'Gazetteer of Arabia Vol. I' [‎932] (999/1050)

932
JAHEAH
begins early in the year and outlasts the onion. The leek or baqal is sown afresh
every year ; it is cropped like lucerne and yields 16 crops in the season. Clover or
halhah and cress or rashdd are small and short-lived crops ; these herbs are only used
for seasoning. The brinjal or bahdiydn, bindi or bdmiyah, and the tomato—which
has no Arabic name—come early in the year and do not last long, but are exported to
Kuwait Town.
There are about 2,000 date trees at Jahrah producing about 500 maunds of dates per
annum; practically the whole of the fruit is eaten as ratab, that is, in the yellow or
semi-ripe state. Date plantations, now number eleven, of which the best belongs to
Saiyid Khalaf, a relation of the Naqib of Basrah ; three new date groves are being laid
out this year (1904).
At present only about 30 tons of grain are exported yearly to Kuwait Town, but the
agriculture of Jahrah might be greatly extended if more capital were sunk in it.
Irrigation.—The crops enumerated above are mostly irrigated and are grown in en
closures formed by clay walls about 9 feet high ; most of these gardens are on the south
side of the village. Some of the wheat and barley is grown by rainfall alone, but the area
of such cultivation is small compared with the rest. The water for irrigation is brackish ;
it is raised in skins by donkeys which pull by walking down an inclined plane that slopes
away from the well. There are 19 large wells with an average depth of about 20 feet.
A water lift is called an arjlyah, and the channels which carry the water from the
well head to the crops are sdqiyah. Sometimes the water raised is collected in a reservoir
or birkah to give it a good flow; natural or artificial hollows where water collects are
known as khabrahs. A sharb is a small embanked terrace on which irrigation water
is allowed to spread before being let go to a lower level.
Agricultural ^ms.—Late-sown crops are described as musaiyaf. The chief varieties
of soil are harrah, or good arable land ; daim, which is land either situated on the edge
of a hhabrah or watered only by rain ; hazam, or stony ground ; and sabdkhah, which
is swampy, saline and non-productive. The commonest instruments of agriculture are
a rudimentary plough, called ifqdu ; an iron spade, called fakJiin, used in making, repair
ing, opening and closing water channels ; and a wooden rake or hoe, called masdh, for
levelling the ground. The makhyvl is a bogey made of an 'aba hung on a stafi to
prevent sheep and goats from straying, or to scare birds from growing crops. An
economical substitute for a wall to protect crops against animals is a khadad or ditch,
2 feet deep and 2 feet broad, with sand walls on either side about 1 foot high.
Livestork, water-supply, etc.—The supply of fowls, eggs and milk at Jahrah is limited
and wood is very scarce, but there are plenty of sheep and goats and a few cattle.
Lucerne and some vegetables are procurable. The local transport available consists of
some 30 or 40 donkeys, but camels can be hired from the Bedouins. Drinking water of
fair quality is yielded by certain wells about half a mile south-west of the village.
Administration and political importance.—The Shaikh of Kuwait is represented at
Jahrah by one Amir 'Abdul Karim, a native of the village but of Najdi parentage, who
exercises considerable undefined powers in the place. This man is also the Shaikh's
agent for the cultivation of his garden, already mentioned, and takes half the profits
of the same while the Shaikh bears all the expenses. No revenue is collected on behalf
of the Shaikh. In former times the disorderly conduct of the Bedouins frequently caused
annoyance at Jahrah; but under the strong rule of Mubarak this drawback has been
The Shaikh of Kuwait regards Jahrah as one of the most important spots in his terri
tory, not only on account of its agricultural resources, but also because of the prestige
which its possessor enjoys among the Bedouins frequenting its vicinity and of the hold
which it gives him over them.
removed.
Topography of the neighbourhood.—Several places and landmarks which bear
id do not belonpr to n.nxr fVir. j- • • p ,1 tt" ..
names