"تقرير عسكري حول عربستان (المنطقة رقم ١٣)." [و‎‎٣‎٧] (٣٦٦/٧٨)

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country. The inhabitants are of the Dris and Albu Ghubaish
divisions of the Cha’b al Gubban tribe.
( 10) KAUNAK OR KAHUNAK— Lat. 32 0 W N. Long. 48°39 /
Elev. 600.
A village in the Dizful district, situated on the main caravan
route from Dizful to Shushtar, about 16 miles s^uth east of
Dizful and 22 miles north west of Shushtar. It is the ordinary
halting place for travellers between these two places. Kaunak
stands on the left bank of the stream of the same name, which
is^an affluent of the Ab-i-Diz. The bed of tin Ab-i-Kaunak, at
the village, is usually a dry or nearly a dry stretch of shingle
about 1 mile across and presents a complete obstacle to motor
transport, which are compelled to take the longer route via
Gutwand, and a serious obstacle to all wheeled traffic, vide
Chapter VI, Route 14. After moderate rains, however, there
is a good flow of water in several distinct channels and heavy
rains render it impassable for a short period.
The village consists of about 100 mud houses, which are not
surrounded by a wall as most villages in the Dizful district. A
caravanserai stands about 200 yards north of the village ; it is
a mud walled-in enclosure, but some of the interior buildings are
of brick and there are a few small lodgings for better class tra
vellers in a balakhaneh. The only defence of the village is a
small mud tower with a timber roof, just outside it on the Dizful
side, and a couple of two storeyed buildings in the town, which
shew a few loopholes.
The inhabitants are Bakhtiaris and a few Dizfulis, who are
very poorly armed. Kaunak belongs to the Bakhtiari Khans
and Agha ’Ali Mustaufi of Dizful. Rice, kunjid, mash, wheat,
barley, beans and cotton are cultivated on the village lands,
which are irrigated from the Ab-i-Kaunak. A canal runs out
of the stream a few hundred yards above the village and reached
a group of hamlets called Gumar, There is a fair supply of water
at all seasons of the year but it is rather brackish, vide Chapter
VI, Route 14. No transport is available at Kaunak except
about 30 donkeys. Cattle number about 150 sheep and goats
about 50.
V- .. I . . , . ’ ’ . . •
l There are four shrines close to the village, which are visited
by the surr ounding Arabs as well as by Dizfulis and Shushtaris*