hills is petroliferous. The economic prospects of this area are 86 (No. 63 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS quite uncertain, and in 1910 the output of a primitive refinery at Kaiyara was insignificant. (c) The Euphrates belt.-A petroliferous area ex- tends along the river from a few miles south of Hit to some distance above Deir ez-Zor. The economic pros- pects here, too, are quite uncertain. Hitherto the only important exploitation of this area has been at Hit. Before the war there were five bitumen springs in this neighbourhood. In 1909 these were stated to be capable of an output of 2,000 donkey-loads a day, but the actual production was probably considerably less. Owing to lack of transport the bitumen was used locally only, chiefly for pitching boats, bridges, &c. There is now a refinery and petroleum store at Hit. Orpiment was at one time mined in the Julamuk region, but the enterprise was abandoned owing to lack of transport. Ozokerit is said to be obtainable in large quantities at Gulraman in the Dohuk district. Potash is found in the deserts. Salt is produced by evaporation from numerous salt- fields covering large areas both in Irak and in upper Mesopotamia. The inhabitants of the country dis- tricts are allowed to collect what salt they need for their own use, but the supply of salt for the town markets is in the hands of the Public Debt Adminis- tration. There is also a group of saltfields in central Kurdistan, on the lower Bohtan. Rock salt is found at Taza Khurmali, south of Kirkuk. Tin is reported from the Shemdinan and Oramar districts of central Kurdistan. ds covering large inhabitants of the they need for (4) MANUFACTURES The manufactures of Mesopotamia are few and of a primitive kind. They fall into two main categories; first, those which are incidental to the simple exist- ence of the pastoral or agricultural Arab; and secondly, those which are designed to meet the love of ease and ostentation which is very strongly developed in the Per- sian, and is to a less extent a characteristic of the town- 88 (No. 63 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS industries in Irak, but the industry suffered from a long period of depression, and only in recent years has a revival taken place. The most important centre of the cultivation of silkworms is Bakuba, and before the war broke out the cultivation of mulberry trees in that district was extending. The quality of the eggs and cocoons produced is very high. The weaving of silk is carried on at Baghdad and Mosul. The silk fabrics of Baghdad are famous for their beauty of colouring and workmanship, the best known manufacture being the ezar, a silk cloak largely worn by native women, and the abas, an Arab cloak made either of silk or wool and embroidered with silk or gold. . The latter are made at several places besides Baghdad, notably at Kerbela, Nejef, Amara, Suk esh-Sheyukh, and Kurna. The reeling of silk is primitive, and the silk is badly yarned. Some silk weaving is also done at Kazimain. Woollen rugs and coarse carpets are manufactured at Kut, Samawa, and Amara. Other textiles are manufactured in large quantities at Baghdad. These include men's garments, jackets, veils, shawls, belts, and handkerchiefs, all of fine cotton, wool, or silk, and in addition coarse cotton cloth for the use of the poorer classes, and canvas for tents. Tanning is one of the most solid industries of the country. There are forty tanneries near Muadhdem (a suburb of Baghdad), and others at Kazimain and Mosul. The chief raw materials used are sheep and goat skins, buffalo, ox and cow hides, and fox, otter, and stone-marten skins. The industry is in a primitive state, the skins are badly handled, and the leather is only roughly tanned. It is used locally in the manufac- ture of boots and shoes, and is also exported to Europe. The industry suffers from the want of good tannin. Mesopotamia] 89 TOWNS (C) COMMERCE (1) DOMESTIC 'owns A mara, on the left bank of the Tigris, 921 miles above Kurna, is only of importance as a centre for the collection and shipment of cattle and native produce, consisting chiefly of wheat, rice, barley, sesame, wool, ghi, skins and hides. The population was estimated in 1915 at about 28,000 (mostly Arabs). No statistics of the trade of the town are available. Along the whole river frontage runs an embankment faced with brick, alongside which steamers can lie in a depth of from 131 feet of water at high and 62 feet at low water seasons. There are no facilities for dealing with cargo. The manufactures of the town consist of Arab cloaks, rugs, and silverware. The town possesses a telegraph office, and is at present the terminus of the · metre-gauge railway from Basra. Baghdad lies on the Tigris, 448 miles by river above Kurna. The population, which is very mixed, is estimated at 200,000; the Jews form the largest racial group (about 55,000), and the Arabs come next (about 39,000). Before the war the town was connected by telegraph with Basra, Mosul, Kermanshah and Teheran, and with Aleppo, via Feluja and Deir ez-Zor. The town lies on both sides of the river and a bridge of boats 240 yards long connects the two parts of the town. This bridge consists of 24 pontoons moored to both banks and to buoys in the river; a section of three boats can be swung down-stream to let vessels through. The whole bridge is removed during very high floods. The regular mooring-place for steamers is on the left bank of the river below the bridge, but a wharf about 200 yards long has recently been constructed on the right bank near the railway station, with which it is connected by a single line of track. This wharf 90 [No. 63 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS is equipped with two travelling cranes. The depth of the river at low water is from 12 to 15 feet. The streets of the town are narrow and ill-kept; in the better parts there are houses of considerable size, but in the poorer parts the houses are low and are built of unburnt brick. The water supply is taken from the Tigris, and is unfiltered, and there is no modern drainage. Electric light has only been installed since the military occupation of the town by the British army. A horse tramway runs to the north-western suburb of Kazimain. Baghdad is the chief religious centre in Mesopo- tamia of the Sunni sect of Mohammedans, and is visited by Sunni Mussulmans from regions as remote as Afghanistan and India. It is also visited by pilgrims from Persia on their way to the shrines at Kerbela and Nejef. It could therefore be used as a starting-point for the commercial penetration of Persia and India. Industrially and commercially, Baghdad is the chief town of Irak and the centre of the trade of Lower Mesopotamia. There are 116 flour-inills worked by horses, besides the steam-driven army mill, formerly owned by the Turkish Government, a cloth factory, an ice factory, wool presses, and tanneries, and the manu- facture of silk, cotton, and woollen goods, and canvas, and of earthenware and copper goods is carried on. Baghdad is the centre of the export trade from central Mesopotamia, and receives large quantities of goods sent down-stream from Mosul, or by caravan from Kermanshah: in Persia. It is also a distributing centre for the whole of Irak and for Persia via Khanikin. The value of the Persian transit trade may be gathered from the table on the next page, compiled from the Consular Reports :- ECONOMIC CONDITIONS (No. 63 Situation. Estimated Population. Communications. Industries, &c. Ana Birijik Erbil On the Euph. About 15,000 1. Caravan routes Cultivation of rates, 119 Sunni Arabs (a )Baghdad- cereals, fruit, miles above Aleppo route dates. Hit, 192 miles (6) Track to Export of wool, below Deir Mosul across butter, dates. the desert 2. River Eu- phrates 3. Telegraph .. On the Euph- About 10,000 1. River Eu- Cultivation of rates, about| mixed Turks, | phrates wheat and bar. 15 miles above Arabs, Kurds, 2. Land routes to ley. Trade in the railway Armenians, Aleppo, Diar. olive oil, grapes, bridge at and Jews | bekr, &c. butter and sheep. Jerablus 3. Telegraph Boat-building. ... 48 miles east About 25,000, 1. Caravan routes Oultivation of by south of mostly Kurds (a) Mosul. | quantities of Mosul Baghdad wheat and bar. (6) Mosul. ley, rice and Rowanduz fruit ; export to Projected ter Baghdad via the minus of Tigris. branch line of Baghdad Railwayfrom Mosul On the Hilla About 30,000, 1. Land routes to Wheat, barley, branch of the mostly Shiah rice,and animals Euphrates, 11 Arabs up and down of all kinds. miles below the river Large bazaar, the bifurca- 2. River Eu 120 grain stores. tion at Hindie phrates Manufacture of 3. Telegraph and saddles. Post-office ... On the Huse- | About 50,000 1. Routes to A centre of pil- iniyeh Canal, ( Persian, Hilla, Bagh- grimage for 20 miles west the rest Shiah dad and Nejef Shiah Moslems. of the Hindie | Arabs) 2. Post-office and Imports, pie ce- branch of Telegraph goods, carpets, the Euph. candles, spices, rates, on the coffee, and tea. edge of the Exports, dates, Syrian desert hides, wool and consecrated ar. ticles. .... About 50 miles | About 30,000 | Routes to Diar- Agriculture; south - south Kurds, Arabs, bekr, Nisibin, wheat, barley, east of Diar. | Armenians, 7 &c. sesame, rice, bekr and Jacobites vegetables, some cotton and wool weaving. Hills an Kerbela Mardin Mesopotamia) TOWNS Situation. Estimated Population. | Communications. Industries, &c. Nejef ... About 7 miles Over 30,000 Routes to Ker. The tomb of Ali south by west (Arabs, re- bela and Hilla is the richest and of Kufeh on mainder Per for Baghdad, most splendid of Lower Euph sians); all and to Basra the Shiah holy rates Shiah Mo. Horse tramway places, and the hammedans to Kufeh town is a pil. Post office and grimage centre Telegraph for Shiahs of all Moslem coun- tries. Imports, Man. chester goods, sugar, spices, hardware. Exports, skins and wool. Manu. factures, Abas cloaks. Samawa .... On the Euph-About 10,000 1. River Eu. A centre of the rates, 71 miles Arabs phrates trade in wheat, by river above 2. Land routes to barley, rice, and Nasrie Hilla, Nejef vegetables. Skins and Basra are also ex. 3. Telegraph and ported. Post-office Imports, Man. chester goods, sugar, indigo, and coffee. Manufacture of woollen carpets. Suk esh-She. On the Euph- About 12,000, 1. River Eu- Manufacture of yukh rates, 63 miles mostly Arabs phrates Abas cloak 8, by river above 2. Land routes to boat-building, Kurna Basra metal-work. 3. Telegraph and Post-office Urfa .... On the north | About 40,000 1. Many routes to An importaut ern edge of Kurds, Turks, Syrian towns, point of transit the Harran and Arme- and to Mosul trade east and plain, north nians and Diarbekr west. Wheat by east of 2. Telegraph cultivated large- Birijik ly. No indus- tries. 98 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS (No. 63 together with that Company's lands, buildings, plant, &c. The rights of Lynch Brothers which the concession confirmed and acknowledged were the following: (a) The right to run two steamboats, each towing not more than two barges, under the British flag on the Tigris, Euphrates, and Shatt el-Arab, with a further boat flying the British flag in reserve to replace either of the above vessels if out of service. (6) The right to run one steamboat, also with barges in tow, on the rivers under the Ottoman flag. (c) Methods of Economic Penetration The struggle between German and British trade in Mesopotamia is particularly instructive and interest- ing, for it was of the nature of a duel between the commercial methods of the two countries, since England for more than a hundred years had had a practical monopoly of the sea-borne trade of Mesopotamia. Germany's interest in the commercial development of Turkey dates back so far as 1888, when M. Kaulla, acting on behalf of the Württembergische Vereins- bank and the Deutsche Bank, obtained the concession over the railway from Haidar-Pasha to Ismidt with the right to extend it to Angora (300 miles). This was the beginning of a process which culminated in 1903 in the grant to German interests of the Baghdad Rail- way Concession. So far as Mesopotamia was con- cerned, however, it was not till 1906 that German activities made themselves seriously felt. At that time European trade with Mesopotamia and the Persian Gulf was carried almost entirely in British bottoms. The Consular returns show that, excluding Turkish sailing vessels, out of the 233 vessels from European waters which entered Basra in 1904 and 308 in 1905, vessels flying the British flag numbered 210 and 283 respectively, the majority of the remainder being French. In April 1906 the Hamburg-Amerika Steamship Company announced its intention of running a service Mesopotamia). ECONOMIC PENETRATION 99 between Europe and the Persian Gulf. At that date German trade with Basra was worth annually about £145,000, as against British and Indian trade of a value of about £3,000,000. The first steamer arrived in the Gulf in August, 1906, and at the same time an agent was installed at Bushire. The first noticeable effect was the shipment of Belgian sugar from Ant- werp by the Hamburg-Amerika line at a freight rate of 20s. per ton. In consequence the British lines, which had previously charged 37s. per ton of 15 cwt., had to reduce their rate. Partly owing to the regularity of their sailings, the German line began to attract trade from the British almost at once; and it was stated in 1907 that though the outward trade was run at a loss the Germans were making progress with cargo for Europe. German commercial travellers soon began to appear at Bagh- dad, and were without doubt welcomed, as it was felt that the British lines had abused the monopoly which they held, and moreover German goods were proving popular in a market where cheapness is of more importance than quality. The most important branch of British trade in Mesopotamia has for many years been the trade in Manchester goods. In 1907 the Germans attacked this trade, first by making Manchester a port of call, and secondly by introducing a German traveller for an Anglo-German firm with instructions to push his German goods first, only offering his British goods as a last resort. Every effort was made by the German a gent to the Hamburg-Amerika Company to conceal the amount of trade which was being done. The result of the first year's working was that Germany had certainly made a loss, but that three of the British lines engaged in the trade had reduced their rates from 30s. to 20s. per 40 cubic feet of space.' As an illustration of the effect of German competition, it is remarkable that in 1907 the freight for general cargo carried in a British ship from Manchester and from Antwerp, both in the same bottom, was respectively £1 158. 2d. per ton from the British port and £1 per ton from the Belgian port. Mesopotamia) ECONOMIC PENETRATION 103 mans had secured trade. These may be summarized as follows: (1) The Germans realised the fact that the main demand in the East was for cheap goods of low quality. (2) They closely studied native habits and language, and made personal acquaintance with their customers, so that they could safely offer longer credits than their rivals. (3) They were willing to deal in any and every article, to take small orders, and to have new patterns made to please customers. (4) They obtained more elaborate show-cases and ranges of samples than the English. (5) They quoted in local currency, written in Arabic, and made full use of the natural aptitude of the Armenian and Jew for commercial transactions. (6) They were able, whatever the reason, to offer lower rates of freight by German ships than British merchants could offer by British lines. Sir George Lloyd also suggested the following rea- sons for the failure of British firms to cope with foreign competition:- (1) The British traders, satisfied with the profits which they were making in the cotton trade, and in the export of native products, would not take up small lines of new business, or experiment in the introduc- tion of cheap goods at a small margin of profit. (2) British merchandise was imitated shamelessly and openly. (3) The British shipper and importer, whose deal- ings were mainly with Baghdad, appeared not to recog- nise fully that the volume of trade in Baghdad was largely at the mercy of the prevailing influences in Basra. Latterly, however, there had been a tendency on the part of the consignors to despatch wares to Basra for sale there in the event of a favourable market, or for despatch to Baghdad, if expedient. (4) British firms overlooked the fact that cheaper Continental manufactures would not be easy to dislodge 104 (No. 63 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS if they acquired a footing in Mesopotamia, and might in time compete with British wares in Persia also. (5) Dealers in the Baghdad market complained that English manufacturers would not send samples of cot- ton clothing to meet the demand for gaudy designs and colouring. Sir George Lloyd recommended that British mer chants should strengthen their position by more general trading, setting aside for a few years a portion of their profits for the purpose of the trade in hardware, fancy goods, and quincaillerie. They should insist upon cheap, low-class goods being manufactured for them, and, wherever possible, should co-operate in keeping the supply of country produce for export in British hands. Baghdad might be made an almost exclusively British market if the trading were all-round trading instead of being based, as formerly, on Manchester goods alone. Travellers should be sent out to report on local requirements, and catalogues printed in Arabic should be circulated. The experience gained by selling small quantities of cheap goods in this market would be very valuable as enabling firms to obtain extensive knowledge of the methods, currency, demands, &c., of the market, and to get in touch with the small traders. Fraudulent imitation might be prevented by some sys- tem of standard trade-mark. Advertisements should be printed in Arabic, in bright colours, with sketches of Eastern subjects in illustration of articles on sale. Every business communication should be in a language suitable to the country dealt with. Attention should be paid to the Constantinople market. The native buyer from provincial towns visits Constantinople annually to buy his year's stock, and is apt to deal with large wholesale establishments maintained by Germans, because he does not know his way about while in the capital, and finds it easier to buy all his supplies under one roof. Facilities should be given to buyers to see samples before they place their orders. Finally, British transport communications with the Persian Gulf should be maintained in an effective and satisfactory condition, Mesopotamia) FOREIGN TRADE; EXPORTS 109 &c. Japan was sending silk and cotton goods, tea and cheap fancy goods. Since war broke out she has largely increased her trade in the country in every direction, and will prove an important competitor in the future. The trade of France in Mesopotamia has decreased considerably, her large import of sugar having been replaced by Belgian sugar. The bulk of the trade of Mesopotamia is still in the hands of Great Britain and India, but British trade has tended more and more to confine itself to special lines, and Germany has taken full advantage of the failure of traders to study and supply the expanding demands of a country advancing towards civilisation. The staple trade from Great Britain was in Man- chester goods, but this was being persistently and suu- cessfully attacked by Germany; only in machinery was Great Britain making really good progress against all competitors. India takes large quantities of Mesopo- tamian exports of dates, ghi, opium, horses, hides, &c., and supplies large quantities of cotton goods, indigo, silk, and (when the local crop fails) rice. Indian trade has suffered very much from bad packing and thefts, and from damage in transit between India and Mesopotamia. (a) Exports A list of the chief exports from Mesopotamia will be found in Table III of the Appendix (p. 130). They consist very largely of agricultural or animal products. Other important exports are carpets, gall-nuts, gums, and liquorice. Of agricultural products the most im- portant exports are dates, cereals, seeds, and opium. Dates. For the period 1907-1913 the weight of the annual export of dates has been about 60,000 tons, averaging a value of over £450,000. The bulk of the export goes normally to the United Kingdom, other im. portant markets being the United States, Russia, Egypt, Tunis, Oran, and Australia. Cereals.-Of these the barley trade is the most im- portant, and has in recent years exceeded the combined [3347] I 2 Mesopotamia] 117 IMPORTS hes. Be was formand had. Brazilian brand, which was imported in great quan- tities, largely through Great Britain. A little coffee was also obtained from Germany and Arabia, and Germany also supplied some Brazilian brands. Coffee is slowly being supplanted in favour of tea. Indigo.—The value of the average annual import for the last eight years was £20,000, but the trade has steadily decreased, that for 1906 amounting in value to £24,000, and that for 1913 to £15,000. All is imported from India, chiefly for Baghdad. The natives are beginning to prefer printed European goods to the cloths dyed at Baghdad, and synthetic dyes im- ported from Germany proved to be cheaper than indigo. Aniline dyes were also imported directly and in- directly from Germany, and had entirely supplanted madder, which was formerly imported from Persia. Matches.—Before the war Swedish matches almost had a monopoly of the market, Belgium, Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Japan furnishing only small quantities. The trade was originally done through Germany, but was latterly done directly with Sweden. Persia was a considerable importer. Japan is now supplying the country with large quantities of a cheap but unsatisfactory match. Copper was imported from the United Kingdom, India, Belgium, and France to the extent of about 8,200 bundles, value £45,000 annually. Most of it went to Baghdad to make cooking utensils. A good deal is now being imported from Japan. Leather and Leather Goods.—The import fluctuates a good deal. France has long been established as the chief supplier of leather at Mosul. The United States, very successful at Beirut, was gradually extending her leather supplies over the north. Cheap leather for common shoes came mainly from India China and Singapore sometimes supply buffalo hides for shoes. The United Kingdom, Belgium, and India did all the leather trade through Basra in 1909, but since that date Great Britain has rapidly lost ground. In 1913 leather supplies came from France, Belgium, the Mesopotamia] CURRENCY (D) FINANCE (1) Public Finance This subject is discussed in Anatolia, No. 59 of this series. (2) Currency Turkish currency is discussed in detail in Turkey in Europe, No. 16 of this series, but the subject requires some notice here owing to the complication which, under the Turkish regime, was caused by the large use of Persian and, to a less extent, of Indian coinage at Basra and even at Baghdad. Before the war the coinage both at Baghdad and Basra was based upon the Turkish lira : one Turkish lira=100 gold piastres=4,000 paras. The medjidieh (the 20-piastre piece) was reckoned officially as worth 19 gold piastres, and was chiefly used in payment of customs duties and other taxes. The par exchange to sterling was 110 Turkish lira= £100 sterling. Banking accounts were kept in liras (100 piastres=1 lira), but for business transactions the number of piastres in the lira varied, 1031 being usually reckoned in wholesale transactions and 108 in retail. Small coins were very scarce, and their use was · practically confined to revenue purposes, so that it was necessary to employ the silver and copper coinage of other countries in giving change in bazaar purchases, although such coins were nominally prohibited. The foreign coins chiefly used were the Persian kran, the Indian rupee, and the sovereign, the rates of which were fixed weekly according to supply and demand. At Basra the Persian coinage was even more in use than at Baghdad, and Indian silver was also current, though occasionally impounded under the regulations. Certain fictitious coins were also used as units of com- putation in particular classes of transactions, with a view to lessening the inconvenience caused by fluctua- tions in the value of actual coins. 120 (No. 63 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS ; · Since the British occupation Indian currency has been established in the country, the exchange of the lira being provisionally fixed at Rs. 13–18, the Turkish coinage being accepted in payment of revenue. All liras received were kept in deposit, as there were ob- vious objections to permitting Turkish coins to circu- late; and at the present time the circulation of Indian coins and notes is on much the same footing in the occu- pied part of Mesopotamia as in India. Indian notes have been absorbed in large quantities, the rate of ex- change is maintained at a regular level, and merchants are thereby enabled to work on a narrower margin of profit. New notes are put into circulation as fre- quently as possible, and every effort is made to meet promptly a demand for notes or cash when it arises. Merchants are in the habit of sending their remittances by means of notes, and at one time notes were at 1 per cent. premium at Amara. Every effort is made to pro- vide sufficient quantities of small change by issuing packets of mixed change as part of rupee payments. The wide use of the Persian kran, coupled with the wide fluctuations of its exchange value, have been a source of embarrassment to trade in the past, and it is important that means should be found of steadying thė exchange, in view of the importance to Mesopo- tamia of the Persian markets. (3) Banking Before the outbreak of war, the only banks of im- portance established in Mesopotamia were the Imperial Ottoman Bank, with branches at Baghdad, Mosul, and Basra, and the Eastern Bank, which had recently opened a branch at Baghdad. Banks were indeed scarcely used for the purpose of trade, and their place was partially filled by saraps. These, in the ordinary acceptation of the term, were mere money-changers, but they acted as private bankers, taking charge of cash or securities, against which the customer could draw by chit. Trade credit was carried on also by means of 122 (No. 63 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS (E) GENERAL REMARKS The future economic possibilities of Mesopotamia have formed the subject of the following reports made to the Governments of either Great Britain or India in recent years: (a) Report upon the Conditions and Prospects of British Trade in Mesopotamia, by Sir George Lloyd, published in 1908. Report on the Development of Mesopotamia, with special reference to the Regeneration of the River Systems, by Sir George Buchanan, K.C.I.E, M.Inst.C.E., published in 1917. (c) The Prospects of British Trade in Mesopotamia and the Persian Gulf, by R. E. Holland and J. H. Wilson, published in 1917. (d) Report on the Future Development of the Port of Basra and its communications by Land and Water, by Sir George Buchanan, K.C.I.E., M.Inst.C.E., published in 1917. These reports have dealt at considerable length with various aspects of the problems involved, and sum- maries of some of the conclusions arrived at have already been given. The future of Mesopotamia depends upon four con- ditions :- (1) Security of administration, and a sympathetic attitude on the part of the Government to the economic needs of the country. The increase of the cultivable area by the crea- tion of a system of irrigation capable of expan. sion as the needs of the population require. The capacity of the inhabitants to undertake the heavy work which the proper development of the country will involve. (4) The improvement of means of communication. Mesopotamia) EXPORTS & IMPORTS (BAGHDAD) 129 TABLE 11. IMPORTS FROM PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES TO BAGHDAD DURING THE YEARS 1908–1913. 1908. 1909. 1910. 1911. 1912. 1913. Value. Percentage of total value. Value. Percentage of total value. Value. Percentage of total value. Value. Percentage of total value. Value. Percentage of total value. Value. Percentage of total value. .. 931,424 481 1,201,316 55 8 1,317,762 48.5 1,199,597 45.1 1,415,288 50:1 1,314,138 45:1 .. 465,163 24.0 461,668 21.0 664,147 24.2 740,565 27.8 666,135 23.6 572,761 19.6 49,484 97,666 81,756 184,416 36,705 123,312 109,764 120,199 . 53,705 180,011 211,835 203,284 United Kingdom India China Japan Germany Austria-Hungary Belgium France.. China, Russia.. Turkey .. Japan .. .. Sweden .. Egypt ... Netherlands .. Italy .. United States .. Other countries 91,060 232,391 183,921 72,998 6,960 9,122 46,187 14,085 36,396 ::::::::: :::::::::::::: 144, 115 264,234 328,719 82,176 37,263 20,496 32,313 26,334 36,868 ::::::::: 13,260 54,510 115,725 206,801 176,806 64,005 40,760 34,885 34,540 7,382 5,021 3,921 3,610 300 9,262 38,376 4,739 3,315 18,924 :::::::::::: 10,975 :::::::::::: ::::::::::: 21,911 :::::::::::: 1,753 3,445 1,685 45,087 623 7,673 215 24,740 255 1,900 806 16,015 230 15,242 6,864 45,289 7,801 29,341 8,015 45,984 Total 1,912,360 2,152,732 2,736,414 2,661,401 .. 2,822,817 2,914,036 Statistics of the import of Inuia, China, and Japan are not given separately before 1911. Mesopotamia) EXPORTS & IMPORTS (BASRA) 131 TABLE IV.-PRINCIPAL IMPORTS INTO BASRA. 1904. 1905. 1906. 1907. 1908. 1909. | 1910. 1911. 1912 1913. Cotton goods Woollen goods Coal Coffee Copper Gunnies Indigo Iron and steel goods Petroleum.. Machinery Matches Provisions.. Rice .. Soap ... Spices Stationery.. Loaf sugar Crushed sugar Tea .. Tobacco .. Wood- For date-boxes Building, &c. Yarn and Twist Other goods ::::::::::::::::::: 504,300 25,920 20,954 51,152 27,172 58,128 22,025 19,539 15,369 11,108 18,639 46,434 14,662 11,500 27,326 23,440 77,274 44,012 16,890 24,415 631,700 26,760 19,614 52,393 29,444 73,548 20,050 15,472 15,920 11,284 18,540 44,292 13,441 10,006 27,120 23,296 84.521 43,666 18,172 20,500 592,700 34,020 26,306 57,263 33,136 82,314 24,500 17,480 36,075 13,764 25,392 47,706 9,992 10,448 26,502 20,433 110,145 58,885 20,732 23,160 781,200 1,065,925 1,079,400 1,104,810 1,128,470 1,028,195 40,020 46,080 54,400 60,720 90,080 107,920 21,822 36,778 30,575 46,805 45,032 52,974 50,340 45,696 53,456 54,911 72,688 58,540 29,364 48,912 48,342 50,526 51,540 47,778 84,950 86,862 65,816 83,134 111,027 95,784 21,600 23,600 19,900 20,250 21,150 19,875 17,427 15,907 23,734 39,923 54,677 20,325 25,074 51,773 26,119 27,100 13,769 57,530 11,916 1 15,140 24,590 47,439 59,275 64,830 26,367 20,352 14,373 21,315 22,368 20,838 53,058 102,456 71,937 68,439 74,886 80,385 6,205 4,470 20,446 25,680 24,608 18,792 10,288 11,796 11,342 11,754 11,856 12,460 28,579 28,915 28,951 28,330 27,668 26,888 51,506 39,150 33,510 38,172 41,310 38,154 67,090 115,969 58,486 221,382 361,196 230,195 184,324 179,284 300,654 227,631 172,961 62,032 25,401 28,512 22,609 22,752 24,431 23,846 32,745 25,610 21,630 29,240 28,255 27,600 745,955 79,360 39,904 33,080 54,168 76,992 15,575 1,207,882 91,484 96,873 16,878 100,562 126,371 9,158 19,791 30,360 240,100 480,999 12,404 8,970 ::::::::: 54,311 39,361 55,511 66,317 116,741 91,240 123,734 120,589 148,160 48,354 6,970 7,709 27,322 29,274 54,657 37,658 22,342 33,337 70,092 86,911 33,440 32,530 31,310 53,860 65,680 63,860 70,310 70,520 73,980 70,600 105,729 108,250 126,449 160,838 181,303 157,074 187,897 | 193,984 250,636 206,542 .. 1,260,709 1,387,589 1,511,545 1,879,565 2,411,568 2,360,102 2,634,596 2,855,677 2,637,809 3,899,273 Total.. 134 No. 63- Mesopotamia AUTHORITIES Prospects of British Trade in Mesopotamia and the Persian Gulf. (R. E. Holland and J. H. Wilson, Joint Trade Commis- sioners.) Delhi, 1917. Report upon the Conditions and Prospects of British Trade in Mesopotamia. (Sir George Lloyd, London, 1908.) General. CROW, F. E. The Cultivation of Dates in Mesopotamia. Basra, 1908. LANZONI, A. Il nuovo Regime Turco e l'Avvenire della Mesopo- tamia. (Bollettino della Società Geografica Italiana, Vol. XI.) Rome, 1912. MOLESWORTH, Captain F. C. * Mesopotamia. London, 1916. ROHRBACH, P. Die Bagdadbahn. Berlin, 1902. 2nd ed., 1911. WILLCOCKS, Sir W. The Irrigation of Mesopotamia. London, 1911. X. Y. Z. La Mésopotamie. (Bulletin de la Société Belge des Etudes Coloniales, Vol. XVIII.) Brussels, 1911. MAPS The map on the scale of 1: 2,000,000, in one sheet, published by the Royal Geographical Society (1910), is the best general ma;) of Mesopotamia. The following sheets of the map on the scale of 1:1,000,000 (G.S.G.S. 2555), published by the Geographical Section of the General Staff, cover Mesopotamia : Tiflis (K. 38), Erzerum (J. 37), Tabriz (J. 38), Esh Sham (I. 37), Baghdad (I. 38), Tehran (I. 39), Basra (H. 38), Bushire (H. 39). There is a map on the scale of 1:250,000 published by the Geographical Section of the General Staff in 49 sheets (G.S.G.S. 1522, 1522a), which covers an area from Latitude 31° North to the Black Sea. PEACE HANDBOOKS. The following is a complete list of the Handbooks prepared , under the General Editorship of Sir George W. Prothero, late Director of the Historical Section of the Foreign Office. Net Prices are given of all Volumes which have been published to date. Volumes X-XXV will be issued shortly. Books murked thus * contain sections on Geography and Economics as well as on History. Those marked thus § contain Geography and History only. ... >2s. 6d. (A) EUROPE Vol. I. Austria-Hungary (1). New Nos. 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