Page 617 - PERSIAN 5 1905_1911

POLITICAL RESIDENCY FOR 1911. 17

intimate relations.
We may now take up the narrative of events. Nizam-es-Sultaneh
arrived at Shiraz, on April 6th, whilst
Arrest of the Kawamis. an unsuccessful attempt to reduce the
Chief ofKaraarij, on the Bushire-Shiraz road, was still in progress; a week
later, after laying himself out to lull the suspicions of the Kawami brothers
bv every sort of blandishment, he arrested them both by a ruse, on the 15th
April, and announced his intention of sending them before a criminal court
at Shiraz on various charges, some of which were punishable with death.
In the meantime he devoted himself to extracting from them large sums of
money and valuables. Any momentary improvement in the situation result­
ing from this bold stroke was soon counterbalanced, as might have been fore­
seen, by the resentment which it aroused not only amongst the adherents of
the Kawamis in Shiraz, but among the Bakhtiari Khans in Tehran. Sardar
Assad at once postponed his imminent departure for Europe, and brought
nil his influence to bear in favour of the brothers, who, he said, had only
stayed in Shiraz in deference to his earnest request, and for whose safety he
consequently felt morally responsible. He y.'ent so far as to repudiate
responsibility for the Ahwaz-Ispahan road, in'order to show his disapproval
of the Nizam’s proceedings.
Finding themselves in a dilemma, the Persian Government compromised
by ordering"Nizam-es-Su!taneh to release the Kawami brothers on condition
that they left Pars for Europe; the Nizam resisted these orders for some time,
and was energetically supported in doing so by the Sowlet-ed-Dowleh and
others, who did their*best to in^.ame public opinion against the brothers; in
the first week of May, however, the Governor-General bowed to the inevitable
and commenced making arrangements for the despatch of the brothers to
Bush ire.
They left Shiraz cn the 7th Hay with an escort of 50 sowars, and on the
same day their party was ambushed
Murder of Nasr-ed-Dowlth.
about 2 miles east of Khaneh Zinian,
the first stage out of Shiraz. Nasr-ed-Dowleh, who was behind, was killed.
Kawam-ul-LIulk. unlike his brother (who had been given a mule to ride), was
mounted on a horse and was some way ahead. Seeing his brother fall, he at
once galloped off, and next day, as had been anticipated, made his way by
circuitous routes first to his house in Shiraz and then to the Consulate, where
he sought and was granted sanctuary by His Majesty’s Consul, who, in anti­
cipation of the contingency, had obtained the sanction of His Majesty’s
Minister to this course, should the necessity arise. There is little doubt from
what subsequently transpired that the murder was instigated by Sowlet-ed-
Dowleh with the connivance of Nizam-es-Sultaneh.
It was from the first realized that unless the Kawam could be removed,
grave disorders would supervene, but unfortunately no means of doing so
without imperilling both his life and property was discovered. It also soon
became clear to the Nizam that he had overreached himself, and this being
the case, it seemed that he was not unwilling that affairs should take so un­
favourable a turn that His Majesty’s Government might be compelled to
intervene; such intervention would, he no doubt believed, serve his own inter­
ests as one of the principal land-owners in the province.
In any case there is no doubt that he commenced to intrigue actively
against the Consulate, thus making it impossible for us to make concrete
suggestions to the Persian Government for the Kawam’s removal.
Probably as a direct result of these intrigues, on 10th June, a large body
of Persian soldiery, who had on the
^Attempt by Persian soldiers to enter Cod-
same day demanded arrears of pay from
the Governor-General and received a
mistactoty reply, proceeded to the Consulate with the ostensible object of
iaxing sanctuary, as a protest against the non-receipt of their pay; on being