Page 276 - Records of Bahrain (4) (i)_Neat

264 Records of Bahrain

Who aubjoctod li.ain lo worse treatment than before. W)ion the reforms
started there virtually oxisted no tribunal for tho settlement ol*
diving uioputes.
111 1 924 a ayutem wau a tar ted whereby all Nakhudaa
v/ore required to keep twe accounta-a general account-arid an individual,
account for each diver,Tho difficulty then arose of starting the in­

dividual accounts, Many divers hud dived for years with their lJakhudu
©r had paused through several hands. There were cases in which they
had never had accounts for twenty years and sometimes more,*; wnen
seme sort of account existed the diver had never had acc^ess to it *
did not know how he stood.
T o start the new aystern,when a case came to oourt, a
compromise had to be effected between the part J.e u, failing this the
case went to the Cadh’i in respect of past accounts,* lie contrived to

make a compromise which was always accepted. In tne majority of cases
the amount tho diver was alleged to be in debt was based on pure
surmise^as no human being could check the chaotic accounts outstanding
ever a long term of years. An analysis of a large number of accounts
any reasonable
brought to light that hud the divers been credited withAearnings
they would generally have been in credit not in debt. However a start
had to be made as best we oould#* with the new sysytem properly eni’or

-ced it was anticipated that the majority would work off Ihoir dobts
in the course of a few years^and that new divers would be protected
in the future,
As can be imagined this invelved a prodigious amount of
work in 1924 ( for most divers applied for adjustment of their accounft^
llallam during his term here came in for a Certain number ef the re­
maining cases,but as tjie season was ©ny* tl.o court in order not to

delay tho work does not tako account? disputes during tho diYing,ho
missed the thick of the work, We havo boon getting through moot of
the old accounts^not disposed of in I924;during the present cold
weather*
Coming into this work without previous experionce/
ISallam must not unnaturally have found it difficuH, * confusing .which
I think accounts for his supposition that no ordinary court can ad-