Page 79 - Records of Bahrain (1) (i)_Neat

Selections from the Records, 1818-1856 69

UTTOOBEES. 411

Before prosecuting this part of the narrative, it is necessary to de­
scribe a ease of piracy committed in the early
A. D. 1815.
part of the year by Humccd bin Mujdcll, of the
Amayir Tribe, and to relate the steps that were taken to obtain redress
from that lawless chief.
A vessel of Karraclc, under the command of one Abdoolla, having
taken in a cargo of wheat at Bunder Rcig, proceeded over to Kateef. On
entering the backwater, Abdoolla spied three Buggalows .coming
towards him, one of which, being considerably ahead of the others,
approached his boat, and, after a scries of manoeuvres, boarded her, and
made her a prize. The two other Buggalows, both vessels of Koweit,
on one occasion hailed the captors, to know what boat they had taken ;
whereupon th'c Amayir Chief threatened to cut off the heads of his
captives if they dared to utter a syllable. Some two days after the
capture “they reached Ras Boo Ali, where they anchored, and plunder­
ed the Buggarah of everything she contained, viz. cargo, arms, cloths,
foe. to the value of 1,500 Mahomed Shah rupees”; and when the
Nakhoda represented that the property they were plundering belonged
to a person under British protection, Humccd bin Mujdcll laughed him
to scorn, and said “ Who arc the English ? ”
The crew were then liberated, and, being allowed to leave the place
in their Buggarah, they made their way back to Karrack, and related all
that had occurred to them.
After some investigation, it was ascertained by the Resident that the
Amayir Chief “ having broken friendship with part of his tribe,” had,
previous to committing the piracy, been compelled to quit his usual
place of abode, Jazirat Boo Ali, and taken refuge within the dominions
of Shaikh Mahomed bin Khalccfa, who treated him kindly, and supplied
him with arms and ammunition. He had not been long, however, with
his new master, ere he repaired with a number of followers to a small
island, named Gunna, which lies near the entrance of the backwater
situate between Jazirat Boo Ali and Ras Draccda. There he look up his
quarters, and there, relying upon the strength of his position, he vaunted
himself upon his deed of piracy, and expressed his utter contempt for
any endeavours the English might make to bring him to punishment.
The piracy was of too open a character to be treated lightly, or “ to
admit of a compromise being made regarding it.” In the month of
May, accordingly, the Resident deputed his Assistant, Captain Kem-
ball, with two vessels of the squadron, to Gunna, for the purpose of
obtaining full satisfaction from Humccd bin Mujdcll. Commodore
Hawkins, too, proceeded in person, to superintend and carry into cxc-
culion any measures that ofliccr might be pleased to suggest j and
Uvo
Native Buggarahs, fully armed and equipped, were engaged to
accom-
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