Page 186 - Records of Bahrain (4) (ii)_Neat

488 Records of Bahrain

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Yl,ia method would be more difficult for Shaikh Mamed ao he
,ould dislike picking out certain people for rcductionc. For
example 1 /{'now that Shaikh Mamed considers the salary of Shaikh
Abdul la to be excessive but he does not like to alter it aaj if
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!;e did so Shaikh Abdulla would probably cause trouble. He has
9flcn mentioned this to me. I myself could pick out a number of
persons who in my opinion do not deserve salaries but I do not

suppose tlut Shaikh Warned would agree v/ith my opinion.
Another suggestion is thut the Civil List should be based

on the revenue, a definite percentage.
Another suggestion is that the whole amount should be paid
to Shaikh Mamed direct and he should administer it, but I doubt
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If he v/ould ever agree to this system. If this were done he
could appropriate as much as he liked and pay what he wished to
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hie relations. I think the people who would profit by this idea
nould be his/fMbv servants and hangers on.
I enclose a copy of the Civil Liet and allowances, It is
difficult to explain who all the people are, many of them 1 have
r.cver seen, and some rarely visit Bahrain, living on the mainland.
The persons drawing pensions are mostly ex servants of
olaikh Isa, old people who v/ill probably not survive many years.
I personally think that it is more important to check
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future increases than to reduce the present amount, I think
ftaikh Mamed ought to guarantee that if a person dies his
'cir shall not draw more than a quarter the salary. At present
jeoplc drav/ing salaries consider that the salaries pass
tttomatically from father to son.
Shaikh Hamed should promise that the present^amount shall
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be increased and that any new allowances sha.ll be made by
: . past/-
Educing some present one. When a person dies^his salary,auc
nf .It, may be allotted to a ney/ applicant, but a certain

‘•foportion of it shall revert to the State.
If ray first suggestion i3 not adopted, and Shaikh Hamed
fckes an official complaint about his finances, I ouggest that
r* should be tild to employ a suitable paid secretary,