'Military report on Tehran and adjacent Provinces of North-West Persia (including the Caspian Littoral)' [‎61r] (126/610)

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On emerging from the “ Miyanband the rivers expand and
have formed wide stony courses, some of them exceeding -?•
mile in width, but their water is diverted for irrigation and with
1 few exceptions they become unfordable only during abnorma:
floods.
After May, when their volume diminishes, water left to flov
down the natural channel is considered water wasted, and the
torrents of the “Miyanband” are reduced to mere trickles
before reaching the sea.
In addition to these rivers, with their, source in the mountains
(Kuh), innumerable streams rise in the foothills of the “Miyan
band ” within a few miles of the coast. These are sluggish ,
marsh streams, with narrow channels, deep from bank to bank..
Snow water does not drain into them, their level varies com
paratively little at different seasons and they do not possess
sufficient force to cut through the sandbars washed up by the
surf and prevailing North-Westerly winds. They are dammed
up for a considerable distance from their mouths and turned in
an Easterly direction parallel to the sea before they can find
an outlet through the sandbanks, often overflowing into small
* Murdabs ’ or deadwaters.
The lagoons of Astarabad and Enzali have been formed in
this way.
Of these ‘ Murdab ’ streams the principal are the Larim in
Mazandaran, between Teien and Talar, the Gazafrud, 12 nu es
East of Pul-i-rud, and the Langarud in Gilan.
Owing to their depth these streams are only fordable at
certain places.
The naturally swampy nature of these lowlands has been
intensified artificially by the rice cultivation and the constiuc-
tion, chiefly in Mazandaran, of large tanks of stagnant water
and reeds (Abbandan) 3' to 6" deep, dammed up during winter
to serve as reservoirs in summer for rice fields not irrigated
from the rivers.
The soil contains no stone or gravel, on the large plains
it has no surface drainage, and when flooded becomes a morass,
1. Along the Mdzandardn -plain the beach is 40 to 60 yardsSeastore^
wide and hard with a gradual slope and is backed by a belt
of sandhills, 20' to 30' high, and from | to J mile in width.
1 Safid Riid, Pul-i-rud (brings down a very big spate of snow water in spring)
Haraz, Tejcn, and occasionally Babul, Chains and Talar.