"استطلاعات في بلاد الرافدين وكردستان وشمال غرب بلاد فارس ولرستان في الفترة من أبريل إلى أكتوبر ١٨٨٨، كتبها المقدم ف. ر. مونسيل، فرع الاستخبارات. يوجد مجلدان. المجلد الأول: تقرير سردي ووصف للمدن الكبرى والطرق المؤدية منها. شيملا: فرع الاستخبارات، إدارة قائد الإمداد والتموين، ١٨٩٠" [ظ‎‎٩‎٨] (٣١٢/٢٠١)

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At 27£ miles a deep ravine lies to the left, with some ledges of sandstone, x
The stream turns several mills and flows to join the Batak Su.
Gurrapahan. —At 29§ miles, at 2-30 p.m. halted in Gurrapahan (1,285'),
a large Yezidi village, through which a road led to Dohuk across a level plain
(see Route IX).
The houses in the village have mud walls with sloping roofs of wattle
covered with a thin layer of earth.
Good water from a small stream close by, now nearly dry. Small wells
are dug in the stream bed and water obtained from them.
Temperature at 8-30 a.m. 87°, at noon 97°, an hour after sunset 78°, and
at 4-30 a.m. 70°. Hot winds blew all the afternoon. The locusts were very
troublesome, invading everywhere and eating anything. Wheat and barley
is being threshed now.
18th June-—General direction, N.W. and N. Left village at 5-15 a.m.,
and rejoined main road. The new road and the telegraph follow the same
general direction. The latter does not go through Zakho, but strikes across the
plain to the west, rounding the end of the Jabal Abiadh near Feishkhabur,
and following the bank of the Tigris to Jazirah.
At 5f miles crossed the Dohuk River, flowing south-west to the Tigris.
Dohuk bears 68 ° from here.
Dulep. miles up stream is Dulep, a large Yezidi village, with gardens
and orchards; the same distance down stream is Gireschik, also Yezidi.
Simel. AtlOj miles cross a small stream, and passed through scattered
village of Simel, composed of miserable mud huts with sloping thatched roofs.
There are few Zaptiyahs quartered here, and it is a changing station for post
horses.
A small square stone fort partially in ruins stands on a mound on the bank
of the stream.
Patches of wheat and Indian-corn grew round the village, but only
a fraction of the culturable ground is utilized. Locusts still seen in large
numbers. Among the rest were a large species 4 to 5 inches long, called
“chikdem ” in Arabic. The common locust is called “ deragh.■ ,,
The inhabitants of Simel are settled Arabs of the Shammar Tai from the
right bank of the Tigris.
Talzait .—-At 15| miles Talzait, a large village, lay 2 miles to the left. There
was a brick bridge here on the new road, built only two years ago, but now in
ruins.
Several small villages are dotted about the plain to the west, half hidden
in ravines.
Bashistha. —At 19 miles we could see Bashistha Telegraph Office on the
plain, 3 miles to the left. It was placed thus so as to be equidistant from
Dohuk and Zakho.
I he Jabal Abiadh, the foot of which we are now approaching, is an un
broken rocky wall, extending from Feishkhabur to the Dorgh Pass near
Dohuk. Besides the Zakho Pass is the Beitas Pass, 10 miles to the south-east
of it, just above the village of Baghian and very difficult for mules.
Ibis and the Zakho lass are the only two practicable points to cross the
range between Feishkhabur and Dohuk.
Zakho Pas*. At 2/f miles the road led north through the Zakho Pass
(2,150'), a wide gap in the range. The ascent is easy, a 1 O'to 12'track almost
clear of stones. At 29| miles reached the top of the pass (2,680'). The northern
slope of the range is thinly wooded with low oaks and shrubs. It falls away
towards Zakho in a series of rounded ridges, outliers from the main range; a