"كتيّب بلاد الرافدين. المجلد II. ١٩١٧" [‎٣‎٧‎٥] (٥٤٢/٣٨٦)

BAGHDAD
375
(viii) To Kirmanshah via Khanikin. (See vol. iii, 28 a.)
(ix) To Kirmanshah via Mandali. (See vol. iii, Route 28 b.)
(x) To Beledruz via Bahriz. (See vol. iii, 30.)
(xi) To Baqubeh via the 1. bank of the Diyaleh. (See vol. iii,
Route 31.)
Railway. —The Baghdad—Samarra section of the Constantinople
—Baghdad railway is complete. It follows more or less the line of
the Baghdad—Samarra road (see vol. iii, The Baghdad
station lies SSE. of the r.-bank quarter, and a line 1,300 yds. long con
nects it with riverside wharves nearly opposite the Russian Consulate.
A horse-tramway runs from W. Baghdad to the suburb of
Kazimain (t3J m.), starting from near the bridge of boats : it is
a single line of normal gauge ; about 14 two-horse cars (1904), each
of which could carry 50 men : sidings about every -l-mile, each
accommodating three cars.
A fairly regular motor-car service was established, about a year
before the outbreak of war, between Baghdad and Baqubeh Khan
Beni Sa'id.
Anchorage and Landing. —The regular mooring-place for river
steamers is on the 1. bank a little below the bridge of boats.
General Description. —The town stands on both sides of the
Tigris, which flows through it from NW. to SE.: the longer and
more important part of the modern town is on the E. bank, and
extends for a distance of 3 m., including the Citadel. The breadth
of the river here varies from less than 250 yds. to more than
350 yds. Its depth at l.w. is 12-15 ft. opposite the British
Residency below the bridge of boats; in h.w. the river has been
known to rise as much as 13 ft. in a day, and reaches the depth
of 30-36 ft. in April: no steamers can make any headway against
such a rise. The current is 1^-2 m. an hour (l.w.); at h.w. it
rises to 4 m. an hour. The banks at the town, and for some
distance above and below it, are firm, steep, and high, and of good
clay soil. Beyond the walls the banks are fringed with a belt
of cultivation fertilized by water-lifts, and are planted with date-
groves with fodder-crops between the palms. A good many willows
are seen below the city on both banks. These serve partly for fuel,
partly to prevent the erosion of the bank. But these fertile belts are
narrow, and on its landward sides the city is closely hemmed in
with parched clay desert. The area in the immediate neighbourhood
is low lying and imperfectly protected from flood by embankments ;
in h.w. the city may become an island cut off from communication
except by boats.
About four years ago Nazim Pasha constructed two embankments