Page 328 - 4 Persian Trade rep KUWAIT 2_Neat

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melons, water melons, pumpkins beans and some (b) Kuwait Is well known over the whole of the
other vegetables arc grown in increasing quantities. Persian Gulf for boat (sailing) building.
The above crops arc mostly irrigated but a small Figures regarding number and tonnage
amount of wheat and barley is grown by rainfall alone. of boats built during the year under
The agriculture of .laharah might be considerably in­ report appear on page 1 of Part I of this
creased if more money were sunk in it. The second Report.
most important agricultural centre is the island of (<r) Fish Oil. boat sails, ropes, etc., cfc., are
Falnikah where wheat and barley arc grown with also manufactured for local use.
M>ine success on the clayey patches: the island
also produces vegetables especially carrots which arc 24. Ncic Industries Introduced.—NiL
of an exceptionally fine quality but the agriculture 25. Government Encouragement.—Nil.
is generally inferior to that of Jabarah.
2G. Use of Electricity in Industry.—In view of the
21. As will be seen from what has been said above, extremely backward state of industry the use of
from an agricultural point of view the value of land electricity in manufacture is unknown, and is hardly
in Kuwait is very little. Except in case of laud likely to develop for some years at least if ever.
surrounding the Town, which can be useful for 27. Demand for Foreign Machinery.—Demand for
building purposes, land is free and everybody is at foreign machinery iB insignificant. The only machi­
liberty to take up any unoccupied piece and develop nery used is in motor boats and launches of which
it. about a dozen exist at Kuwait.
The Kuwait Government keeps no records of 28. Derclopnicrt of Mines.—Kuwait is very poor
land holdings nor is any land revenue charged to in mineral resources. The only mineral product is
the cultivator. gypsrm mortar, which is manufactured by the
Except, therefore, for a few of the tracts of land simple process of firing rubhbh in broad shallow
in the environs of the Town, which arc held by excavations. TL'-rc is a large gypsiferous tract on
private owners and which change bands as any the out-skirts of Kuwait Town and it is found in
other property docs, land is not hypothecated. several other parrs of the Principality.
03 indications in the shape of a number of bitu­
men and oil seepages exist in the hinterland, and it
is hoped that the Kuwait Oil Company (which was
(F) Industry.
granted a concession in December 1934) will shortly
22. General.—As has been already stated Kuwait commence drilling operations.
has no industries worth the name, of her own. The
reasons for this state of afiairs are as nndcr:—
(G) Communications and Transport.
(a) Shyness of Capital (See remarks under head 29. Gcttcral.—As mentioned elsewhere tbe chief
Financial, page 8) and lack of enterprise means of transport between Kuwait and other porta
among local people. of the Persian Gulf is by the local dhows engaged
(b) Limited and uncertain market. in oversea trade carrying, as distinguished from
pearl fishing, etc., or by the steamers of the British
(c) Influx of cheap Japanese goods as a result
of low customs duty, which tends to kill India Steam Navigation Company, which call
industrial initiative. regularly every week.
Besides the above and a motor road between
23. The only manufactures of which Kuwait can Kuwait and Basra there are no regular roads con­
boast are as follows :— necting Kuwait with the hinterland and Saudi
Arabia. This is due to the fact that the interior
(a) A cloth called " Darry Basht ”, which is though it consists of flat and generally hard desert
manufactured as a cottage industry by a which can be traversed in nearly every direction by
primitive type of handJoom and is ex­ motor cars, is not at all an easy country to travel
clusively used for making ** Bisfct ” or in. The great obstacle is complete lack of supplies
Arab cloaks (known also as Abbas). and extreme scarcity of water.
This cloth is woven from sheep’s wool
and the thread is spun locally by poor The only regular means of transport is by camel
classes of Arabs as a sort of spare time along definite routes.
job. It is usually available in lengths 30. Advent of the Motor Car.—In view of the un­
of 6 to 6$ yards, which cost on an developed state oi the hinterland it has not hitherto
average from £0-10-8 to £0-13-4 a piece. been found either convenient or profitable to employ
A roll or piece, sufficient for one cloak, motor as a means of transport. The motor service
takes from 4 to 10 days to weave. between Kuwait and Basra carries passengers only