Evening star., 1924-05-26
SLAVE MARKET GREW
TO BIG WORLD PORT
Karachi, India's Western Outpost,
Developed to Avoid Shift
ing Delta.
NOW GREAT GRAIN CENTER
Millions Have Been Spent to Build
Up Harbor.

From a little slave market a few
centuries ago to an important world
port today: that in a phrase or two
characterizes the benastalk-like city Of
karachi, India's westernmost outpost"
says a bulletin from the Washington
headquarters of the National Geo.
graphic Society dealing with "India's
aerial gateway" reached recently by
British, French and Portuguese fiers
in their long-distance flights to the
East.
Like Marseilles. near the mouth of
the Rhone, and Alexandria. near the
mouth of the Nile, Karachi is of
great river. but not on it." continues
of the Indus; but it's Importance Is
largely a gift from that stream, whose
shifting alluvium has swallowed up It's
rivals.
of Sind. as Karachi is today, was on a
deep-water branch of the Indus a short
distance above it's mouth. 1t fiourished
until the river left it high and dry.
on another Indus branch, could. like
New Orleans, be reached by deep
draught men-of-war. But about l723
Shahbandar also became silted up, ana
is now only an inland village. Com
mon sense dictated the choice of a
port outside the shifting delta, and
Karachi, in a sheltered bay a short
distance to the west, began to grow
in Importance.
Once Slave Market.
"Karachis chief product of i'm
port and export had been Abyssinian
slaves brought by Arab boatmen
from Maskat. Since British control
came to northwestern India Karachfs
hinterland has been greatly develop
ed through improved irrigation
methods and a swelling stream OF
agricultural and other products has
was built TO tap the Punjab's wheat
fields Karachi became India's great
est grain port. In population the
town has jumped from less than
10000 before the British came to
about 100000 today.
Though Karachi has a huge ant'
rich land to draw from, it's imme-
diate surroundings are rather dis
couraging. Rocky peninsulas jut out
to shelter it's harbor. A dun-col-
ored, dry plain surrounds the town.
A few miles to the northwest lie the
scanned, baked-clay hills of Baluchi-
stan, as strange a country as any
in Asia
"Amphibian" Telegraph Line.
off along the coast and into
Baluchistan strikes the amphibian
telegraph line that gives Karachi its
most direct connection with the west.
A land line until II gets we'll into
Baluchistan, it then dives into the
sea to come up again on the Persian
coast and strike overland through
Persia and Turkey to Europe.
"Karachi has been built almost from
the ground up since the British
gained possession in 1S43. and it.
therefore, has something of western
aspect architecturally. But few cities
can muster a more varied array of
racial types and odd costumes. The
live stock shows little less variety.
In the streets are camels from the
nearby desert, ponies and horses in
all shapes and sizes as well as dom
keys. Flocks of sheep and goats, too.
are driven in from the hill country.
Gateway to Central Asia.
"Karachi is not only a door for
India; it is the gateway besides for
much of central Asia. Numerous
products that are freighted into
Karachi harbor find their way up
through the famous khyber Pass and
over Himalayan trails to Afghanis-
tan, Turkestan and Tibet.
Many millions of dollars have been
spent on the harbor of Karachi in
the construction of moles, jetties and
other port works. Keeping it's waters
deep enough is a never ending fight.
A strong ocean current sweeps to the
entrance part of the tremendous load
Of silt brought down by the Indus,
and this must be continually dredged
away that Karachi may not suffer
fate like that which overlook Tatta
and Shahbandar"