Page 394 - PERSIAN 5 1905_1911

92 ADMINISTRATION REPORT OF THE PERSIAN GULF POLITICAL RESIDENCY*

Movements of the Chief and his family.—Sheikh Esa and hiTf^ilv
moved over to their summer quarters near Manama on the 27th June and
returned to Muharraq for the winter on the 24th September 1908.
The Chief spent 25 days in camp, hawking and shooting, during tho
nine months under report. His sons, Hamad and Abdullah, went to Barr-adh
Dhahran near Ojair for five days in November, and a fortnight afterwards to
Lingali where they were at the close of the year. The second son, Sheikh
Muhammad, was ill with typhoid for a long time, and therefore did not travel
anywhere this year.
Sheikh Ali bin Ahmad spent 10 days hawking in Barr-adh Dhahran
during November and December, during which time he obtained the fine ba^
of 170 bustards (houbaras).
Slave Trade.—Ten men, six women and four children were manumitted
during the nine months under report. One woman returned to her master,
who said that he had arranged for her manumission under his will, and that
he had bequeathed her in addition a legacy of R50.
Kttar. The financial settlement mentioned in last year’s report as having been
agreed upon between Sheikh Jasim bin Tliani and his creditors has not been
adhered to in consequence of the impatience of the latter for their money
and the unwillingness of the former to accept the prices offered for his pearls
in Bombay and Europe. Eventually, after Sheikh Mubarak of Koweit had
addressed Sheikh Jasim in very strong and threatening terms, the latter
compounded and settled with all his creditors, when these had consented to
reduce the price of pearls sold to the Sheikh about 75 per cent l As values
are now slowly going up, being 50 per cent, better than they were six months
ago, it may be considered that the cunning old Sheikh has come out very
much to the good over the recent negotiations. Of the other pearls sent to
Europe, both Messrs. Gray Paul & Co. and Messrs. R. Wonckhaus & Co.
have been entrusted with consignments on commission, but so far neither
firm has succeeded in eliciting a bid acceptable to the Sheikh.
Another Katar case connected with the pearling industry which has given
this Agency a good deal of work this year was the insolvency of Nasir bin
Shahin at Tuwar, headmen of Fuwairat village, and of the Al-bu-Kuwara
tribe who also inhabit Sumaisma and Dha’ain in north-eastern Katar.
This old Arab, who is related by marriage to Sheikh Jasim bin Thani, had
gone down to Bombay in December 1906, possessed apparently of pearls which
eventually under the auspices of the Bahrain majlis were sold for R65.9/1,
but owing Rl,98,136 to twelve creditors in Bahrain. Half the pearls were
safely mortgaged to certain of the creditors, and when the debtor failed to
find a satisfactory market for the other half in India ho returned to Bahrain
in May 1907 proposing to keep the pearls in his own possession until better
times appeared. In November 1907, the creditors began to clamour for per­
mission to sell the pearls held by them in mortgage and also for the liqui ‘ ’
tion of their remaining claims out of the pearls in Nasij’s possession, l
being known at this time what the value of the latter might be. WaJlirT •
gave a verbal undertaking to Sheikh Esa that he would not leave Ba
until he had appeared before the majlis and come to an arrangemcn
his creditors, but regardless of this undertaking a few days later ne PP
off to his boat and fled to Lusail where he took refuge with Shei _ ,
bin Thani. Negotiations followed until May 1908, when the ‘n
Resident visited Bahrain and the creditors memorialized him, with .
that the Political Agent was instructed to proceed to Lusail in t ^
steam launch and endeavour to persuade the fugitive to retu fruitful,
conditional safe conduct. The subsequent interview was not at n sheikh
but a few weeks later the headmen of two other tribes in ^ ’ n of
Sultan bin Nasir as Suwaidi of Bida and Seyyid Abdullah bin fearjng
Ruwais, were induced to persuade Sheikh Nasir to give himsc P» a
as they did that the British Government mi>M retaliate against w ^ ^
Kuwara pearling fleet and inconvenience all the other tribes swas ]eft
weather if Nasir remained obstinate. For a few days Sheikl