Page 538 - PERSIAN GULF ADMINISTRATION REPORTS V1

22 ADMINISTRATION REPORT OP TIIE PERSIAN GULP POLITICAL

It is now a thriving and busy place, and a contrast to' the rest of the
province. I have heard the present population of Shushtcr variously
estimated at from 6,000 to 20,000 souls. From personal observa­
tion I should think that the former number is moro nearly correct,
for, although tho town is large and the. houses numerous, many
of them are in mins and uninhabited. Dispul has from 15,000 to
20,000 inhabitants. The Prince Governor makes it his head-quarters
when in the low country, and leaves a lieutenant there when he retires
to Khorarodlrid. Every third or fourth man one meets in the streets
of Shush ter and Dispul is a Scyyid, and their authority and insolence
arc great. Telegraph communication between Tehran and Shuster vid
Dispul has just been completed,’but I understand that the line is badly
made and unlikely to last.
Arabs and Persians,—The Arabs of Khuzisldn strike one as being
exceptionally intelligent, which they probably owe to contact with the
subtle and witty Persians. They have adopted various Persian ways and
customs, such as bowing instead of raising the hand to the forehead, which
is the ordinary Arab salutation. Their manners on ceremonious occasions
are altogether rather Persian than Arab, and tbeir dress, with the excep­
tion of the head-dress, is often Persian. Persian women, being excellent
cooks, are highly esteemed by them as wives. But although the upper
classes mix familiarly and the Arab learns from the Persian, their mutual
dislike and contempt are inwardly strong, the Persian looking on the
Arab as a dull fellow ouly fit to be mulcted and cozened, and the Arab
regarding the Persian as a cowardly rogue who has got the better of
him by stratagem and intrigue. The Arabs firmly believe that if they
could but combine, the expulsion of the Persians would be an easy
matter, but they know that for them combination is impossible, for no
man can be sure of the members of his own family, far less of the
Chiefs of other districts and tribes. Between the lower classes of Arabs
and Persians the hostile feeling is undisguised.
Tribes.—The following list of the tribes of Persian Arabia contains
all these which are still of importance and some which are no longer of
any. Of the 72 tribes which composed the K&b nation some have
emigrated to Turkish territory; others have died out, and of others mere
fragments remain. The K5b tribes which are still influential are the
Muhacsen of Mohamrah and the Han&firah Asakirah, Mujeddem and
Al-Bughbaish of Felkhiyah.
In the Hawaezah district many of the tribes are Muntafik, which
have crossed the Tigris to escape the exactions of the MuntafikgShaiks.
When the Mola of Hawaezah is strong, they pay him tribute, and when
he is weak they decline to do so.
.The subdivisions or branches of tribes are innumerable. Only those
wbicb have cjuite separated from the parent stem and become independent
of it appear in this list.