The Coolidge examiner., 1931-01-02

to the Persian gulf But its custom
ers and clients are chiefly TO the
northwestward and the northeast
ward across extensive deserts and
mountain ranges. These barriers
have not been bridged by steel rails.
Gaps still exist in the famous Der
lin-to-BagdaG" railway 80 that it
is not even possible to move lraqan
products as far as the eastern Med
iterranean ports by rail.
There are close to a thousand
miles of railway track in Iraq, bu;
it is entirely an internal system.
At no point does a railway cross
the Iraq border The rail system,
however, does perform two impor-
tant functions In international
trade. 1t carries exports and i'm
ports to and from the port of Basra,
head of navigation on the Shaft
al-Arab for ocean-going ships; and
it connects at Khanaqin near the
Persian border with a motor road
over which is carried on Iraq's SiZ-
able transit trade with Persia.
In the absence of railways to
the north and west. all of the heavy
freight leaving and entering Iraq
must move by water through the
Persian gulf. But within the last
few years an efficient and rapid sys-
TEN has been set up for the trans
fer of passengers, mail and light
express overland between Bagdad
and Basra on the southeast, and
Damascus, BeyrOuth, Jerusalem
and Cairo on the northwest. Good,
hard-surfaced highways have been
constructed through long sections
of the river valleys.
Across the deserts that separate
Iraq and Syria the ways are mere
ly natural earth roads, but they are
powerful American-built busses
carrying passengers, mail and eX-
press cover COO miles in "a hours.
The quickest mails, however, travel
by the weekly airplane service
which extends from BaSra to Cairo.
OF the two great rivers Of Iraq
only the Tigris can be used by
boats. An important freight serv-
ice, moving hundreds of thousands
of tons in large river steam
ers. is operated between Bagdad
and Basra. Special shallow draft
stern-wheel river boats ply the Tigris
up the river from Bagdad to MOsul
and above the latter city consider
able quantities of supplies are
brought downstream on RATS. Be
low the junction of the Tigris and
Euphrates the combined tidal
stream is known as the Shatt-al-
Arab. The commerce on the Shatt-al-
Arab has been greatly facilitated
and increased since the World war
by the deeper and deeper dredging
/ by the Iraq government of the bar
at the rivers mouth Ships of %
foot draft can now cross the bar
at low water and ships of 30-foot
draft at high water.
Products and Industries.
Although some progress has been
made in recent years toward the de-
velopment of industry and the en-
traction of mineral wealth from the
ground, Iraq is still predominantly
an agricultural and pastoral coun-
try. This condition is reflected in
the exports and imports. During
the fiscal year 1929 the exports,
including goods in transit. amount
ed to about S40,000,000, while the
imports were valued at approx
mately $54,0O0,000. Dates, valued
at close to S6000.00O, led the list
of exports, followed by cereals and
flour, $1,000 600, and wool, 50. .50O.-
600. Among the leading articles
imported were textiles, valued at
approximately SS.500,OOO: and sugar
worth S3.O00.O00
The few industries carried on in
Iraq are on a small scale The res
identS maintain factories for spin
ming, knitting, carpet making, and
shoe manufacture, copper smelling
and flour milling. 1t is only mat
ter of time, however, until the
country will have an important
place among the regions producing
and refining petroleum. Two finan-
cially strong companies have con
cessiOns to explore and develop the
Iraqan oil supplies, and both have
brought in producing wells within
the past two years. One of the
companies is operating a refinery
near Khanaqin, which supplies
most of the fuel oil and gasoline
needs Of Iraq. This refinery is sup
piled by a 25-mile pipe line from
the oil fields at Naft Khava, almost
on the Iraq-Persian border.
The other oil corporation is de
velOping an area 70 miles or more
TO the north and a considerable dis
tance inland from the Persian
frontier. This company has found
fair amounts of oil, but has delayed
exploiting them in the hope that it
will open up sufficiently produc
tive field to justify the laying of a
pipe line across deserts and
through mountains to a Mediter
| ranean port.