'Persian Gulf - Turkish jurisdiction along the Arabian coast (Part II)' [‎159r] (25/45)

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Odeid. eStablisl1 their ^mzcy at
,Jl^ 0 SU ?J? oy ert Mtion hitherto beea taken,
? no aut hority or jurisdiction has, as far as is
Known, been ever established or exercised.
"As to the second point, apart from other con-
flictmg claims and rights, it cannot be maintained
that Odeid would, from its position, necessarily be
ln T the P olitical fortunes of El Hassa or
, l^atr. In the year 1871 an inquiry was made
by Colonel Pelly, the result of which has a pertinent
Dealing on this point. From the terms of the
letters he then addressed to the Chiefs of Ab-
oothabee and Odeid, copies of which I append, it
will be seen that he ascertained from the person
best qualified to judge that c Odeid forms no portion
of Guttur territory.'
t{ The third point suggested for consideration is
as to the bearing on the question of jurisdiction of
the action of the Odeid people themselves. The
desire of the Sheikh of Odeid has all along been to
be treated as an independent Chief, and admitted
as such into the circle of trucial Chiefs under British
protection. This privilege could not, however, be
conceded without setting aside the asserted right of
the Aboothabee Chief over Odeid and its inha
bitants. The latter being the hereditary tribesmen
and subjects of Abootbabee, their complete inde
pendence could not be recognized. Under the
circumstances, and considering the geographical
position of the place, it does not appear to me that
the Turkish Government would have the right to
accept the allegiance of aliens residing beyond their
frontier, nor do I see how such a tender, assuming
it made, could confer right of jurisdiction in this
instance.
" In addition to the considerations of a negative
description which I have touched on, the positive
claims of the Chief of Aboothabee in regard to
Odeid must be considered. Por more than a
generation the Chiefs of Aboothabee have claimed
and occasionally exercised authority over the place
and its inhabitants, who, according to Arab ideas
and custom, were the dependents of the said Chiefs.
The rights of the latter seem to have always been
recognized by the British Officers in the Gulf, and
the same view has, after many years of occasional
correspondence, been practically approved by Go
vernment. It is probable that the Turkish preten
sions lately put forward at the instance of the local
Sheikhs are based on ignorance of facts. I ascer
tained last year that the Governor of Bussorah had
never even heard the name of Odeid.
" As a matter of right, it appears to me plain
that the Turkish Government has no valid claim to
Odeid. Viewed as a question of policy, apart from
the rights of Aboothabee, I consider it would be