Page 37 - 8 Persian Trade rep Muscat 2_Neat

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In accordance with the tans of those, all goods Natural Resources.
imported into Oman arc sul jo.t to an import duty of . .
0 per cent ad valorem d iamined bv the price Tl,c Aiiglo-Fcrsian Oil Company, Limited, have
current in the local market. No export duty is levied, earned out a preliminary survey in the Muscat
but a charge of 5 per cent is imposed in Muscat and Territory during the year, bi.t the prospects of
at the Coast ports on all dates and other fruits from finding mineral resources in paying quantities appear
the interior. to he very poor.
The Customs revenue is the main source of the
(tyOTument's income.
Public Health.
Transport- The climate of Muscat is extremely unhealthy and
Transport along the coast is by sailing vessel and is the heat 's excessive, especially at night. * The
cheap. Transport inland is carried out by pack highest temperature recorded in the year was 112-8'’'
animals and is difficult, d.userous and expensive. and the lowest CG O3 F.
The rates depend upon the distance the goods have
to be conveyed and the difficulty of the journey.
Shipping.
No means of development of transport and com­
munication exist at present owing to the exceedingly Steamers.—The usual statement showing figures
primitive methods of the pvtpic of the country. is attached to this report. 117 steamships of all
nationalities entered ar.d cleared the port during
The Local Government is tow constructing a road
to link up Mattrah with the- Fat inch Coast ports. the year, representing a net tonnage of 101,089 and
G4 sailing vessels with a tonnage of 8,445. Of the
A road from Muscat to Mattrah is also under 117 steamships which ordered the port 4 were from
cons*, ruction. the United States of America, 5 from the United
Kingdom and 108 from India.
Agriculture.
The British India Steam Navigation Company*
Date growing is the only real industry of the Limited, have maintained a weekly slow mail service
country. Limes and mangels arc also successfully both fiom Bombay and' Basra. The fa=t mail
grown, while pomegranates sre the preduct of the service which was dir continued during the war has
Jebcl Akhdhar. Cereals are grown on a small scale not been resumed since,
and could not be further developed owing to the
limited quantity of water available. Inadequate Freights.—The statement. below gives the average
rainfall in Oman for several years past has been the rates of freight:—
cause of ruin of many «i ;t * gardens; ail wells have
become dry and brackish. Ter ton.
Its. a. r. Its. a. r.
Population. Dry nates 14 0 per bag 16 4 0
Wet dates sn rn.it bag 0 14 0 17 8 o
No regular census of trie population of Muscat Wet. dates in boxes . 0 10 0 25 0 0
and Mattrah has ever bcc-n taken. It is therefore Dry fish to Colombo (per 25 0 0
ton of r.ft.) .
not possible to give corre<t figures. But it has Pomegranate* 1 12 0 20 0 o
recently been estimated at 12,580, viz., 4,310 are in Dry- limes to Persian Culf 10 0 0 70 0 0
Muscat and 8,240 in Mattrah. Owing to the dearth Wet dates to United States '
of America (per ton of
of trade the Indian trading community which 40c.lt.) . 52 8 0
inhabited the town of and handled 95 per
cent of the trade have disappeared and almost
all their business premises are empty and in ruins.
The second port, Mattrah, which has con­
veniences and communication with the interior of G. P. MURPHY, Major,
Oman, is now fairly well populated and ita trade is
much improved as compared to previous years. His Britannic Majesty's Consul, Muscat,

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