Page 236 - 6 Persian Trade rep BUSHIRE 2_Neat

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loolc after itnelf. The town is crowded, badly disease is concerned tbe population of Buahireli*.
built, devoid of roads other than gaps between under “survival of th«e-5t" natural laws with lt.1
the houses, there is no water supply, other than mortality, morbidity, and human suffering tlat
the tanks in the bouses, and arrangements for such conditions, of necessity, entail.
conservancy arc complimented when described
by the ad jo. live primitive. Refuse, excreta, human Communications and roads.
and animal, arc deposited or thrown indiscrimi­ Practically the whole of the trade from Bushin
nately into tec mud lanes that separate the lioness for the interior goes rp to Shiraz hv the BusLi-^
from each other and are peneroudy distributed over Shiraz road. Since the Bushirc-Barasjun Ligij
the town by the traffic that passes through these Railway was dismantled in March 1921 all good,
lanes. Many of the Louses have their drains go up by caravan, though the road up to 1 aluJ
opening on to the lanes ; in others pin* in the some 55 miles from Bu«hirc is passable for wheels
houses are used for this purpose and the put:i- traffic and Motor cars during the dry season
fying contents of these pits, often the accumula­ Between the months of November and April,
ted filth of y cure, drain into such wells as exist which is the rainy season here, this read is hov-
and send their stench to the air of tbe houses ever impassable except for the pack tran^p-.r:
and of the town. mules, camels, etc., owing to the deep mud acd
No records of births and deaths appear to be slush on tbe low ground known as the Mashilcl
kept and the most elementary rudiments of between l»nsbire “ Island" and the mainland
ran Ration are conspicuously absent. With very little expenditure this road could b»
made p assable for wheeled traffic all the y<ar rou-'c
Principal lJ\*eate*.—With a san't&ry state as far as Kunar Takia some 70 miles up Ir.z
of aff iirs a9 outlined above it can be imagined Bushire. Be vend ibis how evr it world be n
that conditions are ideal for the spread of such engineering uoik of some magnitude rcqoirizj*
contagious and infectious disease as manage to skilled mgincers, as ihe passes aie very prtcR:-
get into Rush ire aud this the case. Malaria, tous and it would cost a large seme of mr&ij
venereal disease, small-pox, measles, trachoma, which is not likely to le forthcoming at picsenu
ophthalmia in all forms, ski a diseases., leprosy On the South Persia Rifles being disbanded b
and tuberculosis in protean fonrs abouml. From
an economic point of view the first is she most October of the year uncer review', it was anticipat­
ed that the road would rapidly become unsafe aii
serious and in the hot weather kills, and reduces impassable for caravans and merchandise unUs*
the efficiency of a large proportion of the
population. The conditions f« r mosquito breed­ accompanied by a strong guard, and also that t;-
local chiefs en route would lery very heavy tc-3
ing, on which malaria depends for its existence, on everything that pss^ed through. Happily .tie
are ideal iu Bushire. Every bouse contains an first of these anticipations has not been justify*
unprotected “ ambar ”, or water tank, in which
millions «•£ mo>quito larrae breed and are risible; and the road has rem ained open and caravans bay?
these same larvae are considered by th e people, passed up and down the whole year, though ss>
jected to fairly heavy charges by the Khans ai.
even those r.ossossed of a little education, to be “ tufang^his ” (road guards) along the roxl
‘'water worm-* ” and their connection with mosqui­
tos and malaria not in tbe most remote degree There has, however, been a certain increase in ti?
realised. It is a common sight to see the entire number of robberies and the tolls levied have ah '
increased, but not enough to stop traffic. Tr<
members of a household prostrate with “ fever ” Persian Government is proposing to s«nd do*^
i. e. malaria, and tbe tank, and water vessels of
tbe house teaming with larvae. VenereaJ disease detachments of regulars to undertake the guard­
in all its forms is very common aud mo«t of the ing of the road, but cp till the end of the year
population apprar to have had, to have, or be these had not arrived, and it remain! to be
whether the guards sent down will be able t-'
about to have, syphilis. Trachoma and
Ophthalmia cause a great deal of blindness and relieve the merchants of the expense and Rjc°nrf
impaired vision ; Scabies and the contagious and nience of the present system, where each chief o ^
lects bis toll and guarantees on payment there•.
infectious skin diseases are so common a* not to
excite even comment. tbe safety of the caravan through hi* .*£-
The amount of trade during the year is g1Teu
As ajtart from the dispensary maintained by the tables attached.
the Indian Government, there is no Government
medical aid of any kind, no statistics that would Taxes, Customs dues and Embargoes.
be of valae are available to show tbe extent The new tariff wm in force during th^
of tbe ravages of tbe various diseases. So far as under report ax.d after tbe first outcry