Miscellaneous Correspondence, Notes, and Newspaper Cuttings Relating to Persia [‎17br] (37/255)

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!Ht GIVIL >» MIL'IIAHf QAtETTt,
political and commercial, are now para
mount, and recent events have displayed
us in a position of considerable rivalry
to Russia in those parts. Such a line as
this, financed by' British capital, would
bring under British control two important
ports, one on the Mediterranean and the
other on the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , would afford
England a powerful means of exercising
her influence over the large territory of
Central Per=ia, and of establishing new '
3 traue relations over an enormous area of
9 | unexploited country of exceptional wealth,
u and vyould thus strengthen British influ-
3L ence in I urkey and in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ,
}Bi an d indirectly in Persia and Afghanistan.
.jj Another consideration of considerable im-
3u pDi tance in view of the partial return of
3U famine with which we were threatened this
si years is that the line would bring a great
giain producing tract in direct communica-
tion with Karachi.
-b It appears, however, that there is con-
ui siderable opposition to this project, not
q. on the part of Russia, whose ambitions
HI are sti, I largely directed to exploiting
‘3 Northern Persia and obtaining a port on
3^ the letsian Gulf with a railway connec-
o: tion, but on the part of Germany. It is
3< well-known what strenuous efforts the Em
peror William has been making to push the
trade of Germany in Turkey, and he has
now extended his attention to Asia Minor,
a countiy of which Moltke once express
ed the hope that " one day it would
come under the shadow of the German
Eagle. fhe Anatolian railway belongs
to a German company, the Deutsche Bank,
which obtained the concession on the
conditions, firstly, that they should con
struct, within eight years from 1893 , a line
from Angora to Kaisariah, a northern
branch of the same scheme, and secondly,
that the Ottoman Government should
have the right to call on the Company to
extend the line from Kaisariah to Baghdad.
Within the six years which have since
elapsed, the Company have not laid a
single kilometre of the line from Angora
to Kaisariah, nor even made the necessary
sut veys ; they have, moreover, discovered
that the line from Kaisariah to Baghdad
lies through difficult country, while the
greater part of the vilayets through which
it would pass do not yield sufficient
revenues to cover the Turkish Gny-orn.
1 18
V
The Ciyil im Iiurm Gazetti/
LAHORE, SEPTEMBRE 8 , 1899 .
A EUPHRATES VALLEY RAIL
WAY.
There has been more than one scheme
mooted of late to bring India nearer to
Europe by the overland route, and of these
the latest, and perhaps the most feasible,
is a plan to connect Constantinople with
the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. a line running through
the Euphrates Vanfey. There is a line in
existence already belonging to I he Ana
tolian railway, which connects Constanti
nople with Koniah, an important town in
Asia Minor, and a British syndicate is
•at present negotiating with the Sublime
Porte to be allowed to continue this line
'to Koweit, a port on the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. .
An essential part of the scheme is that
there should also be a short branch line
from Aleppo to Alexandretta, a port in
the Levant A geographical area corresponding to the region around the eastern Mediterranean Sea. , thus giving the grain trade
of the Euphrates Valley an outlet on the
Mediterranean. The advantages claimed
for the scheme are, firstly, that by cutting
straight across Asia Minor and Persia,
and obviating the passage through the Red
Sea, it would bring India five days nearer
to Europe ; and secondly, the Provinces of
Baghdad and Bussorah whose trade would
be tapped, are said by competent authori
ties to be two of the most fertile dis'ricts
in the world, far exceeding in possibilities
the Delta of the Nile, and having an
area seven times as great. As an illustra
tion of the extraordinary fertility of the
Hand in the alluvial districts of the Eu
phrates Valley, three crops can be grown
yearly. In addition to this it has long
‘been the object of English statesmen to
■consolidate the position of England in the
iPersian Gulf, where British interests, both
IHt VIYIL tf MILITARY QMETTt,
political and commercial, are now para
mount, and recent events have displayed
us in a position of considerable rivalry
to Russia in those parts. Such a line as
this, financed by' British capital, would
bring under British control two important
ports, one on the Mediterranean and the
other on the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , would afford
England a powerful means of exercising
her influence over the large territory of
Central Persia, and of establishing new
trade relations over art enormous area of 1
unexploited country of exceptional wealth,
and would thus strengthen British influ
ence in Turkey and in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ,
and indirectly in Persia and Afghanistan.
Another consideration of considerable im
portance in view of the partial return of
famine with which we were threatened this
years is that the line would bring a great
grain producing tract in direct communica
tion with Karachi.
It appears, however, that there is con
siderable opposition to this project, not
on the part of Russia, whose ambitions
are still largely directed to exploiting
Northern Persia and obtaining a port on
the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. with a railway connec
tion, but on the part of Germany. It is
well-known what strenuous efforts the Em
peror William has been making to push the
trade of Germany in Turkey, and he has
now extended his attention to Asia Minor,
a country of which Moltke once express
ed the hope that 11 one day it would
come under the shadow of the German
Eagle.” The Anatolian railway belongs
to a German company, the Deutsche Bank,
which obtained the concession on the
conditions, firstly, that they should con
struct, within eight years from 1893, a line
from Angora to Kaisariah, a northern
branch of the same scheme, and secondly,
that the Ottoman Government should
have the right to call on the Company to
extend the line from Kaisariah to Baghdad.
Within the six years which have since
elapsed, the Company have not laid a
single kilometre of the line from Angora
to Kaisariah, nor even made the necessary
surveys ; they have, moreover, discovered
that the line from Kaisariah to Baghdad
lies through difficult country, while the !
greater part of the vilayets through which 1
it would pass do not yield sufficient I
revenues to cover the Turkish Govern- |
Tnent guarantee. They, therefore, display- |
ed no desire to act up to their engagements, '
and caused considerable indignation in
Turkish Government circles. In spite of
this, however, so soon as they discovered
that an English Company had put in a
tender on more favourable terms than
themselves for an alternative line from
Koniah to the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , they put
forward a moral claim of preference for
any' concession that might be granted for
a line to Baghdad and the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ,
and backed it up by diplomatic represen
tation?.
The position at present is that the
^ English scheme is very much further for
ward than the German ; it was proposed
six months ago and has received the
approval of all the requisite Turkish
Departments up to the final ratification
by the Sultan, while the German scheme
is still in its initial stage. But, on the
other hand, the Germans are able to rely
on the strong diplomatic pressure of their
Government, while British merchants all
over the world complain that they are
left to fight entirely lor their own hand,
and that now-a-days it is a positive dis
advantage to be a British subject. The
present time is one of battles for railway
concessions throughout Asia, and up to
the present we have, done none too well
when we have come in contact with
Russia and Germany in China and else
where. It is to be hoped that on the
pre ent occasion that experience will be
reversed. The strategic features of the
case are by no means its least important
aspect. At the present moment our interest
is paramount in Southern Persia, an#
Russia’s in Northern Persia ; Central Persia
still remains to be allotted, and is a rich
prize for the victor in the struggle of
commercial rivalry. If we wish to secure
this region for our trade, and at the same
time prevent the trade of Asia Minor
from being totally annexed by Germany,
it is necessary that we should be up and
doing. No step that we could take would
be so efficacious in securing both our
commercial and strategic position as to
run a railway through the heart of the
country. It would, moreover, be a decided
political and military advantage to bring
India within eight days of London, while
it would be posssible to run a line along
the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. and through Mekran or not
according as our strategists thought wise
Not India alone will watch with interest
to see if the English Company obtain the
Sultan’s signature to their tender, or
whether British interests are to be subor
dinated to those of another country in yet
another part of Asia,