Page 777 - PERSIAN 8 1912_1920_Neat

PERSIAN GULF POLITICAL RESIDENCY, 1920. 43

of governing Bakhtiari was entrusted to Sirdar Aslijaa pro tern. Tlie remain­
ing Khans of importance with the exception of Sirdar Jang, Governor of
Isfahan and Sirdar Assad, Governor of Kerman proceeded to Teheran in the
hope of composing their family feuds with the assistance of His Britannic
Majesty’s Minister and incidentally lining thoir pockets by fishing in troubled
water.
Negotiations were prolonged throughout the summer without rosult. An
arrangement promoted by the Persian Government, who were at the time
afraid of the Bolshevik menace, to partition practically the whole of western
and central Persia among the leading Khans in return for a garrison of 1000
Bakhtiari sowars to be maintained at Tehran fortunately fell through owing to
disputes among the Khaus themselves regarding the allotment of Governor­
ships.
In September the Khans movefl to Isfahan where another long conference
was held and where they were joined by Sirdar Ash jaa and Murteza Quli Khan
who had meantime been carrying on the Government of Bakhtiari with con­
siderable success. The arrangement finally made was that the offices of
Illkhani and Illbegi should revert to the most senior Khans, namely Samsam
us Sultaneh and Amir Mufakhan,an arrangement which had been in abeyance
since Sirdar Jang’s dictatorship in 1912. Samsam expressed tho intention of
coming south himself but the news of the imminent opening of Parliament to
which he had been elected drew him once more to Teheran and he nominated
Murteza Quli Khan as his representative in Bakhtiari. This arrangement
still holds although Sirdar Zaffar taking advantage of the political situation in
Teheran is doing his best to renew the old family fends.
The history of the last few years proves firstly that the intrigues and
machinations of Khans residing in Teheran is no true index of feeling and
policy in Bakhtiari itself, and secondly, that infinitely better results are
obtained by negotiating with the Khans in their own country in preference to
Teheran. Our policy during the last 2 years of refusing to sacrifice Bakhtiari
as a whole to the personal interest of one or more Khaus who, at considerable
profit to themselves, assisted us during the war, has borne fruit, and has given,
them a confidence in our. intentions which has been lacking for years. Provided
this policy is continued, there is little fear of the Bakhtiari tribes on whose
good will the safety of the Oilfields chiefly depends, betraying our interests in
the South whatever may happen in the North. Although the “Commission”
scheme referred to in last year’s report has remained more or less a dead letter,
the younger Khans have obtained a far greater share in the responsibilities of
Government and are not likely to allow Bakhtiari to be exploited in the
interests of Khans residing in Teheran. For this reason history is not likely
to repeat itself in regard to a big movement of tribesmen to Teheran although
they will almost certainly seize and hold Isfahan as soon as the Central
Government shows signs of collapsing.
In spite of the absence of recognised governors during the greater part
of the year Bakhtiari itself has remained extremely tranquil, a state of things
which can be attributed in a large measure to plentiful harvests after years of
scarcity.
Kuhgilu.—Owing to the disturbance in Mesopotamia during the summer
the Vice-Consul did not consider it advisable to travel far afield and no tour
was made in Kuhgilu. Friendly letters have however, been received from
many of the Chiefs who have a wholesome dread of another expedition like
that of 1918 in which we lent two mountain guns to tho Bakhtiari Khans.
It is to the memory of tho execution caused by these guns rather than to any
6teps taken by the Bakhtiari Khans, to which the immunity of the Lynch
Road from organised robberies during 1920 must be attributed. Probable
extension of the Oil Company’s operations towards the South east renders it
essential that close relations should be maintained with the various Kuhgilu
Chiefs and Sir Arnold Wilson during his vist to Arabistan in November 1920
laid stress on the importance of having a reliable British Consular Agent at
Behbehan.