TRANSPORT OVER CAMEL TRACKS
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An Account of the Difficulties Met With by M.T. Units Operating in Persia Which Should be Helpful to British Manufacturers Seeking Overseas Trade.
AS a recently demobilised member of the Pioneer M.T. Company which served in Mesopotamia, it occasions the writer of this article a certain amount of pride and pleasure to put before the readers of this journal particulars of some convoy runs accomplished whilst doing duty on the Persian lines of communication. Moreover, these records are opportune, in view of the agreement which has recently been arrived at between Great Britain and Persia and the approaching visit to these shores of the Shah himself.
Owing to the great distance traversed and the remote and inaccessible nature of the country itself, most of the transport work was accomplished by means of convoys. operating in relays. The only company, however, which was running regular through convoys over the entire distance was the one I served with, and consequently I claim to be in a favourable position to deal with the operation in its entirety. I refer to the part played by the company in the transportation of personnel, ammunition, and supplies
generally in connection with the operations of the victorious British and Indian Forces from Mesopotamia in North-East Persia against the Turk and his mixed hordes on the shores of the Caspian Sea, in order, to decide who ihould oc,enpv and defend the iniportant town of Baku and the valuable oil wells in the vicinity.
A glance at that portion of the map of Asia which embraces Iraq and Persia will reveal the fact that there 'are no railways of any • description between Baghdad and the Caspian—a distance of some six or seven hundred miles—the solitarY exception 'being the single line laid down by the military extending from Baghdad to Table Mountain and Ruz, a distance of some 90 miles north-east of Baghdad.
In addition to the •requirements of the military operating in N.E. Persia, it was also necessary to • transport personnel, guns, and supplies for a detachmeCof our Navy which was co-operating, from the Caspian, with our faces on land. From the railhead at Ruz to the Caspian, it will therefore be seen that the sole course of transport lay over a sinuous route winding among the Persian hills, and valleys. I cannot possibly refer to this route by
anything like so respectable a term as "road." The track for the greater part is of a very rough, undulating character. Bearing in mind the magnitude of such a task as to keep an army (not to mention a portion of the Navy) supplied over such an extraordinary distance of mountainous and desert country, possibly it may not be considered out of plaee to give a brief description of the actual route taken from the railhead at Ruz to the seaport town ef Enzelli on the Caspian Sea. From Ruz the track winds across the Jebal Hamar, the bare face of the rock forming the road surface. A plain is then crossed, and here the tradk is very heavy and cuts up badly, necessitating (with a heavy load) a considerable amount of low-gear work. On entering the town of Khanakin, a very interesting specimen of an ancient brick-built Persian Bridge is crossed. This bridge consists of 11 arches, and spans the river which flows through the centre of the town. The town of Khanakin itself is small, and is, in fact, merely a desert oasis, albeit a very welcome one to the parehed, sun-scorched traveller. It is indeed refreshing to suddenly find oneself in such a pleasant spot, with its stream of cool running water and green vegetation and fruit trees.
From Khanakin to Sermil the track undulateg to a considerable extent; the surface, however, for the most part is fairly good, and no bridges have to he crossed. Here a shallow stream has to be forded, after which there are nine miles of good running into Paitak. Here the Pass of Paita.k has to he negotiated. The road• over this pass winds considerably, and several stiff gradients (approximately one in five or six) are encountered. At the top of the pass, which rises 'some 1,800 ft. in about three miles, the post known as Taq-i-Gliera is approached. From here to the village of -Sermil some 10 miles of execrable " road" has to be crossed, which tries both tempers and vehicles sorely. When the Pass of , Paitak has been ascended, the atmosphere is considerably cooler than on the plains below—a change, too, which is very welcome.
The next item of interest isthe garden village of Kerind. This pretty little Persian vilage is pitched on a particularly fertile spot nestling under the shadow of the surrounding hills. The village itself is one huge orchard.
We now drive through a long fertile valley between two ranges of the Persian hills, on the right-hand side of which, perched on the slope of the hill can be discerned our Company H.Q. encampment (canvas, of course). The adjacent village, which is in a very dilapidated condition and long since fallen into a state of decay, rejoices in the name of Chasma Safed. A good supply of fresh drinking water is available, and apparently the land in the valley adjacent to the village itself is just sufficiently fertile to allow of the natives growing enough maize, etc., to support themselves. A very rough life these Persians have of it, and they suffered many hardships and privations during the Russian advance at the time they were allied to our forces, and endea.vouring to link up with us in. Mesopotamia. A halt used to be made at the headquarters of the company in order to execute minor repairs and adjustments, •which • meant heavy work for the artificer staff and very often an all-night job.
The distance across this valley from end to end is some 12 miles, and the track is heavy going, as the surface for the most part carries on over arable and fertile land, and, in addition, there is a considerable _number of ditches or watercourses to negotiate which are used for irrigation purposes by the Persians in their exude attempts at •agriculture. From Chasma Sated to Hasnalaad, a distance of some 32 •miles, the track again lies in a. valley, and hero again it runs over fertile land, which makes the running heavy. In the-next six miles from Hasnabad a pass is climbed which rises some 2,500 ft. The gradients encountered arenot nearly sostiff as those of the Paitak -Pass ; a •small stream has to be forded at the bottom, and thereafter the route lies across the Mahidasht Plain for a cliitanee of some seven miles. The running is fairly' heavy still, and an extremely . acute-angle bridge has to be .crossed at the entrance to .-Mahidasht village, which neceeSitates careful driving. From the village the track conimenees, to rise, and another pass has to 'be " climbed, rising some 2,500 ft. Here the course is -veryestoty. Towards the summit of the-pass the gradient.is particularly severe, added to which there 'are here :and there huge boulders lying directly in one's track, and driving becomes exceedingly difficult at this point -of the journey.Beyond: the summit of the pass • there is a gradual descent into Kermanshah—a, distance of about 10 miles, Over which distance the tra.ckds fairly good. . Kermanshah is the, capital of the.Persian province of that name, and has a popUlation of some 35,000. The town itself oak for no: 1.31YecialComment, except that it is typical of astern filth and squaler—it should not he called a "town" really, but an 'inhabited 'refuse heap" would be a fairer description. As a matter of fact, our men and vehicles were forbidden to enter the town &Vali, and the track accordingly lies on its
outskirts, the convoy usually bivouacking some three miles beyond the town and close to the river. Here another fine example of Persian bridge brick-work is crossed, beyond which there are 25 miles ofifirm track with excellent running into Bhisitun. The next 10 miles he over another plain, and here sandy soil constitutes the track surface, which means very heavy running. Three small bridges have to 'be negotiated over irrigation channels, and the latter two of these (constructed by the military) are barely capable of carrying our vehiclesiwhen loaded, and to see them 'bend when passing over makes one's heart ibeat a trifle faster for fear the bridges should collapse entirely. There is then .about three • miles of good track into the village of Saaneh. Here again there if a small bridge over an irrigation. channel, Irrigation channels abound everywhere in the village of Saaneh, and the streets are extremely narrow and involve very careful driving indeed. . Four miles beyond Saaneh the track again cornrn mences to rise, and another•stiffish pass has to be crossed. This pass descends into the "town" ol Khangavar, Which is a small agricultural district sup porting some 3,500 inhabitants. Shortly afterwards a diversion has to be made on account of the irriga tion water, and a -cultivated field has to be crossed, which is very heavy work indeed ; hereafter the track undulates considerably for a distance ,of some five miles or so to Assadabad, the running being fairly good.
At Assadabad we are at the foot of the pass of that name, which is reputed to rise some 7;800 ft. in a dis
tance of seven miles ; the fall on the other side, how ever, is not so severe, and the run into Hamadan—a distance of some 25 miles—comprises easy going. Hamadan as a town is " possible, ' and a great improvement on anything we had hitherto seen in Persia.
Beyond Hamadan the roads over which the convoy travelled are for the most part good, and call for no
special comment ; in fact, they resemble in a large measure' -those of the average English or European main roads. It is fftill a lone cry from Hamadan to the Caspian, and entails many a long, monotonous spell at the wheel.
Considerable, sickness was at times. encountered by the men on this route, which may to a large extent be attributed to the big, range of -temperature through :which the convoy ran. I submit that transport work of the nature I have endeavoured to describetested the constitutions of both drivers and vehicles alike to their very limit.
As regards any mechanical aspects of the work, this I propose to leave severely alone. One opinion, however, I will venture to voice, and that is the working experience gained Persia proved moat effectively the superiority of the chain drive over the differential for "heavy loads on heavy roads."