Page 387 - Arabian Gulf Intellegence

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JOASMEES. 343 _
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breach of the treaty negotiated at his mediation, at a time "when,
but for the timely exertion of his influence, lie would have been placed
in a situation of great difficulty and peril, and as inevitably leading to
a renewal of hostilities with the Joasmee Chief.
The only occurrences of notice during this season were some petty
misunderstandings between the Shargah and Aboothabee people, in
consequence of the arrest of a person in the latter port for debt, and the
seizure of a mast from a Shargah boat. This spar had originally been
lost from a wrecked vessel belonging to Sultan, the brother of the Beni-
yas Chief, and, having been picked up at sea, had been sold to its present
possessor. An accidental collision between a Shargah and Aboothabce
Buggarah on the pearl banks led to blows with sticks between the
crews; but the quarrel was made up, and the Nakhoda of the former
craft severely taken to task by his chief for his irregular conduct.
Subsequent to the visit of the Resident to the Arabian Coast, as before
mentioned, Shaikh Abdoolla bin Rashid, the
a. d. 1842.
Chief of Amulgavine, notwithstanding the
remonstrances he had received, and the disapprobation with which his
designs had been viewed, commenced the building of the proscribed
towers, and the construction of another for the defence of the back­
water. The Joasmee Chief’s repeated representations, calling upon the
Resident, as mediator, to compel fulfilment of the conditions of the
treaty entered into through his mediation, now thus openly violated,
induced that functionary to depute his Assistant to the Arabian Coast in
November of this year, with a view to the settlement of the misunder­
standing between them.
The charge made by Shaikh Sultan bin Suggur was found to be
correct. It was, indeed, admitted by Shaikh Abdoolla bin Rashid ; nor
could he adduce any palliatory plea for his conduct in the commission
of any, the slightest breach of the compact, on the part of the former;
but urged merely, in excuse of his faithless act, the necessity of every
precaution in self-defence against so intriguing and treacherous a
person as the Joasmee Chief. He further expressed his determination,
on the same grounds, not only to complete the tower in question, but to
build others; and on being reminded of the circumstances under
which the Resident’s timely mediation had been afforded, by which
he had been saved from inevitable ruin, and pressed to consider
the necessity of fulfilling strictly the conditions by which he
was bound, under pain of the severe displeasure of Government,
and the probable chance of its coercing him in the event of hesi­
tation or refusal, he stated positively that he would not destroy
the buildings he had lately erected, but that his tower, and all that
belonged to him, being at the disposal of the Government, it might act