Page 246 - Gulf Precis(II)_Neat

224 [Part VI—Chap. XLIV.

0 ,aP considerable munbors of l.orso and foot to ensure their safety. Syud
En Mutluk was distrusted, and sent under survcillanco to Biaz. A move-
ment^by KbnIW into tho districts, attended by the Egyptian cavalry, for the
m eonfirmimr his authoritv, and rcouiving tho allegiance of tho various
unsettled tribes, indicated au intention on the part of his allies to evacuate Nojd,
' a,.siro ),v nutting him forward in a moro prominent position of out-
;„ d a tVo H it'an bo half hitherto enjoyed to check the growing disaffeo-
uSns previous to his being left at the bead of affairs.
i Tn8t when tho blockade of Katif and Ojcir, hold hy tho Egyp-
b ’ 8eriously to bo contemplated by the British Government,
tian troops, o . . ,j{nT j^o) that Labsa had hcou evacuated, and
Iw tlfn main body of the Egyptian troops had actually left Nejd; whioh
llo corSraWtbe declaration shortly before made by Mahomed AU
C*°hn-Povutinn ruler, to llor Majesty’s Consul-General at Cairo, and
P“lS!1enuentlv°i>nPa measure confirmed by the despatch of a vessel to thoso ports,
whl(d?ivere^now found to bo in the bands of Arabs, adherents of Amir
n nUhou-’h tho Egyptian Agent still continued to exorcise the actual
and font ol rendered the adoption of this measure unnecessary. Tho
arnt onnr s ve n l extortionate conduct of tho Pasha and bis Agent fur-
gATd a plausible reason f<.r the belief that the Egyptians no longer
contemplated the permanent ocoupation of Central Arabia.
402 As a saorifico to the memory of his deputy, Mahomed EITendi, who
was shot while Governor of Lal.sa, Korshid Pasha’s last act previous to his
departure, was to put to death Barge.sli, tho Chief of the All Humid. It was
evidently intended that on Nojd being made over to the charge of Amir
Khalid, that chief should nevertheless continue to act under the authority o
the Egyptian Agent whom it was intended to establish at Medina, a post
whence be could exercise a general superintendence over the country of tho
Huiib Arabs and Central Arabia; hut the moral influence of the usurper
among the various tribes, which under the most favourable circumstances bad
been very trifling, was now entirely lost: despised, disliked, and deprived
of the support of his petrous, he had very shortly his hands fully occupied
with the intrigues which were set on foot to dispossess him of lus illegal
power,
403. At the period of the evacuation of Lahsa and Ojeir, one Mushrif
arrived at Bahrein, despatched probably by the inhabitants of those places,
to invite Shaikh Mahomed bin Khalifa (the grandson of Solcyman, the
brother of Abdulla bin Ahmed) to come over and claim those districts, wIxqix
they would throw off their allegiance to Amir Khalid.
404. The spirit of disaffection now developing itself in Central Arabia
was in no slight degree promoted and encouraged by the current report of
Amir Feysul having effected his liberation from Cairo, and commenced his
journey to Medina, as well as by the news of the reverse sustained by the
Egyptians in Syria, and the consequent reduction of Mahomed Ali Pasha’s
authority within its legitimate limits.
405. Syud bin Mutluk nevertheless continued to address letters to the
Chief of Oman, announcing his march into that province ; but these intima­
tions (the excitement they at first caused having worn off, from their having
beea so often made, and having as often proved without foundation) produced
little effect. There was indeed little probability, under existing circumstances,
of Amir Khalid aotually making any attempt on the province of Oman: it
was however decided by the British Government that in the event of the
expedition being undertaken, it should be met with as much aotive resistance
as his means afforded of arraying against it.
400. It now appeared that the Sublime Porte advanced their claims to
authority over Nejd; and certain it is, that having received some presents
from Auiir Khalid, that Government appointed him Wali of that province.
His submission was of course hollow enough, having been in all probability
prompted by Khorshid Pasha, to lie disavowed whenever it might meet the
views of tho Egyptians. He addressed a very friendly letter to the British
Native Agent at Bahrein, expressing an earnest desire to renew tho amicable

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