'Report on the Preliminary Survey of The Route for The Central Persia Telegraph Line from Quetta to Bam and Pahra' [‎36r] (76/162)

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effect the saline constituents. A more detailed examination than that given
above is uncalled for in a sample so obviously contaminated.'’
Quetta; } (Sd.) CHAS. H. MELVILLE, M.B.,
The 13th August 1897. ) Surgeon-Captain, AMS.
In explanation as to why the water at so many places along the trade route
west of Dalbandin is so bad, I may mention that the route passes close to the
south of the Koh-i-Sultan range of mountains. Mr. Vredenburg of the Geolo
gical Survey Department informs me that the Koh-i-Sultan is a recent volcano,
and it is on this account that all the water obtainable in its vicinity is so conta
minated, and highly charged with impurities. The country between Dalbandin
and the Persian Frontier is an absolute barren desert. The amount of rainfall in
it must be very small, and the prospect of getting any decent water-supply along
any direct route from Dalbandin to Ladis, or Koh-i-Malik Seah, appears hope
less. I have made provision in my estimates for the cost of carriage of drinking
water for working parties over tracts where no good water is procurable. Water
would be carried on camels in leather pakals, and stored in zinc tanks. The
tanks should weigh when empty not more than 2| maunds each, so that two
could be carried on a camel. The cost of w T ater carriage may not be as great
as I estimate. The working coolies A term used to describe labourers from a number of Asian countries, now considered derogatory. may perhaps be content to drink salt
water, and the minerals in it may agree with them. The question of where,
and how far, water should be carried can best be settled by the officer in
charge of the construction work. If the construction is undertaken in a season
with favourable rainfall, not much expense for water carriage will be necessary,
but, in a season with little or no rainfall, the quality of the water in local wells
would be very bad, and perhaps impossible for any human consumption, so that
in this case the cost for water transport will be considerable.
Sand.
6. In consequence of the trade route having been diverted south of the
Koh-i-Sultan range of mountains, it avoids many miles of sand formerly met with,
but there is still sufficient between Padag and Dalbandin, also between Chah-
sundan and Mushki Chah, to cause trouble fora telegraph line. I do not
yet know how posts carrying heavy wires will behave when placed in loose
soft sand. I am of opinion that they will require some sort of stone found
ations to prevent them falling down, or heeling over, from wind pressure. The
foundations I have estimated for consist of 144 cubic feet of rubblestone, 6
feet by 6 feet by 4 feet deep. Until it is known from experience what support
posts will actually require for safety, the size of foundations may be made small
to start with. The 2 photographs attached, Nos. 5 and 6, will show the sort of
sandhills met with between Padag and Dalbandin. It may be possible by
selecting a good alignment to avoid much of this sand, but, as I said in para
graph 2 above, a telegraph line along here would probably have to pass through
at least 4 or 5 miles of it. The sand between Chahsundan and Mushki Chah
will not constitute a construction difficulty, as it is met with in thin belts of
disjointed hills, and a telegraph line can pass between these on firm ground.
So long as these hills remain quiet they will cause no trouble for maintenance
of a line either, but probably they will shift about when strong winds blow,
just as their neighbours do further north. I noticed one hill, quite 30 feet high,
had planted itself on top of an old camel' track, fairly well defined, which shows
that this position of the sand had recently been formed. Another remarkable
example of how quickly sand can form into new positions was seen about 2J
miles south-south-east of Mushki Chah. Here one sand hill, about 12 foet
high, with eliptical shaped base, whose major axis, about ] 00 feet in length,
was at right angles to the direction of the trade route, and its minor axis about
30 feet in length, had planted itself right on top of the katcha road. This
* road’, or trade route camel track, has not, I think, been marked out much more
than one year. Photographs Nos. 8 and 9, attached, illustrate the above 2
examples. There is no doubt that sand in this region, once it begins to
accumulate in any place, will quickly constitute itself a most unpleasant obstruc*
tion. Sand is gradually being blown down from the great sand desert further
north, and I fear that telegraph posts would act as favourable nuclei for it to
collect around.