"تقارير إدارية ١٩٠٥-١٩١٠" [و‎‎١‎٢‎٣] (٦١٦/٢٥٠)

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AND THE MASKAT POLITICAL AGENCY EOR THE YEAfi, 190M90S. 5^
country including one from Tabriz, which contained an invifatation from the
people of that place asking him to come there as the people of Azarhaijan
were nervous that the Atabeg was about to take away from them the Consti
tution. From my later knowledge of Salar I am inclined to think that these
letters were in the main forgeries made by himself. Daood Khan Kalhor
also was supposed to have written saying that he would not fight against His
Imperial Highness—a promise which, if made, he fulfilled by being the chief
factor in preventing Salar from taking Nehavend.
While the Mirza was in the Lur camp a letter came from the Eussians
telling His Imperial Highness to write to the Russian Consul at Kermanshah
who would do all he could to help him. Salar expressed great distrust of the
Eussians to the Mirza, and said the English were the cause of the constitution
which the Shah and Atabeg detested: I am afraid that he had no higher
motive than this for turning to the English.
(M. Nicolsky, the Russian Consul, was sent for from Eussia on account of
Salar-ed-Douleh, but arrived after the incident Was finished.)
Salar stated to the Mirza that, if it came to fighting, he did not propose to
attack Kermanshah, which contained Consuls and a bank, but that he would
loot Nehavend and Douletabad.
After my Mirza's return the Russian acting Consul, M. Petroff, called on
me and said that he had received a letter from Salar-ed-Douleh, but did not
mention that it was in answer to a letter from his own Mirza, formerly his agent
at Khurramabad. I now received orders that I was to keep the Eussian
Consul informed of everything, and after this date we acted in concert.
On the 30th May Salar sent me a second letter saying that Amir Afkham
and Zahir-ed-Douleh, the Governor of Hamadan, had been told off to treat with
him but he had refused to agree to anything except through the British Lega
tion. The Mirza had taken nine days going and coming to and from Salar's
camp. It appeared to me, then, advisable to go to Kangawar three stages
from Kermanshah where there is a Telegraph Office and from whence I could
keep in closer touch with affairs. M. Petroff agreed to come with me, and
having obtained permission, we started off on the 30th May. On the second
dav after we arrived at Kangawar M. Petroff received a telegram from his
Minister saying that both Consu\s were to go to meet Salar-ed-Douleh, At
the same time I received a telegram from the Minister saying that there were
telegrams of state importance awaiting me at Kermanshah which I was to
obtain. We received information that Salar had moved to Khavva \\hich is
only ^5 miles from Kerraanshah. The same evening I received telegrams
informing me that fighting had broken out between the two parties in the
town, that some 13 had been killed, and the people's party had taken refuge in
the Consulate, to the number of about 2j000. I accordingly decided to send my
baggage to Harsin, one stage from Khawa, to ride into Kermanshah in one
day, arrange matters in the town and then ride out again and meet the baggage.
M. Petroff agreed to accompany me and we arrived in Kermanshah on the
evening of the 4th June. I found the Consulate grounds crowded.
On the 1st June W T asook-el-Memalik, the accountant-general of the army
and one of the moving spirits among the officials, had been going through the
streets when a dispute arose, the people attacked him wounding him severely
about the head; his escort replied with their revolvers, the riot commenced
and was carried on throughout the day.
The following morning the troops composed of Kerind Eegiment, the
Sinjabi sowars and some infantry of the Zangineh Eegiment started looting
the town. The bazaars were hastily closed but the soldiers broke open the
shops carrying off everything they contained. The amount of loss entailed
cannot be estimated but the bazaar within a radius of the central square was
swept from one end to the other. Some idea of the damage done can be
estimated from the fact that one Eussian subject alone lost a sum of Tumans
20,000 or about £4,000.
The people state that the order for the looting was given by Saif-ed-
Douleh himself. Whoever may have been the originator, if there was one,
there is a little doubt that the official classes benefited largely and a good part