Page 126 - A Hand book of Arabia Vol 1 (iii) Ch 4,5

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158 YEMEN

chiefly for making into boots, which are there more often worn than
sandals because of the cold.
(5) Milling. There is a small flour-mill at Menakhah, built by the
Turks ; otherwise grinding is done entirely by the hand-quern.
I
(6) Metal-working. San‘a was once famous for its ornamental ,
work in brass and copper ; the industry is now confined to the j
ma king of domestic utensils m these metals, and. is still carried on
in the main at the same place.
(7) Production of minerals. There is a small amount of coarse
brittle native iron, but the scarcity of fuel makes smelting imprac­

ticable. Petroleum has long been known to exist in the Earsan
(Farasdn) Islands, and a concession was granted to an Ottoman
subject, but the results of the experimental borings were of doubtful
value. Rock-salt occurs at Salif on the mainland opposite Kamaran.
Island, and the flourishing salt-works there are under the control
of the Ottoman Public Debt : the bulk of the salt goes to India,
but large quantities are also sent inland. Fine stones of onyx,
agate, chalcedony, and cornelian are found in the hills round San‘~ a.:
o . . .....

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Trade * \ ■ • « V ✓
•o
The trade of Yemen has declined in recent years* for reasons
already stated. The only port of any real importance commercially
is Hodeidah, but even there, before the war, trade was not as brisk ,
as formerly. Aden proved to be a surer outlet for produots, largely;
in consequence of the fact that the caravan-routes leading thither
were less liable to tribal disturbances and raids, with the result that
nearly all the coffee went there. Mocha, once the centre of the coffee
trade, no longer holds any position as a trading port. The other
local coasting and fishing villages, from north to south, are Ghulei-
fiqah, Gah (a landing-place for slaves), Mersa el-Majalis (a good
harbour for small boats), and Musa.
In 1909 the value of imports at Hodeidah was £650,000, and that
of exports £400,000. The chief articles of export—in fact the only
worth considering—are hides, skins, coffee, and fuller’s earth ; coffee
was the mainstay, but is now ousted by hides and skins. For coffee,
France is the best customer, then'the United States, with Great
Britain as a bad third. Hides and skins (the latter largely from Asir)
go chiefly to New York, Marseilles, and London.
By far the most important imports are cereals, rice, and other'
food-stuffs from India;
„ .. , - and> a lo,n8 way behind these, sheetings,1
cotton piece-goods, and yam from the United States and Manchester,