Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1922-10-19
PERSIAN Gulf TOWN
HOT TEST III WORLD,
SAYS JUN|US WOOD
BY JUNIUS b. WOOD


Especial Correspondence of The Chi
.cago Daily News Foreign Service.
BASRA, Mesopotamia.-The Their
momenter registered 1858 in the
shade today. This is not considered
especially warm for Basra, but is
for me. 1t was somewhere around
40 in the sun, but few persons
here die of sunstroke. They keep
out of the sun. Temperature being
such a strong point In the local real
estate prospectus, it is regis
tered with especial care. Some per-
sons must consult a thermometer be-
fore deciding whether they feel
warm or cold, just as others look at
their watches to learn whether they
are hungry.
In Basra three thermometers are
necessary for the heat experts. One
tells the maximum and minimum for
each twenty-four hours, the others
are wet and dry" bulb, giving
the wet and dry mean temperatures
for the day. The closer the latter
register together, the greater the
humidity, which advises the local
resident whether or not it is good
form to complain Of the heat.
when the south winds blow, the
dates ripen and the old folks die, ]"
is the cheerless philosophy of the
natives Much of the worlds sup
ply of dates comes from MestOpota-
mia, from the delta of the Tigris
and Euphrates, betweei Basra and
the Persian gulf. In August the
hot winds start blowing from the
gulf. They sweep over Basra as
out of the mouth of a funnel, rlpen-
ing the dates and bringing death to
the aged Few persons who buy a
handful of dates at the corner fruit
stores in America realize the toll and
danger involved in growing them.
Basra Something Like Venice
"Aden is one day this side of hell
and Basra is eight days sailing be-
yond Aden," was the favorite eX-
preston of the British Tommies
when they were making the world
safe for democracy on the barren
plains of Mesoptamia. The residents
! do not accept this description and
call their city 1.-The Venice of the
near east" It is ihterlaced with
little canals, overhung by palms and
mysterious grilled balconies. Along
the canals boatmen pole their bel
lums piled high with melons dur
ing the day and loaded to the water
line with families seeking a breath
of cool air in the evening.
Sinbad the sailor, started his
first voyage from Basra. After that
the town did not figure much in
history, fictious or true, until the
world war. Then it became one
great port for the British expedi-
ton in "Mespot." Basra is seventy
five miles up the shaft ell Arab (river
of Arabs, from the Persian gulf.
Those seVenty-five miles are an al
most continuous grove of date palms
with only two towns-bOth in Per
STA for the river is the boundary
there-Mahommerah, twenty miles
below Basra, and Abadan at the
mouth of the river. Abadan is the
city of the big refineries of the An
glo-Persian Oil company, connected
by 200 miles of pipe line with its
fields in ArWaz.
Queer Party Is This Sheik
Mahommerah is the home Of the
sheik of MahOmmerah, his imposing
square palace standing alone on the
plains north of the town. Nominal
ly the sheik is under the shah of
Persia but he does as he pleases.
Once the Persian secretary of navy
stationed one of the three little boats
in the countrys fleet at MahOmme
rah. The shek promptly sold the
boat, doing the obvious with the
proceeds. Later the shah paid him
visit. The willy sheik rented the
gunboat back during the stay of
his distinguished visitor and no
questions were asked.
The sheill has a ''"cht and two
river flat boats which the British
government gave him. Every Brit
i~N-Tndia stCnN "@vig,ttiOn company
ship which passes his capital fires
salute of two guns out of graft
tude for his assistance or nOn-inter-
ference C.-ring the war. The sheik
fires a one-gun salute in return.
Theoretically it is two guns but
with each shot his battery of a sin
gle gun jumps from it's cassion and
rolls down into an adjoining irriga-
ton ditch Before it can be fished
out, the ship has passed the am
munition for the second shot is
| saved.
After dates, licorice root is the
chief export from Basra. Practical
ly the entire supply of both for the
United States comes froc Mesopo