Page 145 - The Pirate Coast (By Sir Charles Belgrave)

CHAPTER XI

‘A pirate is the enemy of the human race.’
Coke.

OCH made a long stay in Bushire, waiting for the expedi­
tion to arrive from Bombay. In the meantime, there were
___ ^political developments on the Pirate Coast. Sultan bin
Seggar, the Shaikh of Sharja, and Rashid bin Hamccd, the
Shaikh of Dubai, who, in the past, had been allies of the Joasmi,
were alarmed at the prospect of the combined campaign by
Britain and Muscat against the pirates, in which they might well
be involved. They decided to shake off their allegiance to
Hassan bin Rahmah, Shaikh of the Joasmi, and to make peace, if
they could, with the Sultan of Muscat. But the Sultan was now
in a very strong position, and showed no inclination to treat with
them, besides, he had been advised by Sadlier, the envoy from the
Bombay Government, not to believe their protestations of
friendship.
Shaikh Hassan now found himself deserted by his friends.
The Wahabis, who had been his strongest allies, had been crushed
by Ibrahaim Pasha, and were in no position to help him; his
neighbours in Dubai and Sharja no longer regarded him as the
strong man of the Gulf, and wanted to break away from him, and
his representative, ‘the old Wakil’, whom he had sent to Bushire
to discuss terms between thejoasmi and the Bombay Government,
had achieved nothing. The ‘Old Wakil’ in fact was being held
by the British, owing to his piratical escapades on his way to
Bushire.
The Shaikh decided to look elsewhere for support. At this
time, the Shaikhs on the Persian coast, such as the Shaikh of
Bushire, were more or less independent, and made alliances with
the rulers in the Gulf without reference to the Central Govern­
ment, which, as long as the Shaikhs paid tribute, left them to
themselves. Shaikh Hassan decided to seek help from Linga,
one of the larger ports on the Persian coast, which possessed a
number of vessels. Even in recent times, Linga used to send a
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