'Report on the Preliminary Survey of The Route for The Central Persia Telegraph Line from Quetta to Bam and Pahra' [‎54r] (112/162)

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certain amount is always lost, and the! clouds originating from the evaporation of
sea water cannot be counted upon to make good this loss, for, in ascending the
mountains bounding the closed drainage area, they have had to precipitate their
moisture in the form of rain on the slope turned towards the sea, and, on reaching
the opposite slope, they descend once more to lower altitudes, but not in a sat
urated condition. Hence, briefly, the reason why Western Baluchistan is already in
its deplorable, and hopeless, condition, it has at present almost reached what 1
may call its ‘ breaking strain ’ as regards water-supply, and, should any further pres
sure be put on the existing wells in consequence of a year or two of drought, the
passage oi caravans along the Nushki Trade Route would, without doubt,
become most difficult, if not altogether impossible.
I will now quote from Captain Webb Ware’s report, referred to in my last
paragraph. In paragraph 9 of his Appendix II, he writes: “ I trust that
I may be pardoned for once more repeating that west of Nushki the road
traverses an open, almost level, and nearly sandless plain, wheie water is to be
obtained at every stage in quantities which are, to all intents and purposes, unli
mited, where camel grazing, except in the depths of winter, is luxuriant It
is only between Tratoh and Makak Karez, a stretch of 70 miles, that anything
approaching a waste is crossed. I use the word approaching advisedly, for
here patches of grass are to be found in every nala bed, and, as far as camel-
grazipgis concerned, there is sufficient of this for the requirements of caravans.”
There are other descriptions in the report written in the same favourable
strain which are open to question, but, not to make my discourse too long, I will
neglect them. To call the water-supply of the Nushki route in any sense un
limited, and its camel grazing luxuriant, is putting the meaning of these words
to rather a severe strain. What an unreasonably optimistic view Captain Webb
Ware takes may be judged from the fact that he refuses to admit that the
country south of the Koh-i-Sultan, between Tratoh and Makak, is a desert.
This is an appaling waste, an area of dried up lava stones and sand, absolutely
barren, and containing no decent drinking water, a veritable desolation of desola
tions*. Continuing with the report, Captain Webb Ware expresses great hopes
of extending cultivation by means of karez digging, but at some of the places
he mentions the water is brackish, f and at these it is hopeless to expect any crops
to grow. The naivete of the confession in paragraph 25, Appendix II, is worth
noticing. Talking of he proximity of water to the surface of the ground at Gut,
and Chahsundan, which promises well for karez cultivation, he states “ It is to
be noted however that at both these places there is a difficulty in finding suitable
land ”!
In considering the possibilities of karez cultivation, it may be remembered
that the amount of water obtainable from karezes is, like Artesian wells, directly
dependent on the rainfall. If there is little or no rainfall in a country, it is
waste of time and money in digging karezes indiscriminately, for no profitable
supply of water can be obtained from them. That this country along the trade
route is lacking in rainfall is obvious, otherwise it would not be in the destitute
condition it is. In paragraph 30, Appendix II, the conclusion on the cultivation
subject, Captain Webb Ware writes as follows “ Writing with the experience
of three years, I say without hesitation that, provided that the necessary funds
are forthcoming, karezes could be opened at, or near, almost every individual
stage on the caravan road between Nushki and Killa Robat. ” This statement
appears to me somewhat extraordinary, in view of the fact that net only is the
water obtainable from wells at some stages distinctly limited in supply, but its
quality for at least ^ of the whole distance from Nushki to Killa Kobat is, as I
have already shown, highly contaminated, and would surely kill off any seeds
sewn in the ground which came in contact with it. I presume that tne intention
of opening up karezes at each stage is to get a supply of water which would
support, not destroy, cultivation. Then in addition there is that curious diffi
culty of finding suitable land at some places. The whole country is a desert,
and will not permit of cultivation to any appreciable extent. The significant
• Photograph No. 23 is a good view showing the batren nature of the country I refer to. It was kindly given
to me by Mr. Vredenburg.
t For instance, water is brackish at Chakul, andiS.tag (paragraph 23 of report, appendix II), also at Tratoh,
and Mushki Chah (paragraph 26), etc.