"تقرير إداري للمقيمية السياسية في الخليج العربي والوكالة السياسية في مسقط عن الفترة ١٨٨٧-١٨٨٨." [و‎‎٧] (٧٢/١١)

residency and muscat political agency for 1887-88.
9
29. At the given signal the Bedouin Arabs of the vicinity entered the bazaar o£ El-Bidaa
and plundered the shops o£ the Persian dealers residing there, driving them all from the place.
The British Indian traders on this occasion were protected by Shaikh Jasim's relatives, but
their turn was to come.
30. In the month of August two Indian traders were wantonly and cruelly wounded bv
the Bedouins in El-Bidaa, and immediately afterwards piracies commenced off the coast of
Katr.
31. In the summary of Bahrain affairs it has been stated how these disorders were
eventually checked, and it is only necessary here to remark that compensation to the wounded
Indians was included in the amount levied from Shaikh Jasim.
32. No redress has been obtained by the Persians for the losses sustained by them during
the plunder of El-Bidaa, when all the Persian traders were forced to remove from the place;
but an appeal on the subject was made by the Persian to the Turkish Government.
33. The Wali of Busrah, Nafiz Pasha, visited El-Bidaa in the corvette Zohaff in the
month of February and promised Shaikh Jasim a title and decorations. A supply of coal also
has been sent to El-Bidaa by the Turkish authorities, and the Turkish guard at that place is
about to be strengthened.
34. The usual petty and desultory warfare has occasionally been kept up between Shaikh
Jasim's adherents in El-Katr and the Monasir and other Bedouins of the border land of ^Oman.
5.—NEJD AND EL-HAS A.
35. Subordinate to the Turkish "Wilayet" of Busrah is the somewhat pretentiously
Ne j d termed Government of " Nejd."" The Mutaserrif holding
this post has his head-quarters at Hoofoof, the capital of El-
Hasa, and his charge is really restricted to the province bearing the latter name. To the
westward between El-Hasa and Nejd (or the "uplands") intervene the "Dahna" or
" Nafood," the great red sand dunes, and at present these mark the limit of Turkish authority.
To the north-west of Riadh, the capital of Central Nejd, is the flourishing province of "the
mountain," Jebel Shammer, ruled by Muhammad ibn Hashed, who more or less owns alle
giance to Turkey. The Wahabee Amirs of Riadh have long been weakened by family dis
sensions and isolation from the seaboard owing to the Turkish occupation of El-Hasa.
36. Up to last year, Abdullah bin Feysal was recognised as Amir, or head of the Al-
Su^ood family, but his authority was limited to Riadh itself.
37. Last autumn intelligence was received that his nephews, the sons of Su'ood bin
Eeysal, had seized and imprisoned Abdullah, and there were rumours of an intended assem
blage of tribes in view to an attack on the Turks in El-Hasa.
38. Letters were written by Muhammad bin Su^ood to the Chief of Bahrain and to the
various Arab Shaikhs of ■'Oman, announcing his accession as Amir of Nejd. But the triumph
of Muhammad bin Su^ood was short-lived, for the more powerful Amir of Jebel Shammer,
Muhammad bin Rashed, speedily marched against him up to the gates of Riadh, which
place capitulated after a short defence. Abdullah bin Feysal was then released and re-instated,
and Muhammad bin Su'ood retired to El-khorj. It seems, however, to have been arranged
that Abdullah should accompany Muhammad bin Rashed back to Jebel Shammer, his younger
brother Muhammad bin Feysal acting as Governor of Nejd, assisted by an Agent of Ibn
Bashed.
39. Thus, the authority of Muhammad bin Rashed has apparently been extended over a
large portion of Central Arabia, and is now supreme from the confines of Syria to the great
red sand desert east of Nejd.
40. The forces of Ibn Rashed are too formidable and well appointed to allow of any suc
cessful resistance on the part of the adherents of the Wahabi Amirs, and it is of some
importance to note that the Shammer Chieftain is, nominally at least, the vassal of Turkey.
He at once communicated the news of his victory to the Turkish authoritieSj by whom it was
received with the utmost satisfaction.
B