Page 14 - Records of Bahrain (2)(ii)_Neat

340 Records of Bahrain

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Persia had exercised any real control over the Island
within the preceding fifty or sixty years.
The Persian Government, however, in corrobora­
tion of the claim put forward by the Shall, for-
.warded to Colonel Shcil a gold coin which had boon
struck at Bnhroin, in 1817, in the name of “ Fettch
Ali Shah, Knjar;” and Colonel Shcil admitted his
belief in the genuineness of the coin, which, lie had
been informed, was procured from Bushire by one
of the Persian Secretaries to the Russian Mission.
Other statements were put forward in support of
the Persian claim, but Colonel Shcil made no reply
to them, but simply informed the Persian Minister
that lie would bring those, statements to the notice
of the British Government.
On receipt of thi6 despatch, Colonel Shcil was
instructed not to revert to the subject unless it
was forced upon him by the Persian Prime Minister,
in which case he was directed to .employ the argu­
ments adduced in a Foreign Ofiicc Memorandum
(which was inclosed) to show generally the grounds
on which Her Majesty's Government were nimble to
recognize as valid the claims advanced by Persia to
the sovereignty of Bahrein; and he was further
directed to state that the British Government
would very much disapprove of any attempts on
the part of Persia to interfere in the nflairs of I lie
Island, and thus disturb the peace of the Gulf and
afford an opening to Piracy.
The question then dropped for a short, lime.
In 1847 several other engagements were entered
into by the British Government with local 'Sheikhs
of the Gulf for the suppression of the Slave Trade,
including one with the Sheik of Bahrein (8th May, llcrislci’n Treaties, v«l. viii.
1847).
In .this year the Buhrein Question was revived
on its being rumoured that the_Portc^ enter­
tained designs upon the Island. On the question
being pul directly to the Porte, they denied any
intention of using compulsion with regard to To India Hoard, October II, I8«7.
° ' ('lurkry.
Bahrein, although they admitted that if the
Governor of Bussorah had attempted, by nego­
tiation, to induce any of ‘ the maritime Chiefs of
the Persian. Gulf .to.return,tg their. .allegiance to the
Porte, they could not disapprove his doing so.
Lord Palmerston, upon this, suggested to . the
India Board•' that/if the Indian Government had