Page 154 - A Hand book of Arabia Vol 1 (iii) Ch 6 -10

254 THE SULTANATE OF OH/

The Vali remits to
sections of Bedouin tribes often visit the town,
the Sultan $1,200 from the Zahlt, but the customs of the port arc-
expended locally. The fort is garrisoned by 20 men commanded by
an 'Aqld.
9. Sib, a very scattered coast town, some IS miles E. of Barkah
and about 25 miles (crow-fly) from Muscat ; population about 2,000.
It comprises several detached groups, or quarters, consisting al­
most entirely of mud huts. The one masonry house, about a mile
from the shore, at the inner,edge of the date-groves, is the residence
of the Vali. The bazaar, consisting of about 50 Arab and Persian
shops, in addition to a few kept by Hindu traders, is poorl}- stocked.
The principal Arab tribe represented in the town is the ‘Awamir,
which is Nizari by descent but now Hinawi in politics ; Baluchis
and Jadgals form the next largest sections of the population. The
date-groves and gardens are extensive, and fish is obtainable in
fair quantities. The anchorage is seven or eight cables off shore, in
five fathoms sand, and quite open to the prevailing winds. The
customs duty on goods imported into Sib is payable at Muscat, but
the Vali collects locally $1,000 as Zakdl, which he remits to the
capital. His authority is supported by a detachment of 40 men
commanded by an ‘Ar/ld.

III. The Muscat District

The tract of country which surrounds the town of Muscat, and
forms a part of Eastern Hajar, may be conveniently treated as
a separate district, though it has no local name. Its limits may be
regarded as the Wadi Sema’il on the W. and the Wadi Tayin on the
S-, the sea bounding it upon N. and E.; it thus has a length of
about 50 miles from WNW. to ESE., and a maximum breadth of
about half that distance. It consists of a network of small valleys,
diverging in different directions from the slopes of Eastern Hajar
to the coast. Most of its surface is barren and rugged, but in places
the country opens out into more or less level tracts.
The only plain of any extent in the district is known as Saih
Hatat; it runs in a curve, about 30 miles in length, and includes
the upper basins of the Wadis ‘Adai, Maih, and Mijlas, and a small
portion of the course of Wadi Sarein. Its north-western part is the
more open, approaching S miles in breadth, but north-eastwards
it is narrower and more broken up ; its inhabitants are mostly Beni
Waheib, a tribe that is found in but few places outside this district.
The next largest inhabited area is the Wadi Boshar, a tract of
country within seven or eight miles of Matrah, on the NW. side
\

■