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almost entirely on the judgment of Captain Selby, on officer of much experience, who
Commanded the Bombay Frigate.
91. I now proceed to the fifth Division of my subject. The probable estimate of
Receipts and Disbursements if such was made, in examining which, I cannot be expected to
make any but tho most general Calculations.
92. X supposo a Resident X sufficient for tho Civil Gov-
emment of this Settlement, for whom, & a Surgeon a monthly Salary of four thousand rupees
would provide liborally & include all charges. I have estimated the Salaries high, because
X judge it of ultimate consequence, X to the prosperity, but tho cxislanco
X settlement of this kind, that the Resident & those under him should be
debared from all other advantages, & particularly from Trade under any shape whatever.
Obvious reasons point out tho necessity of this regulation.
98. Tho military would bo Sepoys, with a small Detachment of Artillery including
which, & their officers they should amount to five hundred men. The monthly cxpence of
such an Establishment may be liberally estimated at 10,000 Rs. to which 1,000 more may be
added as X repairs of arms &ca. x this makes the total amount of
current charges 15,000 pr. month, or 1,00,000 Rs. pr. annum; to which 20,000 may be
added for keeping the fortifications, buildings, &ca. in repair which would increase the
current expcnccs to two lacks of Rs. annually.
94. The original expence would, no doubt, be considerable, but I should imagine that
building a Fort for tho protection of the Town & harbour, with the erection of one or two
small Ports which it might be necessary to occupy, the building of Houses for the Civil
officers, & quarters for the Soldiers, would not altogether exceed the Sum of three lacks
of Rupees. It is to be recollected, that in proportion to the respectability & strength of the
Establishment, so will be the resort to it & consequent future advantage.
95. Though I have before said that the Island of Kishma produced to the Persian
Government about five thousand rupees, & though I have no doubt that under the rule of
the English Government it might in the course of a few years produce a land rent of treble
that Sum, I do not think myself warranted at this period x any immediate Revenue
from this x in the first place, it might not be thought X to take the
whole Island, and in the next if that step was adopted, a liberal encouragement of the present
inhabitants might prevent for a period any advantage from the possession.
96. The only probable receipt would be from the duties collected which might be
moderately fixed at an average of 8 pr. ct. on all Imports.
97. The total present Trade has been valued at one Crore & sixty lacks of rupees, forty
lackB of which, x & the Red Sea would continue to find its mart a
Muscat, & about twenty lacks more consists of Specie & bullion which pays no duty.
After this deduction there remains one crore. Seventy lacks of which may safely assist
on grounds already stated, would in the space of throe years make this Settlement its
Emporium, & the Duties on this would more than meet the Current expences. Of the future
possible increased Roceipts from such duties, it is impossible to speak. Every circumstance,
however, leads to a conjecture that this Port would at no distant period engross the whole Trade
to the Gulph, to what amount that may rise it is difficult to determine, but it never has been
nor can it ever will be, at a much lower ebb X
93. It now only remains to examine the last part of my subject vitt. The means most
proper to carry this plan, if approved of, into execution.
99. Although the King of x exercises no positive authority over any of X
Islands of the Gulph, tLose on the northern shore are all considered as part of the Empire
and an application to him for grants of the Islands of Kishm and Anjam would be the first
step towards carrying this plan into execution, both Islands would be necessary, as the English
Governments might find it expedient to build a work on Anjam for tho protection of tho
shipping and oven if they did not, they should at least have the power to prevent others from
Island. These grants would bo easily obtained, as tho Islands in their
X
present state, are of no advantage whatever to the Government. As an equivalent for
3883 F. D.