Page 326 - Records of Bahrain (2) (i)_Neat

Persian and Turkish claims to Bahrain, 1870-1874 317

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the Government of India and the Bombay Government
in 1861, of winch the British Representative at His
Majesty’s Court was kept informed, and which concluded
with a statement that “ Her Majesty’s Government have
decided that Bahrein should be regarded as independent
and subject neither to Turkey nor to Persia.” Mr. Alison
was also informed that “ it was found absolutely neces­
sary, for the preservation of order and of those rights
which the Government of India is bound to protect, to
inflict chastisement summarily on those offenders as a
punishment for the past, and as a warning to all others
in the future.” Mr. Alison 'had himself in 1862 inti­
mated to our Resident in the Persian Gulf that he
considered himself “ precluded, under instructions
from the Foreign Office, from entering into any discus­
sions on the subject of Bahrein with the Persian
Government.” Lord Cranborne in 1867, as Secretary
l’roccc«li»R«, Mnrch 1809, Nos. of State for India, held the same
118-120.
view, on the occasion of Persia
renewing her claim to the island, and expressed his ap­
proval that Mr. Alison had been informed by the Viceroy
that “ the British Government arc not prepared to
admit the Persian pretensions to sovereignty over it.”
Colonel Polly in recalling this to our notice took the
opportunity to make the following remarks, which we
communicated to your Grace under cover of our des­
patch No. S2, dated March 13th last:—“The Persian
Foreign Minister would pretend to dread that we
may use force against Persian Islands. The simple
reply to this is, that Persia owes the possibility of
trade in the Gulf and the tranquillity of her Gulf
Littoral wholly to tho British Maritime Police of
the Gulf. Persia has not a gun afloat to protect her
own shore, and the Arab Chiefs have, on more than one
occasion, expostulated with me for preventing their old
sea raids, and have frankly admitted that, if it were not
for the British Resident, they would scizo every Persian
merchant craft and plunder the Persian sea-ports. My
opinion, based on many years’ observation and experi­
ence, is that, if wo were to abandon our maritime
protection of the Persian Gulf, trade in these waters
would soon become impossible, and tho ports on tho
Persian Littoral would become subjects to hostile attack,
and, perhaps, fall into tho hands o( Arab Chiefs.”
Your Grace’s opinion on this question, as conveyed