Page 176 - Records of Bahrain (3) (i)_Neat

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166 Records oj Bahrain

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Enclosure No. ,11.
No. 1209 E.-A., dated Simla, tbo 31st July 1901 (Confidential).
From—Tlio Undor-Sccrctary to tho Government of India in tlio Foreign Dopartmont,
To—Lieutenant-Colonel C. A. Kemuai.l, Officiating Political ltcsidont in tho
Persian Gulf.
secrH to «.o sccrBinr.y of sintc. for j am directed to forward, for your in-
India, No. 72 (Bxtonml).unlcil tlio 0th May 1U01. r .. . p .. ’ * . v/
Srerrt drapntoh from tlio Srorrtnry of Stoto for lOmiJltlOIl, COpiCS 01 tllO JIclJlGl'S marginally
for quoted, regarding questions relating to
dated tbo Oth July 1001. JialirolU.
2. You liavo already reported* upon tlio suggested appointment of a
British subject .ns Director of tho Bahrein
•Tour lottor No. 129, dated tho 10th July 1901.
Customs. I am now to invito you to roport
whether, in view of tho increasing interest which other Powers arc now display­
ing in tlio Gulf or on othor grounds, you considor it dcsirablo that Mr. Gaskin
should bo roplaccd by an officer of tho gradod list of tho Political Dopartuieut.
3. I am to talco this opportunily of correcting an error in my lottcr
No. 923 E.-A., datod tho 7th Juno 1901. Tho rocurring expondituro uudor
heads (8) to (13) inolusivo, in tho margin of paragraph 2 of my lottcr should, ns
proposed by you, have been marked “ annual” instead of monthly, and tlio total
of recurring expenditure should bo Us. 9,787 a year.

Enclosure No. 12.
No. 147, dated BuBbirc, tlio 10th August 1901 (Confidential).
From—Lieutenant-Colonel C. A. Kemdall, Officiating Political llcsidont in tbo
Porsian Gulf,
To—Tbo Secretary to tbo Govoruraont of India in tbo Foroign Dopartmont.
I liavo tho honour to acknowledge tho rocoipt of your letter No. 1269 E.-A.,
dated 31st July 1901, on tlio subject of our roprosentation at Bahrein and othor
connected questions.
2. I havo seen no reason to alter tho opinion formerly oxpressed by mo
that our interests at Bahrein can bo sufficiently maintained by tho appoint­
ment of an officer of tbo Uncovonanted Servico to tlio post of Assistant
Political Agent. Mr. Gaskin has now boon at Bahroin a year aud-a-half, and
I am glad to have this opportunity of stating that ho appoars to mo to bo woll
suited to tho appointment. Ho undoubtedly lias many of tbo essential qualifi­
cations for tho post: bo knows Arabic thoroughly, and is woll vorsod in tho
local politics, and, so far as I am able to judge, ho is on friendly terms with
i the Ohiof and is gaining bis confidonco. I havo ovory roason to ho satisfied
with his conduct of affairs.
3. So far tlion as tho maintenance of our interests is concerned, I do not
think that any change in tho naturo of our representation at Bahroin is callod
for. Tho Secretary of State, however, in his tologram, datod tho 8th July,
which formed ono of tho enclosures to your letter, suggests that tho appoint­
ment of an officer of the graded list of tho Political Department might bo
proforablo in view of tlio increasing intorest in tlio Gulf, and of subsoquont
promotions to othor posts in it, and I propose, therefore, to considor briofly tbo
question from theso points of view, apart from that of tho local necessity for
tho chango.
As regards increasing interest in tho Gulf, I cannot sco that it makes
much difference whether the Assistant Political Agent is an officor of tho
graded list or of tho Dneovonanted Sorvico, so long as ho is posscssod of tho
required qualifications for tho appointmont.
With regard to tho othor point of viow, which I understand to bo tbo
desirability of training officors with a viow to subsequent promotions to othor
posts in tho Gulf, X am doubtful if it is advisablo to chooso Bahrein as a train­
ing ground.