Coll 28/112A ‘Persia. Tabriz – Monthly despatches of internal situation in Azerbaijan & misc. reports.’ [‎484r] (970/1237)

Liven really effective help. Mr. Vivian will now presumably
A UQ free to concentrate all his own transport in getting wheat
to Tabriz, out naturally his lorries, as well as the .Russian,
were immobilized during the last week of iebrua^y.
In the period under review Mr. Vivian made a trip to
'gArdabil to clear up some muddle arising out of purchases for
^tne Persian aray. He reported that seme 50 landlords, repres
enting a substantial amount of grain, had been arrested in
Aidebil, ana 15 at the small town of Sarab, whereas back in
^ Tabriz the figure of the arrested was still only a score or so.
He blames tae Governor-General, himself a local landlord, for
lack of energy and I understand that my American colleague and
he have asked for the Governor-General's removal on this account.
Only a few days after they had done so Mr. Vivian learned that
the Governor-General had returned the compliment with urgent
telegrams asking for his removal, and had been inciting his
brother landlords to telegraph separately to the Prime Minister
M^Vivtah W fo the same purpose. As Mr. Vivian sees the situation, there
r/ 2 are three possibilities, that he should go, that tne Governor-
General should go, and tnat he should call off his campaign
against the landlords. It is not a happy or a profitable^situa-
tion.^ It is a pity that all the energy and drive should be on
one side, all the guile and finesse on the other. The two have
combined, like oil with water, to work for the public interest.
*»nat with snow blocking roads everywhere, and the
demands oi the Russians, Mr. Vivian nas nis work cut out to
supply Tabriz and there is still no proppect of a surplus being
realized f or transport to Tehran. At the end of the month Mr.
Vivian found that the government ns Id 12,000 tons of Mie&t and
5,000 tons of barley in its ameers in Azerbaijan, of which 6,000
wheat and 4,500 barley were available, after meetiiig rux’al needs,
for Tabriz and Uie Russians. he has Lucre fore had to fell the
Russians that he cannot, from such stocks, fulfil the contract
with Laen and fnat Tabriz, with only a few days* supply in hand,
must have -lint claim. He told the soviet Consul-General tnat
naturally if the Governor-General would support tne campaign
against tne landlords tne hidden wheat might be brought forth;
the Consul-General promised to speak with the Governor-General
in that sense; 1 wonder now he speaks with the Governor-General
as Out Mr. Vivian and ms policy, the more so since he told Mr.
Vivian tnat ne had instructions from Moscow f ;rbidding him to
exert pressure on any local authority. This seems to rule out
the Ciie a ^e Lic c ooyei c..u ion vniica nritisn anu muc ricuns 0 udge
necessary for success.
hi din
o
a prominent landlord in Taoriz, a Seyyid, went into
’•'hen the warrant for his arrest was issued, out he has
/now