Page 437 - 3 Persian Trade rep KUWAIT 1_Neat

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Steamers owned or chartered by the Persian Gulf tions of any value, no fields, and not many kitchen
Steam Navigation Company, Limited, (13) II. M. H. pardons. A few small villages to the south-east of
Kcmnzi (8 including 1 Japanese), the Eastern Steam Kuwait supply a limited quantity of vegetables
Navigation Company, Limited, (4) II. Jl. Muhammad and melons. The chief agricultural centre in the
Shimr.i (1) and Khandwani Steamship (1) also called principality is Jahrah. The staple crops are wheat,
on the way from India as inducement oflered. barley and" lucerne, but musk melons, water melons,
All stearners entering the port were sailing under pumpkins, beans an 1 some other vegetables arc
the British flag. also grown, and there arc some 2,500 date trees.
The rate of freight by the British India Steam The above crops arc mostly irrigated, but a small
Navigation Company’s steamers was £1-6-6 through­ amount of wheat and barley is grown by rainfall
out the 3'car to Karachi and Bombay. alone. The agriculture of Jahrah might be consi­
The average rate of freight by the other lines was derably increased if more money were sunk in it.
£1 per ton from Bombay and 18*. per ton from The next most important agricultural centre is the
Karachi. island of Fuilakah where wheat and barley are grown
with 6omc success on the clayey patches, also lucerne,
Sea Fisheries. melons and some vegetables. There arc some date
The only truly local produce of Kuwait is that trees towards the south of the island, but they are
yielded by the harbour fisheries, which area valuable not in a flourishing condition, and the agriculture
asset. Besides float-and-weight nets and lines, traps of the island is generally inferior to that of Jahrah-
or tidal weirs, constructed of reed Lurdles are
also employed, the fish enter them with the flowing RainfalL
tide and are left behind at the ebb. The majority The total rainfall during the year was 1' and was
of the fish caught is consumed locally, but a small distributed as follows :—
proportion is dried and exported to Basrah and else­
where. December 1922 . 01
January 1923 * . . 1*90
Boat Building. Fcbruarv 1923 2 »
14 boats of an aggregate value of £2,510 were March 1923 . 1*21
built during the year. Of these, however, none had
a carrying capacity of over SO tons, and only six Public Health.
of over 20 tons. This figure is not included in the The health of the town was good; the most
trade tables. prevalent diseases being digestive troubles, tuber­
Labour. culosis aud granular ophthalmia.
The price of labour remained high throughout Owing to the prevalence of plague at Basrah and
the year, an unskilled labourer earned from is. to Muhammarah in May and June quarantine restric­
os. id. a day, a carpenter from fJs. id. to 12s., tions were imposed on arrivals from those ports.
a mason from 13-. id. to 16*. a day, and a boat
builder from 4*. to 8*. Exchange.
Minerals. Ter
Hundred Per
The only mineral product worked is gypsum mor­ Months. Maria Tor Pound
tar, which is manufactured by the simple process Theresa SovvrvLp;. Turkish.
of firing rubbish in broad shallow excavations. Dollars. [
There is a large gypsiferous tract on tLe outskirts
of Kuwait town, and it is found in several other parts £- a- 4. £. t. d.
of the principality.
April, 1922 . 11 14 Ilf 1 3 01 1 1 O
May, 1922 . 11 19 5 1 3 2' l O 7
Domestic Animals. June, 1922 . 11 17 5 1 2 S! 1 0 2
The most valuable domestic animals arc camels, July, 1922 . ii ic 7} ; 1 2 1 0 1
of which there are large numbers, sheep, goats and " August, 1922 11 10 0 : I 2 42 O 19 9
1922
donkeys ; of the latter many of a large white breed, OctoU-'r^lW 11 19 0 } 1 2 3( 0 19 10}
12 6 6 •
originally from Hasa, are found in the town- These November, 1922 12 7 10J • 1 2 72 1 0 2
0 19 10
1 2 of
are sometimes over thirteen hands in height, and a December.’ 1922 12 8 3} ; 1 2 2* O 19 9
good one will fetch over £45. There are also some January, 1923 11 10 11| , 1 1 9 O 19 6
horned cattle and horses. February. 1923 11 11 0 • 1 1 52 0 19 3
March, 1923 . 11 14 6 1 1 31 0 19 21
Agriculture.
Neither Kuwait nor its environs can boast of any J. C. MORE, Major,
agricultural resource*. There are no date plant*-
Political Jgcnt, Kutcail