Page 163 - PERSIAN 8 1912_1920

POR TUB YEAR 1913. 353
A.foim°ran? ^icfvcrt, bad arranged that a detachment of gondarmes, then on
? ,v.iy to Shiraz, sliouldhalt at Sivend until they were joined by Major Siefveit
®!.ismaller force from Shiraz. The combined forco was to attack the
li,,ani Arabs under Muhammad Kuli Khan and kill or capture their leader.
Jic movement was duly carried out, an cl it -was reported at fiist with perfect
* cccs5, scVcra^ villages being restored to thoir rightful owners and much stolen
fnoty recovered. Later advices showed that, though the success had been
® cral, lcsS stolen property had been recovered than was stated at fi;st, and
S^luinunad Ivuli Khan had not been captured. Then ugly stories began
i be whisporecl about that the gendarmes had looted and ravished like any
Rakhtiarb, and that Siefvert himself had accepted horses and carpets from
Unliammad Kuli Khan, who promised to mirrcndAr at Shiraz within 3 days, a
valise which he was, of course, caicful not to fulfil.
V «• Siefvert then returned to Shiraz and, on Muhammad ICuli Khan not
uttiOo in an appearance, a second Swedish officer was sent out to complete his
Lsk- °This second effort ended also in failure j Muhammad Kuli Khan was
sllo\v<d to escape with all his family, although the Swedes had 500 men ti put
•1DSt him. To crown the misfortunes, Kawanvul-Mulk appeared
upon the scene a few days after the gendarmes had been withdrawn,
attacked, captured and hanged the Shahbani Chief in 2*1 hours. Tin Swedish
elficCTA deny that there is the smallest foundation for the accusation of looting’
made against the gendarmes but the truthful historian will have to record
harder things about them in relation to Kazerun, when the events of the year
191-1 have to he reviewed in their turn. A Swedish officer naively remarked
to a British coufierc the other day in Bushire “ I must believe what my own
men say ”. If that is the spirit in which they are going to conduct
e:qiiiiies, no one but a Swede will believe what a Swede says.
The difference between the Swedes and the Governor-General reached
their climax in September when, on the night of the 10th September, a
Saiyid was killed by a negro gendarme. The latter was arrested by the police
and confined in the ark. Next morning an enquiry was held in the Auliych
and the man was condemned to death. Captain Lundberg visited the
Governor-General at noon and asked that no execution should take place until
Colonel TJggla had had an opportunity of discussing the case with the Governor.
The Governor agreed aud TJggla arranged to visit him at 6-30. p.m. In spite
of this promise the Governor had the man executed in the afternoon and he
was already dead when Uggla arrived. The same evening Capta:us Lundberg-
and Kil’ander marched a body of gendarmerie into the ark and JCUlander
entered the Governor’s presence with 8 armed native officers aud demanded
Hie corpse which was eventually handed over and was buried with full military
honours on the 12th September. It appeared that tho officers acted without
instructions from Colonel Uggla who, on the 13«h, expressed his regret to the
Governor-General for their action. This episode very nearly cnaed in the
dismissal of the Governor-General.
In tho summer it was found that the full scheme of policing the road from
Shiraz to Bushiro could not be earned out as tho gendarmes, men from thonorthr
*ere unable to stand the execessive heat of the lower section of the road. The
Governor-General therefore made an arrangement with certain headmen on
^ road south of Kazerun linder which rahdari was to he abolished, in return
tor a monthly stipend paid to the Khan, and the enrolment of a certain number
his men as road guards The schcrao entailed an expenditure of about £160
1 month or rather less than it was estimated would have to be paid for similar
^ices under a scheme drawn up by tho gendarmerie.
In the end of October, in spite of tho unanimous objections of all
sponsible for the maintenance of order in tho southern section of the Bushire
to Shiraz road, including all the Bushiro authorities, a detachment of gondar-
Wo 800 strong proceeded to occupy the southern section of tho road. Th*
Ration was to reduce all subsidies as much as possible and eventually stop
toem altogether.
i. The Besident addressed remonstrances pointing out that tho chiefs wero
led to heliovo that these subsidies wero permanent, whereas it was olesr
^ tho offer or payment of subsidies was merely a ruse designed to bring