'Military report on Tehran and adjacent Provinces of North-West Persia (including the Caspian Littoral)' [‎224v] (453/610)

412
Steamship 1 }
Companies,
Services.;
along the coast. They are unsheltered and the sea is too shallow
for steamers to approach. They anchor from a half to one
mile out to sea and cargoes are taken to, or fetched from, the
open beach by small native boats, which can, however, only work
in calm weather. If the sea is too stormy for them the steamer-
must either delay or go on to its next point of call.
The principal of these stations are :—
Ghamkhdleh and Riidisar for the Langarud and Lahiian
trade, Shahsavdr in Tunakabun.
Meshed-i-Sir for the Barfarush trade.
Meshed-i-Sar comes second 1 in importance to Enzali and
a concrete wharf for native boats has been built beside the
customs houses at the mouth of the river Babul.
Other smaller stations exist where steamers call by arrange
ment when cargoes are available, e.g., Chunchunchidn 2 Mahmud-
abad, at the mouth of the Haraz the station for Amol and
Farahdbdd, at the mouth of the Tejen, the station for Sari etc
Owing to Bolshevik activities in the Caspian steamship
services have been disorganized and suspended.
Before the Russian Revolution the principal company was
the Caucasus and Mercury and Yostotchnoe Obchestvo Com
pany. It used to run a direct service thrice weekly from Baku
to Enzali duration of voyage 20 hours, Baku to Astara once
weekly, duration of voyage 18 hours, and a weekly coasting
service round all the Persian trading stations on the Caspian.
The steamers carried passengers and cargo.
The rates undergo considerable fluctuation. In 1919-20
they were:—
Passengers.
MERCHAN
DISE.
1st
Class.
2nd
Class.
3rd
Class.
per poud ]
(36 lbs.)
From Enzali to Astara .
Lenkoran
Baku
Petrovsk
From Meshed-i-Sar to Enzali
Astara
Lenkoran
Baku . v
Petrovsk
60
75
150
270
150
175
195
225
375
45
60
120
195
120
150
175
195
270
25
40
45
120
60
75
90
115
150
Kransi
10
12.
15-
30
IS
IS
20
23
38
* i e., Excluding Astara which is North of this area.
Some years ago a Persian merchant entertained a scheme for making this an
important station for trade with Tehran vid Am51 and the Haraz valley He
built large warehouses at Mahmudabad and a little railway from MahmudahSd
working 1 ' ^ enterpnse P roved a complete failure. The railway is . not