"دليل الخليج. مجلد I. القسم التاريخي. الأجزاء Iأ و Iب. ج.ج. لوريمر ١٩١٥" [‎١‎٦‎٦] (١٧٨٢/٣٠٩)

166
Commercial
communica
tions.
estimated at 20 lakhs of rupees, with return exports of 12 lakhs in goods
and 8 lakhs in specie and bullion. The Indian imports into Turkish 'Iraq
amounted to 30 lakhs annually, paid for by merchandise to the value of
20 lakhs and by specie and bullion to the \alue ot 10 lakli^ Bali rain
and the rest of the Arabian coast of the Gulf took 10 lakhs' worth a year
of Indian goods, and exported pearls to an equal extent. The value o£ the
Arabian coffee brought to tbe Gulf every year was estimated at 20 lath.
of rupees.
The two principal ports of foreign trade were Masqat and Basrali,
through one or other of which passed the great bulk of the goods that
either entered or left the Gulf. It was calculated that more than half
of the Indian imports at Bushehr and Basrah and the bulk of those into
Bahrain were received through Masqat; and, similarly, the goods
arriving by laud from Europe, Asia Minor, etc., were distributed from
Basrah^as a centre. Bushehr was now practically the only port of Persia,
as Basrah was of Turkish 'Iraq; Bahrain served Hasa and Centra
Arabia thiough Zubarah and Qatif ; and Masqat was almost exclusively
a port of transit. Bushehr and Kuwait were sometimes used as bases
from which to smuggle goods into Turkish 'Iraq and even across Turkish
'Iraq to Europe.
The transport of goods between India and the Gulf was cairied on
partly by vessels which were the property of European merchants in thi
East, partly by vessels owned by Muhammadan merchants of Surat, an
partly by vessels belonging to Arab merchants of Masqat* distribi.
tion of goods from Masqat was at first conducted by means of M a&l i au
shipping j but, after the Arab occupation of Bahrain in 11 S3, the Utub
threw themselves successfully into the carrying trade, securing »
proportion of that between Masqat and Basrah, and even began to make
voyages on their own account to and from India. The 'Utub also ma e
themselves respected at sea by repelling some piratical attacks of the a a
upon their vessels. The mercantile marine of Masqat continued as ye >
however, to be the most important belonging to any state in the Cru ^
it consisted of "dows, dingies and square-rigged vessels, belougu-
Arabs" ; and the people of Masqat were reckoned a active and en
prising, though not very skillful seamen/'
It was considered, even in these days of sailing shipt>, that ^
passage from India to Basrah, or vice versa, was one that ml &
safely attempted at any season of the year ; but from June to Septen ^
on account of the prevalence of the south-w T est monsoon, a direct V - - o