"دليل الخليج. مجلد I. القسم التاريخي. الجزء II. ج. ج. لوريمر. ١٩١٥" [‎٢‎٤‎٠‎٣] (١٢٦٢/٩٢٠)

2403
Pasha, ihe^ Turkish Wali, made a reconnaissance from Baghdad to
Basrah, which resulted in a decision that the telegraph should run from
Baghdad to Hillah, follow the left bank of the Euphrates from Hillah
to Qurnah, and at Qurnah cross to the right bank of the Shatt-al-'Arab.
A more convenient route could have been obtained by crossing and recros-
sing the Euphrates at more than one point between Hillah and Qurnah ;
but the Turkish officials were anxious to remove the line as far as
possible out of the reach of the Arab tribes upon the right bank, and th«
route adopted was a concession to their fears. The total length of the
line from Baghdad to Basrah was estimated at 313 miles.
The Porte were unwilling that this Baghdad-Basrah line should be
constructed by British agency and professed readiness to construct it
themselves. Eventually the discussions resulted in an engagement, dated
the 20th October 1863, between Great Britain and Turkey, by which the
Ottoman Government undertook to construct an aerial line at their own
expense from Baghdad to Basrah and another from Baghdad to Khana-
qin near the Persian frontier, while the Government of India on their
part assumed the responsibility of carrying a submarine cable to Basrah
or to some point near the mouth of the ^Shatt-al-' Arab to meet the
Baghdad-Basrah land line. It was further agreed that the necessary
materials and a skilled staif for the construction of the land line should
be supplied by the Government of India, and that the * cost of the
materials should be repaid by the Ottoman Government out of the
Turkish share of the revenue from, messages sent by either line from
India to Europe. The Khanaqm line was not to be commenced until
through communication by Basrah had been established, and certain
principles were to be followed in the distribution of long-distance traffic
between the two lines. Two of the clauses had for their object to
expedite the completion of the Baghdad-Basrah line and of the sub
marine cable.
A basis of operations having thus been arranged, construction was
begun at the Baghdad end in November 1863 ; and in the same month,
on the arrival of Lieutenant Murdoch Smith and a detachment of Boyal
Engineers at Basrah together with the necessary stores, work commenced
at the southern end also. The difficulties encountered proved, in spite
of contrary anticipations, to be of a physical rather than of a
political nature; and by the end of March 1864 the wire from Fao--
the^ point finally selected for the landing of the cable, which was now
rapidly approaching it—had reached Qurnah. Above this, in conse
quence of trouble between the Turks and various Arab tribes, chiefly the
Muntafik, there remained for some time a gap of 1?0 miles; but on the
^7th of January 1865 the two sections were successfully joined up in the
neighbourhood of Qurnah, so linking Fao to Constantinople. The
clause in the Anglo-Turkish engagement of 1863 relating to the post
ponement of the Baghdad-Khanaqm line appears to have been dis
regarded, for we find that it was actually in operation by the 13th
October 1864, if not at an even earlier date.
Anglo-
Turkish
Agreement
for con
struction,
20th October
1863.
Progress and
completion
of the work,
1863-05.
The sums advanced on this account aggregated £26,266, which amount was
finally paid off by Tnrkfy in 1875-76.
161 A