Page 422 - PERSIAN 5 1905_1911

12 ADMINISTRATION REPORT OF THE PERSIAN GULF
Priests of Nejcf and Tehran to the effect that the British claims were in
order and must be recognised, Scyyid Murteza appears to have been mainly
intent upon the spoilation of the Customs and the division of the spoil be­
tween himself and his rabble of tufangchis.
From 23rd March to 10th April, when security was restored by the land­
ing of a British force, Scyyid Murteza, after causing the Customs safe to be
forcibly broken open, on 22nd March, disposed of close upon the whole of the
nett receipts, namely, about 20,000 tomans.
The Seyyid, who was assisted in all these doings by certain confederates
(1) Agha Mustapha Nawab, a petty local merchant of evil reputation who is
a claimant for British protection but whom the Residency refuses to recog­
nise, and (2) Mirza Ali Kazeruni, also a petty merchant of shady character,
indebted to British and other merchants for some 13,000 tomans; and, it was
believed, sub rosa, by (iii) Mirza Husein, Dragoman of the German Consulate.
The Seyyid himself is a Mullah with no knowledge whatever of affairs of
finance, and in all matters financial the above individuals acted severally or
jointly as his advisers and collaborators.
Naturally, as soon as it was noised abroad that the Customs receipts were
being appropriated by Seyyid Murteza and his tufangchis, the cupidity of
the whole country-side became excited and all the more turbulent characters
from the neighbouring villages of TaDgistan and Dashti began trooping in
to Bushire, many at .the specific bidding of the Seyyid and others on their
own account. According to his own estimate the Seyyid assessed the num­
bers for which he professed to need to draw a daily wage from the Customs,
at 3,000 men. It was never really as many as this, but at one time it was
believed to be anything between 1,0*00 and 1,500.
It will be realised what a menace the presence of these disorderly rustics,
all armed with modern rifles, became to public security in the town and the
Island of Bushire.
Tney scon got altogether out of Seyyid Murteza’s control and the latter,
when any urgent situation arose, forthwith repudiated responsibility, while
there was no one else able or willing to maintain order or guarantee the safety
of the lives and property of British subjects. At nights Bushire town
became a perfect pandemonium of rifle firing. No one slept, the populace
seemed all to be on guard on the tops of their houses, firing promiscuously
into the air or over the roofs of their houses.
Moreover many of these gangs of tufangchis who thus found themselves
cheek by jowl in Bushire, bent on the common object of plunder or appro­
priation of Customs revenues, had current blood-feuds with one another in
their villages, which they were inclined to pursue here. Quarrels were
continually occurring between parties of them, and the situation soon again
became so menacing that, with a view of assuring the safety of foreign as
well as British subjects, M. M. S. “ Fox ” received instructions to move up to
Bushire from Bandar Abbas where the situation had now much improved.
The “ Fox ” arrived on 2nd April and remained at the outer anchorage.
Meanwhile, things went from bad to worse on shore: the tufangchis
increased in numbers and got more and more truculent and out of hand aDd,
on the 8th, two parties of them, finding that, owing to a paucity of Customs
receipts, there was no pay left for themselves, forthwith raided the food
bazaar just before sunset, and, during the ensuing night, numerous robberies
were committed including a considerable amount of merchandise and piece-
goods.
The Seyyid now admitted his inability to control the men that he had
brought in, and even asked the Resident’s co-operation in inducing them to
leave. The town was by this time in a state of panic.
In the course of the 9th, the Russian, German and Turkish Representa­
tives called at the Residency to consult the Resident, and to urge upoD him
the necessity for the taking of some definite measures to provide security.
Almost the whole of the British mercantile community did the same. It