Page 654 - PERSIAN 5 1905_1911

ADMN. REPORT OF THE PERSIAN GULF POLITICAL RESIDENCY FOR 1911. 62

consequence stopped sending consignments to Kerman, and ono caravan wnich
dnl leave was ruooed. Britisn goods to the value of 10,969 Krans being carried
olT, of which 2,141 Krans worth was subsequently recovered. It wail bo ob­
served that the state of the roads was considerably more satisfactory during
the last three months of the year than during the first three. This circum­
stance, however, was purely fortuitous, and was in no way due to any attempt
on the part of the Persian authorities to guard the road. A fair number of
Europeans travelled up and down the road during the year, including ladies
and children, and none of them were molested.
The district of Minab is situated some 40 miles to the eastward of
Bandar Abbas, at the foot of a lofty
Minab.
range of hills of which it receives the
drainage, and this supplemented with wells gives it an ample water-supply,
especially after good winter rains. Dykes have been constructed in places
by the villagers to store water which is subsequently distributed over the date
groves. Dates and henna form the chief products of the district, though a
little wheat and barley is also grown : the henna is exported to India and some
dates, but none of the latter has as yet been put on the European market: some
samples were, however, despatched to London this autumn, and if they are
approved of thejre it is probable that regular consignments will be made in
future. In point of climate Minab compares very favourably with Bandar
Abbas, iis “ Kalah,” the mest important village and seat of the local Governor,
is situated some 12 or 14 miles from the sea, and is consequently much dryer
than any place situated on the shore. There are some 20 or 25 Hindus estab­
lished there who export dates, henna, wool, ghi, and of course do an extensive
Money-lending business, the bulk of the local population being financed by
them at very high rates of interest. There are also two or three families of
Khoja British subjects there, who own considerable property and export to
India.
During the first four months of the year a rapid succession of nominees of
the Deputy Governor of Bandar Abbas, each more incompetent than the last,
were appointed as Sub-Governors at Minab: in May, however, one Kerbelai
Muhammad Hassan was appointed to that post, and remained there till
December when he left, on account of bad health. His tenure of the appoint­
ment was a marked contrast to that of his predecessors : no disturbances
occurred and, owing in a large measure to his energy and tact, large amounts
due to British subiect* were recovered. It was ment ioned in last year's report
that the principal debtor was one Ali Khan : ho died in the spring, a fact
which considerably facilitated the collection of claims against him and his
brothers. About 7,000 tomans were recovered during the summer, from his
brothers and heirs, and many minor claims of long standing against other
persons were satisfactorily settled.
When the year opened Mullah Abdul Rahman, Misbah-i-Diwan, was
Deputy Governor, and continued to
Local Government.
occupy the post till May when he pro­
ceeded to Bushiro to present " pish-kash ” to the newly appointed Governor
of the Gulf Ports. The latter discovering that the Misbah-i-Divran had
’rregularly amassed a considerable sum here had him arrested by the Rais-i-
Nazmieh at Bushire and imprisoned, the Rais-i-Nazmieh being sent here in
his place. The latter was a young Tehrani, by name Itizad-i-Hazrat:
although considerably better educated and more enlightened than his prede­
cessor, he was totally devoid of energy or authority. Complaints having been
made against him on various grounds to the Governor of the Gulf Ports, the
latter agreed to dismiss him, but expressed considerable difficulty in finding
a successor: finally, in December, the Misbah-i-Diwan was released, and re­
appointed to Bandar Abbas. He arrived late at night, on the 26th December,
by Customs launch from Lingah and somewhat dramatically in turn arrested
and imprisoned the Itizad-i-Hazrat. The Misbah-i-Diwan, though extremely
Corrupt, has a certain amount of authority in the town and immediate neigh­
bourhood : he is on the whole liked bv the local merchants, aod he has^ no
nationalist or anti-foreign sentiments : in fact ho is usually very bitter against
the Persian Government who he says do not recognise the valuable servioes be
has rendered them.