‘GAZETTEER OF PERSIA VOL. I Comprising the Provinces of ASTARÁBÁD, SHÁHRUD-BÚSTAN, KHÚRÁSÁN, AND SÍSTÁN’ [‎197r] (400/722)

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governor of Astarabad and the force at his disposal. No Persian can, how
ever., go beyond the Kara Su, except with a powerful escort, or by previous
arrangement with the Yamuts ; and the latter are at times able to extend
their raids as far as Samnan (124 miles from Tihran).
The middle and upper courses of the Atrak and Gurgan are inhabited by
the Goklan tribe, who are Persian subjects jmr et simple, even furnishing a
contingent of cavalry to the army.
From the sources of the Atrak to beyond Marv live the Tekke tribe, who
are practically independent, though they formally acknowledged Persian
suzerainty at the commencement of 1878. Sarakhs, the last Persian post
towards Marv, is always held by a comparatively strong garrison.
The strategical importance to Russia of extending her frontier to the
The strategical im- river consists in the security the possession of the passes
portance of the Dam- over the Daman-i-Kuh will afford to her communications,
an-i-Kdh. which in case of a further advance eastward, such as the
present expedition against the Akhal Tekkes, must, except she obtain per
mission to pass through Persian territory, letid along the foot of the
northern slopes of the Daman-i-Kuh, where water and forage are obtain
able.
From the mouth of the Atrak the shore of the Caspian continues the
The Caspian fron- Persian frontier to the mouth of the Araxes. Ashurada
tier. island is Russian.
The greater part of Persia may be said to suffer from perpetual drought.
The scanty rainfall, rarely exceeding 10", is divided as
Rainfall. follows: “ A little rain is hoped for, but not always
expected, in November, to sow the early crops. In December there is
generally a tolerably heavy fall of snow, and another in February; followed
by showers in March and the beginning of April; after which there is
nothing but an occasional thunderstorm until next winter. Were it not
that the lofty hills store the moisture, nine-tenths of Persia would be the
arid desert that one-half of it is now/' 7r
A glance at the orography of Persia will show that the principal mountain
Influence of the dir- ranges run parallel to the Caspian and Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ,
ection of the mountain These intercept the moisture-bearing clouds fiom the^sea,
chains on vegetation. which are discharged on their outer slopes. The Alburz
chain may be taken as a typical instance of this. Its north face is furrowed
into deep valleys by the constant and heavy showers which have clothed
them in forests of almost tropical luxuriance; while the south generally
presents a single abrupt scrap, rising above long gravel slopes, unchannelled
by anything worthy the name of a river, and bare Ol any vegetation rising
to the dignity of a tree. At the most moderate estimate, the rainfall of
Gilan and^Mazandaran may be taken as five times that of the adjoining
ridges to the south. . .
In other parts, however, we find the land-parting considerably below
the level summits further inland. This is particularly the case in south
east Persia, where the Khurasan, Sarhadd, and Dizak hills, far exceeding in
altitude the ranges to the south, attract to themselves the major portion of
the scanty supply of moisture-borne inland from the sea.
JVb^e.—By the Russian Caspian survey, Damavand, in the Alburz, is made out over 18,500 feet;
, ,, ... ,i -„ v.r.io.v.i iq pxeeeded bv some of the peaks in the ranges
and some authorities are of opinion that this neignt is exceeue ,y _ r a i . ay ......
north-east of Shiraz. Many parts of the Kurdistan mountains, being always covered with snow ,
must attain to 14,000 or 15,000 feet.