'Lord Curzon's Notes on Persia: About 1889-1890' [‎691r] (1402/1486)

however, has up to now set its face against any proposal for opening the
Karun to free navigation. Much has been done during the last twenty
years to improve the routes between leheran and the Caspian to gi\e
facilities, that is, to Russian trade; but in Southern Persia communications
between the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. and the interior have been steadily neglected*
The result is that Russia has ^ot only monopolized the trade of
Northern Persia, but is also ousting British goods from Ispahan
and the southern markets. The existing trade-routes in the south
are from Bushire to Shiraz and from Bunder Abbas to Kirman.
Bunder Abbas is scarcely habitable for Europeans, while the road
from Bushire to Shiraz is execrably bad; and the advantages of Bushire as
a port may be estimated from the fact that ships of any size must anchor
three or four miles from the land. The climate of Mohammera, on the
other hand, is good all the year round. The free navigation of the Karun
would give us an easy road to the interior j and, while Ispahan would be
enabled to export cotton to England and India at a profit, we should be
able most certainly to drive Russian trade, from the markets of Southern
Persia and might even compete on fair terms with her in the north. It is
not unlikely that the obstructive attitude of the Persian Government has
been in some measure due to a knowledge oi what ( aptain Selby thought
of the capabilities of the Karun River route. The extract given above is
from a report supposed to be confidential; nor would it be printed now
were it not certain that it is accessible both to Persian and Russian agents.