' In the meantime in 1864 on the urgent representations of its local agents the Government of India had decided, in the in terests of the British communities concerned, to establish a postal service of its own between Bombay and the ports on both shores of the Persian Gulf and in Turkish Arabia, mails being conveyed under contract by the British India Steam Navigation Co., whose vessels plied regularly to the Persian Gulf ports and Basrah. Under these arrangements post-offices of the Indian inland system were successively installed in the British consular agencies at Bushire, Lingeh, Bandar Abbas and Jask, British Indian stamps being used for franking the letters. On the entry of Persia into the International Postal Union the existence of these post-offices assumed a somewhat anomalous aspect, and became a fruitful source of friction with the local Persian authorities. At the same time their safe and efficient amenities had been a great boon to the British and Indian communities in the Persian Gulf and they were naturally loth to be deprived of the time-honoured privilege.
However in 1920, as the result of friendly negotiations between the Indian and the Persian postal authorities, on behalf of their Governments, the British Indian offices were withdrawn.
Since the engagement of the two Austrians above mentioned Persian postal services have been administered under the super vision of European experts, and, assisted by the gradual improve ment of road-communications and an increasing public demand for facilities, have made substantial progress. Thus, a weekly mail-service is in operation (1928) between Tehran and Pahlavi, and between Tehran and the rail-head of the Iraq system at Khanikin, connecting with the weekly trans-desert service between Baghdad and Beirut. An air-mail service has also been inaugu rated, the German Junkers Company having taken a contract for a subsidised weekly mail service between Tehran and Pah lavi, Tehran and Bushire, and Tehran and Kuraitu (on the Iraq frontier) ; but this service is still in its infancy. The Tehran Pahlavi section of the above service links up with a Pahlavi Baku section, operated by Russians and Persians, but included, it is understood, in the contract with Junkers. From Baku the Russian air lines communicate with Moscow.
Telegraphs.—Lying, as she does, across the most direct course from Europe to India, Persia finds herself exceptionally well equipped in this respect and the history of the country in the sphere of telegraphy is one of no little interest. In addition to a net-work of some thousands of miles of local lines belonging to the Persian Government, worked by Persian telegraphists in the Persian character, for internal traffic, two important trunk lines traverse the country, owned by the Indo-European Telegraph Company and the Indo-European Telegraph Department of the Government of India, and worked by British personnel in the Roman character.
The first length of line to be constructed in Persia was a do mestic one, from Tehran, i6o miles in the direction of Tabriz. This was commenced in 1859 and finished in 1862, but in the year following it was extended to the Russian frontier at Julfa, where junction was effected with the Russian system. In the same year a Convention was concluded between the British and Persian Governments for the construction of a land-line through Persia with the object of linking up the Indian and the European systems, the project being carried out by British engineers at the cost of the British Government. The alignment chosen was from Baghdad, the last station on the Turkish system, to Kermanshah, Hamadan, Tehran, Isfahan, Shiraz and Bushire on the Persian Gulf, from whence there was a cable to India. But experience showed that this line was so liable to interruption that it was unsafe to rely on it for international work, and an alternative route was accordingly provided by an extension of the Turkish land-line from Baghdad to Fao, at the mouth of the Shatt-el Arab, and the laying of a short length of cable onwards to Bu shire. Communication with India was effected for the first time in January 1865 on completion of this project, but the service still failed to give complete satisfaction owing to the frequent delays which occurred in the passage of messages between India and Europe. The complaints which arose led in 1866 to the formation of committee of the British Parliament which con sidered various proposals put before it for the improvement of the service, with the result that the firm of Siemens and Company of London and Berlin offered to construct a double line from London to Tehran, provided that they enjoyed the effective sup port of H.M.'s Government. This being duly accorded the Com pany was able to obtain the necessary concessions from Ger many, Russia and Persia for the passage of the line through their territories, and an English organisation, the "Indo-European Telegraph Company," was formed to work the section London Tehran, while the section Tehran-Karachi, via Bushire, was undertaken by the Indo-European Telegraph Department of the Government of India. Through communication by this route was established on January 31, 1870, and worked satisfactorily. Towards the end of the century the largely increased volume of traffic pointed to the need for a supplementary line between Te hran and Karachi and accordingly in 1901 a further Convention was concluded with Persia which provided for the construction of a 3-wire line from Tehran via Yezd and Kerman to the Indo Persian frontier at Hurmak, there to meet an extension con structed by the Indo-European Telegraph Department from Quetta. This line, which was designated the "Central Persian Line," was opened for traffic in 1907. By the terms of the cur rent Convention, which continues until January the Persian Government are entitled to the use of one of the three wires for messages between stations in Persia, while the 2 re maining wires remain available for international traffic. Revenue derived from messages originating or terminating in Persia is shared between Persia and the British organisations, while for in ternational messages in transit a fixed royalty is paid to the Persian Government. If we except the occasional local depreda tions of irresponsible tribal riflemen on migration, to whom the insulators form an irresistible attraction, the telegraph lines and operating staff are treated with universal respect and goodwill by the inhabitants, while as a service the personnel have earned a deservedly high reputation as well as the gratitude of numberless travellers who have enjoyed their hospitality and co-operation when in difficulty. At the present time this modest system of 700 to 800 miles is probably as efficiently run as any line in the world.