Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 18.djvu/655

COMMERCE, ETC.] PERSIA 625 perhaps with oxen (used for tilling purposes), are first and foremost in usefulness to man. The Persian -Gulf Arab, though not equal to the pure Arabian, is a very serviceable animal, and has always a value in the Indian market. Among others, the Kashgais, or those wandering semi- Turkish tribes brought down from Turkestan to the neigh bourhood of Shiraz, have the credit of possessing good steeds. The Turkman horse of Khurasan and the Atak is a large, bony, and clumsy -looking quadruped, with marvellous power and endurance. Colonel C. E. Stewart speaks of a "splendid breed of camels" in the north eastern district, of which lladkan, a small town of 4000 inhabitants with a deputy-governor, is the capital. He also states that the Khurasan camel is celebrated for its size and strength, that it has very long hair, and bears cold and exposure far better than the ordinary Arabian or Persian camel, and that, while the ordinary Persian camel only carries a load of some 320 ft) and an Indian camel one of some 400 ft), the Khurasan camel will carry from 600 to 700 Ib. The best animals, he notes, are across between the Bactrian or two -humped and the Arabian or one- humped camel. Sheep, goats, dogs, and cats are good of their kind ; but not all the last are the beautiful creatures which, bearing the name of the country, have arrived at such distinction in Europe. Nor are these to be obtained, as supposed, at Angora in Asia Minor. Lake Van or Ispa han is a more likely habitat. The cat at the first place, called by the Turks "Van kedisi," has a certain local reputation. Among the wild animals are the lion, tiger, leopard, lynx, wolf, jackal, fox, hare, wild ass, wild sheep, wild cat, mountain-goat, gazelle, and deer. The tiger is peculiar to the Caspian provinces. Lovett says they are plentiful in Astrabad ; " they do not attack men, but hardly a week passes but some cow belonging to this town is reported to have fallen a victim to the tiger s rapacity." He measured two specimens, one 10 feet 8 inches, the other 8 feet 10 inches from the tip of the nose to the end of the tail. Lynxes and bears were to be found in the same vicinity, and the wild pig was both numerous and destructive. Poultry is good and plentiful, and the game birds, if not of many varieties, have admirable representatives in the " durraj " (black partridge) and the three kinds of partridge called respectively the "kabk," "kabk darah," and "tihu." The "hubara," a kind of bustard, is well known to the sportsman in northern India. Commerce, &c. The most direct and accurate information obtain- able in England on the trade of Persia must be looked for in the reports of the secretary of H. M. Legation at Tehran, the resident at Bushahr (Bushire), and the consul-general at Tabriz. Mr Secretary Dickson s report of the 30th August 1882 is hopeful as to the general prospects of trade and improvement of the condition of the people. There had been a good harvest ; but money was scarce at the capital, cash sales were difficult operations, and considerable failures had occurred to render the native bankers cautious. Man chester goods, however, still sold well at Ispahan and elsewhere. The comparative failure of silk had given an impetus to the culti vation of opium, the greater part of which, when prepared for the market, was shipped to China. Carpets had found new favour in Europe, and the value of those exported was estimated at ten times the amount of former days. But a fear was expressed that the introduction of European designs and dimensions, and deterioration in quality of the articles supplied, would eventually prove prejudicial to the trade. The larger traffic in opium effected both in 1880 and immediately preceding years is remarkable, and will be seen in the following table Year. Xmnber of Cases. Value in Rupees. Year. Number of Cases. Value iu Rupees. 1871-72 870 69fi,000 1876-77 2570 2,313,000 1872-73 1400 1,120,000 1877-78 4730 4,730,000 1873-74 2000 1,600,000 1878-79 5900 5,900,000 1874-75 2030 1,625,000 1879-80 6100 6,100,000 1875-76 1890 1,701,000 1880-81 7700 8,470,000 Persian opium was, it appears, first exported from Ispahan in 1853. Since that period it has been grown in several parts of the country. The destination is usually China. In 1879, for instance, eighteen steamers took 4971 chests from Bushahr, of which all but 236 for London were for Hong-Kong. Except in Ispahan, there is every probability of extended cultivation, and that the production will increase to an appreciable degree year by year. In the statement of a private firm, quoted by Mr Baring in his report from Tehran in September 1881, is the following passage: " The Persian drug has already succeeded in throwing out Turkish sorts from the China market, and, with due abstinence from adul teration, it can at any moment command a large outlet in Europe, America, and in the Dutch colonies." Mr Baring himself says: " Whether the Persian opium trade in its present conditions con stitutes a danger to the Indian revenue is, of course, a question to which I can furnish no reply. It depends upon circumstances respecting which I have no information. As matters at present stand, we have a trade that has been increasing steadily for several years past, and which the majority of persons think will continue to increase. The cultivation pays, and the limit of land and labour has not yet been reached. There are so many reasons, in fact, why it should extend, so few why it should fall off." Carriageable roads were still a desideratum, and the want of these Commu- obstructed the development of trade. On the other hand, it was nication. remarked that a fair road had been constructed between Kazvin and Tehran, a supply of carriages and carts had been obtained from Russia, and postal stations had been built at regular distances of 12 miles from each other. In the capital also the streets had been put into repair, and the palace, square, and main streets lit with gas ; and there was a greater number of private carriages. A concession had been granted for a railway from Rasht to Tehran ; Mr Dickson, while approving of this line as a step in the right direction, was very strongly in favour of another to join Tehran to Baghdad. A branch from Karmanshah or Hamadan to Shustar or Di/.ful, whence goods could be exported by the Karun, would, he argued, give Persia an independent outlet for her commerce ; but he doubted whether Baghdad, with its prestige and advantages of climate, would not be accepted as the main commercial entrepot. The navigability of the Karun river has been already noticed. The Bushahr reports on the trade of the Persian Gulf for 1880 Imports show that, as regards southern Persia, the year was unfavourable and from a commercial point of view. Large imports from India served exports, to avert famine ; but the seed so provided for 1881 was not at hand in time to allow full advantage being taken of an unusually good rainfall in autumn and winter. Increased imports in sugar from France and Java, the introduction of tea from Japan, and a decrease in exports of cotton and other ordinary produce owing to drought were all noticed. The table showing the total estimated value of imports into Bushahr during the year 1882 gives a total of 10,188,980 rupees, say something less than 1,000,000. Of this about four-ninths are from England and more than a third is from India. Of the exports, amounting to 6,566,220 rupees, say 650,000 more than two-fifths are for China, not a fifth is for England, and more than a fifth is for India. The most valuable items of import are the piece-goods and brass, the last from England and India only ; and of export, opium, of which just three-fourths go to China, and wheat, of which more than two-thirds go to England. As regards the trade of Lingah, the year 1882 showed a decrease. The total value of imports vas 6,922,000 rupees, of which pearls formed the largest portion. These were brought chiefly from Bahrain and the Arab coast, but some from the Persian Gulf and Makran and Aden. Rice, almost wholly from India, was the next most valuable item. The total value of exports was 5,999,945 rupees. In this also pearls formed by far the largest item. Next in value mother-of-pearl shells exemplified a traffic almost entirely carried on with England. From Gez on the Caspian, Consul Lovett gives to the exports of 1881 a value of 86,280. These consisted of silk, cotton, wools, furs and skins, dried fruits, rice, corn, and miscellaneous articles. Silk represented nearly the half, and furs and skins nearly a quarter of the total figure. The imports he valued at 287,640, of which the amount for piece goods was entered at 256,000. The remain ing articles specified were sugar, tea, iron, copper, steel, crockery, hardware, and brass utensils. Manufactures, &c. The handbook on Persian art published by Manu- Colonel Murdoch Smith, R.E., in 1876, with reference to the collection factures. purchased and sent home by him for the South Kensington Museum, has an instructive account of the more common manufactures of the country. They are classified under the respective heads of " porcelain and earthenware," "tiles," "arms and armour," "textile fabrics," " needlework and embroidery," "metal-work," "wood carving and mosaic-painting," " manuscripts," "enamel," "jewelry," and " musical instruments." Specimens of the greater number are not only to be procured in England, but are almost familiar to the ordinary Londoner. It need scarcely be said that the tiles have rather in creased in value than deteriorated in the eyes of the connoisseur, that the ornamentation of metal- work, wood carving and inlaying, XVIII. 79