EMPIRE OUTPOST.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIX, Issue 45, 21 January 1939, Page 9

EMPIRE OUTPOST.

STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE. Aden, at the entrance to the Red Sea, was annexed to British India in 1839, since when it has been a vital link in tho chain of Empire communications. As a place of residence Aden, for the Europeans, is no earthly Paradise. It is built in the crater of an extinct volcano, and is surrounded by indescribably barren rock. It is excessively hot and dry, but for all that is more healthy than many other tropical spots. Water is very scarce and vegetation practically non-existent. Some water is obtained from wells sunk deep into the solid rock, and some is brought from the back country by an aqueduct seven miles long. The inhabitants have to pay for every drop of water used except that which falls from heaven, and there is little of that. The 500 or so Europeans who live in Aden are mostly connected with the fortifications, for Aden is a strategic post of great importance, but when their time is up they speedily seek a more salubrious climate. The native population numbers about 50,000. Aden was put on the map by the Romans about 2000 years ago. In 1513 the Portuguese thought it would be a good place to take, but its Arab defenders retained it. The Turks, however, captured it in 1538. Various Sultans of Arabia thereafter ruled over it, and for a considerable period it was a flourishing centre of trade. But the discovery of the Cape route to the East sounded its knell as a trade centre, and when it was annexed to India, in 1839 it had degenerated into a mere village of some 600 inhabitants. The opening of the Suez Canal naturally greatly added to Aden’s importance. British residents of Aden are very proud of their little hot corner, and the centennial celebrations are being carried out with enthusiasm. Ex-resi-dents of Aden, scattered throughout the world, have been kept informed as to the centennial celebrations, so that they can participate in spirit if not in person.