Manuscript of Persia and the Persian Question (Continued) [‎34r] (67/690)

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At 3 p.m. the Shushan was anchored in mid-stream below the
rapids of Ahwaz, having occupied twenty-three hours’ steaming in
the ascent/^ The distance from Mohammerah by river is about «n®-
-h nn rlyod nnd wryonItii-n miles ; the land march is much less, being
calculated by different authorities as from seventy-four to eighty-two
milei^^ Here I continued my walk up the right bank in order to
inspect the ruins of the famous bund or dam, and the not less famous
rapids. It should be added that the town of Ahwaz is two -hundrofi
320 nnH twenty feet above the level of the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. ./^~I I ~7
^ |— — / Navigation is
abruptly suspended at Ahwaz, and the crux of the Rarun difficulty
is created f by the existence in the immediate neighbourhood of the
river of a formidable outcrop of tertiary sandstone, which, after con
stituting the somewhat remarkable ridge already mentioned as rising
with oblique stratification and zigzag outline, at a slight distance
from the left bank, suddenly obtrudes itself in the shape of a
number of ledges right across the river bed, and then vanishes under
the surface of the plain, only to reappear in another and lower ridge
some miles further to the west. It is the obstacle formed by these
ledges, of which there are four, cutting the stream almost at right
angles, and the abrupt fall of about eight to ten feet betwee n the wa
level above and below, that constitute the rapids. There are |com monly
said to be five of these; but three only present at all a serious impedi
ment to navigation, the remaining two being very slight and, when
the river is full, all but imperceptible. Below the lowest rapid,
where the Shushan anchored, the river contracts to a breadth of
L —2about ^ <,*',■ 1 <1 .rnd-fifty yards. It then begins
to expand, and two large islands composed of silt occur in mid
stream. Above this, at the point where are the middle and main
rapid and the remains of the ancient bund, the right bank is deeply
embayed by the impact of the current, and the distance from shore
to, shore is approximately half a mile. Higher up it narrows again,
and resumes its normal width of about -four hundred yards.' 1 ""
Starting from the south and moving up stream, I found the first
apid, which is formed some distance below the point of the two
large islands, invisible save for a slight swirl in the current, although
the reef of rock which causes it was above the surface. The second
rapids, two in number, formed by a ledge of rock at the head of the
same islands, were also insignificant. Then came two more formid
able barriers. The fall in the third set of rapids is very perceptible,
and the rush of water was powerful, but not overwhelming. At the
fourth rapid, above ono hundred and fifty yards higher up the stream,
and in the full sweep of the bend, the water dashes with a roar through
two gateways at the west extremity of a much more prominent rocky
reef, stretching right across the river, and supporting the massive
remains of the great dyke of Ahwaz. This famous structure, com
monly attributed to the Sassanian monarchs, was designed to hold
up the waters of the Rarun, which were then diffused by means of
ditches and canals through the surrounding country, at that time and
for long after renowned for its rich plantations of the sugar-cane.
The ruins of the dam, upon which it is possioth that, as at Shuster,
there may have been superimposed a bridge, survive in the shape
of big masses of masonry, still held together by an indestructible
cement, and built upon each of the rocky islets that here span
the current. The abutment on the right bank is also visible,
having withstood the floods of centuries. Though it is but little,
yet enough remains to show the solid and imposing character of
the ancient w r ork, and to indicate the revolution that it must have
effected in the physical condition of the neighbouring country.
Both on the right and left banks passages and tunnels have been
cut in the rock at the u'ater level, in v’hich w r ater-wheels originally,
and in the case of some on the left bank, still revolve. There are
also to be seen in the neighbourhood of the town a large number of
old circular mill-stones, which were used for the grinding of flour and
the crushing of the sugar-cane. It is not know'n when or how the
bund w r as destroyed, though the date may probably be assigned to
the thirteenth century, when we read that the prosperity of the
town and neighbourhood fell into utter decay. At the discussion
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(1} All figures of breadth, depth, or volume relating to the Karun vary considerably
according to the sear on of the year and the state of the water at the time of the writer’s
visit.