'File 35/64 Mineral deposits in Dhofar' [‎15v] (34/126)

2
^ y\\t Su\ v-a^ s
papers it seemed evident that without securing the actual hospitality
of the Sheiks of the area it would be impossible to work, and that
this hospitality might not continue beyond a limited period. I had
realized that the'Prince' mentioned by Mr. Thomas (Arabia Felix,
3rd sentence, 1st paragraph of 1st chapter) was no other than the
present Ruler, Sultan Saiyid Said bin Taimur, and that^l-k^ Ilighuess'
full support would be available, but I did not then know that the
'Sultan's writ' really did carry across the Qara Mountains of Dhufar
into the Qarn Shaiba.
4. My real reason for advising against an immediate systematic
geological survey, while influenced by the possibilities of tribal
interference, was that, so far as I knew and could ascertain, there
were no topographical maps available on a scale suitable for recording
geological observations while mapping in the field. The only maps
I have been able to procure have been on a scale of either 1 inch to
31-56 miles (1-014 inches equal to 32 miles) or at best 1 inch to 15-78
miles (1-014 inches to 16 miles). It is impossible to map geological
details at all satisfactorily on a map even on the scale of 1 inch to
about 4 miles, and a 1-inch-to-the-mile map is generally used.
Mrs. and Mr. Bent had a surveyor, supplied by the Government of
India, to accompany them merely on their traverses. A geologist
must have a map to work with, and so the surveyor must work
ahead of him, and the topographical and geological surveys would
cover more than six months for an area of over 4,500 square miles.
It is about 150 miles from Ras Darbat on the west to Ras Nus on
the east along the coast of Dhufar, and over 30 miles in a straight
line northwards from Salalah to Hanun, over the watershed The boundary between adjacent drainage basins. of the
Qara mountains. With suitable maps available a geologist would
take three to four years to complete a detailed map.
Literature on South-East Arabia
5. I have made a point of reading or glancing quickly over the
following books and journals and papers on Arabia:—
1846. 'A descriptive account of the Ruins of El Balad' by H. J. Carter (page 25,
Art. xiv, Volume VII, Trans. Bombay Geographical Society).
' Note on a Shipwreck on the Southern Coast of Arabia' by B. A. R. Nicholson
(page 238, Art. xv, ibid.).
1848. ' Notes on the Gharah Tribe' by H. J. Carter (1844-45). (See page 195, Art. v,
No. ix, Volume II, The Journal of the Bombay Asiatic Society.)
'Note on the Mahrah Tribe of Southern Arabia' by H. J. Carter (page 339,
Art. i, No. xi, ibid.).
' A description of the Frankincense Tree of Arabia' by H. J. Carter (page 380,
Art. iv, ibid.).
'Copper Ore from the Island of Maseera' by H. J. Carter (page 400, Art. vii,
ibid.).
1849. 'A Geographical Description of certain parts of the South-East Coast of
Arabia' by H. J. Carter (page 224, Art. vi, No. xiv, Volume III, ibid.).
*