Page 258 - Records of Bahrain (3) (i)_Neat

240 Records of Bahrain

No. iSo, dated Busline, the 23rd April (received 1st May) 1905.
From Major P. 7.. Cox.C.I.E., Officiating Political Resident in the Persian Gulf,
To—S. M. Fraser, Esq., C.I.E., Secretary to tho Government of India, Foreign
Department.
I have the honour to forward for the information of the Government of India
No. 104, titled 3m M well 1905. copies of communications, marginally noted,
No. 113. rf'teil 311I Mnrch 1905,
No. a a 1, dned 14th Apiil 1905. which l have received from Inc Assistant
Political Agent, Bahrein.
a. The first two reached Bushirc during my absence on the Arab coast, and
my First Assistant in the mcanwhilo advised Captain Pridcau* to reply to
Sheikh lisa that Sheikh Ali must surrender himself to a British man-of-war
before any discussion could be entered into with regard to the fut re. This is in
harmony with what Captain Pridcaux suggested in paragraph 9 of his letter
No. 104, dated 31st March 1905, and was conveyed to the Sheikh by tho
Assistant Political Agent in paragraph 3 of his No. 1 ao, dated t ith April, and,
subject to any instructions which Government may be pleased to communicate,
has my approval.
3. The Persians at Bahrein arc a timid community at the best of limes, and
just now arc naturally inclined to exaggerate current rumours, but in any ease it
was only to be expected that until matters had had time to scttlo down, an occa­
sional scare should arise.
His Majesty's ship Redbreast, which had been on guard duty since the
operations, had to leave recently for a few days to meet the Admiral, but the
latter informs me that he is sending the Lapwing to replace her ; and judging
from the tone of Sheikh All's communication contained in the enclosures, it (foes
not appear probable that he would be inclined to make trouble now even if he
had the following to enable him to do so.
With regard to the treatment to be accorded to Sheikh Ali, if he surrenders,
I concur with the views expressed by Captain Pridcaux in the concluding sentence
of his letter No. 104, dated 31st March 1905.

No. 104, dated Bahrein, the 31st March 1905.
From—Captain F. B. Prioeaux, Assistant Political Agent, Bahrcio,
To—The Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Bushirc.
With reference to previous correspondence on the subject of the misconduct
of Sheikh Ali bin Ahmed A! Khalifa, I have the honour to report that on Satur­
day last, the 05th instant, the Chief of Bahrein with all his three sons went out
ostensibly for shikar and change of air to a place a few miles south of Rufaa in
the desert about 11 or 12 miles distant from the town of Manama.
2. On the night of the 28th instant Ilaji Abdul Nabi, the Persian merchant,
and Ilaji Abdalla, the interpreter of His Majesty’s ship Redbreast, came
to me with two young Persian pcddlars, who declared that they had both that day
been touring independently amongst the villages in the north-west quarter of the
island with the town of Jiudeya as their ultimate objective. The one was sud­
denly met by three negroes, armed with swords, who used threatening gestures
towards him and insisted upon his immediately turning round, saying that he would
be billed if he come any further west. Tho other pcddlar was told by a Bahreini
Shiah of the village Beni Jainra that he had just come from Buaeya and had
loarnt that Sheikh Ali bin Ahmed had recently landed there with a large escort
of Bedouin, that he was not certain whether Sheikh Ali was still in Budeya or
had proceeded to Rufaa, but he belived that lie had undoubtedly come to wreak
vengeance upon the Persians as the authors of his troubles and he therefore
begged his co-religionists to hurry back to Manama to warn the leaders of the
Persian community to protect themselves. At the same time the Gazetteer
Ci 19FD A