Page 42 - PERSIAN 2 1879_1883

30 ADMINISTRATION1 REPORT OF THE PERSIAN CULP POLITICAL
Before venturing: a few remarks upon what, in my humble opinion
would he the most advisable plan to
Furcbusc of ir.nlc*.
pursue in purchasing nudes in Persia
for our requirements at any time in India or elsewhere, I may here
briclly mention the few previous occasions when Persia was resorted to
for the purchase of mules for Government.
The first occasion that mules were purchased in Persia by Govern-
.Vote.—Kor the Crimean war mu!« mcilt was for the Abyssinian expedition
were drawn, I believe, from Turkish in 18G7-08. At the cud of August
Arabia. 18G7 Captain R. Clarke, Assistant Com-
missary-Gencral, was deputed by the Bombay Government to the
Persian Gulf to purchase mules. Captain Clarke appears to have proceeded
direct to Busrah and to have confined his attention chiefly to Baghdad
and Turkish Arabia, though, no doubt, many of the mules he purchased
must have come from Persian Arabistan. At the end of September
Captain Clarke's assistant, Lieutenant Hobson, was deputed to Enshire
and authorized at first to spend Rupees 75,000 in purchasing 800 mules
with equipments and forage; he was subsequently authorised to exceed
this amount, and he drew altogether from the Bushire Treasury Rupees
1,73,251. I cannot find out exactly what number of mules he succeeded
in purchasing, as- the records do not seem to be complete, and a great
portion of the money must have been spent in paying forage, giving
advances to owners of chartered vessels, paying muleteers, purchasing
shoes, &c. I find, however, applications for passes for four batches of
mules between 21st October 1807 and 20th January 18G8. The number
of mules was 251, and the average prices from COO to 312 brans per
mule. In March there was another batch of 121 mules averaging
800 krnns per mule in price.
The price of mules therefore on this occasion would seem to Lave
commenced at about an average of 300 krans (about Rupees 130), and to
have gone up in the end to an average of 390 krans (about Rupees 170)
per mule. No standard of age, height, or chest-measurcracnt seems to
have been fixed, but it was left to the discretion of the officers deputed.
Lieutenant Ilobson, I believe, remained stationary in Bushire, and the
chief difficulties he seems to have encountered were runaway muleteers and
the ohstructivencs3 of the local Persian officials, necessitating frequent
telegrams to and from Teheran.
Five per cent, export duty was charged on all mules exported from
Bushire.
The next occasion mules were obtained from Persia was in 1377,
when the Bombay Government, with the view of testing the Persian
Gulf as a source of supply, on 7th July 1877 address(3 the Political
Resident, Persian Golf, asking if the dealers would be willing to supply
twenty mules (for use in the mountain batteries) in the ensuing cold
season, and saying that Government would be prepared to purchase the
animals on the following conditions, viz., age to be between four and
6cven years; height not under fourteen bands; girth measurement sixty-
seven inches; price Rupees 300; to be delivered in Kurrachec. A dealer
iu ShirJz engaged to supply twenty mules on these conditions, and they
arrived in Kurracbee in December 1877. Three of these mules were
rejected, two being over age Jrnd one unsound.

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