Page 461 - Arabian Gulf Intellegence

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UTTOOBEES.

death of Esai bin Tarif, but he had violated his engagement to the
Resident, by proceeding to the Persian Coast in quest of reinforcements,
and thereby forfeited all right to prosecute warfare against Bahrein,
and rendered his vessels liable to seizure by the British cruisers.
Previous to the action above referred to, Shaikh Mahomed bin Kha-
lcefa had expressed to the Resident, in the strongest terms, the ap­
prehension he felt lest an attack should be made upon his island by
the confederate chiefs, and had sought permission either to proceed
against the Utloobces located on the island of Ges, and bring them
back to submission, or to be furnished with a guarantee that no aggres­
sion on their part against his possessions would be tolerated by the
British Government. These were questions, in the opinion of the
Resident, of too great weight and importance to permit of a reply being
given before consulting the opinion of higher authority, and were
therefore referred for the decision of Government, who wrote back
instructions, that in the event of any attempts being made upon Bahrein,
such attempts were to be resisted by the naval force in the Gulf.
Intelligence of such vital importance to the interests of the Bahrein
Chief it was not deemed advisable to communicate, for Shaikh Ma­
homed bin Khaleefa, once more relieved from apprehensions by the
death of Esai bin Tarif, and by the utter failure of all Abdoolla bin
Ahmed’s endeavours to induce the Uttoobee refugees in Ges to es­
pouse his side, it was thought that were he once assured of support
from til? British in the hour of danger, he would be lulled into a state
of security, and cease to trouble himself with the adoption of measures
necessary for the defence of his territories.
We now arrive at a point in our narrative more than usually
interesting.
4 The small but fruitful island of Bahrein appears at different seasons
to have excited in an extraordinary degree the ambitious desires of
divers nations. His Majesty the Shah, or the authorities under him, we
have already seen, had on two separate occasions manifested an inclina­
tion to assert a right of supremacy over it; the Imaum of Muskat has
from time immemorial longed and craved to possess the fertile spot;
and now we find the Turkish authorities intriguing, and seeking to induce
Shaikh Mahomed bin Khaleefa to renounce his state of independence,
and own his allegiance to the Ottoman Porte. A letter was addressed
by the Mootasellim of Bussora to the above chief, inviting him to
acknowledge his dependence on the Sultan, and to “ furnish lists of his
vessels, crews, &c., in order that the requisite registers might be
prepared and forwarded.” A Turkish brig of war, too, visited the Gulf
and although she did not actually repair to Bahrein, the better
perhaps