"السكك الحديدية وسياسة [خطوط الاتصالات]، بلاد الرافدين. المجلد III" [و‎‎١‎٦‎٦] (٥٤٩/٣٣٢)

121/3/163
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fiCRET
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From; War Office
To: G®0.Cc in C. Mesopotamia repeated
IaG,C» Basra a
Desp* 10 d 2,10
72401 cipher McR,2 # a./G7G.
Following for Major-General de Candolle
leaving on "Ekma" from DoG c M s R, Begins b
Your Xc427B December 5th re possible railway
routos in Persia. (a) Your opinion that owing to
curvature no wider gauge than metre is practicable for
long distance railways in Persia is noted. Would this
or
hold good for through strategic route to India,/doss it
apply to economic line only? With metre gauge trunk
linos would you recommend feeder lines of same gauge?
(b) On the other hand it seems that metre gauge In
Persia would militate against Persian trade passing via
Baghdad especially if Baghdad-Basra line is built in standard
gauge entailing transhipment at Baghdad of Persian traffic
to and from Basra,, and later to and from Mediterranean.
In this case would not tendency for Persian traffic to
follow an all Persian metre gauge line to Mohammerah or
head of Persian Gulf be strengthened?
(c) What Is your opinion of practicability of standard
gauge line through Persia which would form part cf through
route from Europe and later from Egypt to India? This
would entail one transhipment only, viz. to Indian gauge ;
Possibility of easier grades being obtained by Zinkan ur
Shirwan valleys tc Ker nshah or Ramadan respectively is
referred to by Lubbock. As this railway may form part
of direct route tc India it is important now that military
considerations no longer predominate to investigate close/r
prospects of obtaining by this means better grades and
curvature than on route now recommended to Kermanshah even
if greater initial expense involvedc