'Administration Reports 1920-1924' [‎37v] (79/412)

56 ADMINISTRATION REPORT OF THE
(3) would return and not protect fugitives.from the Sultan's justice ;
(4) would hear the claims of traders and others aarainst Omank
according to the Shara.
All the Sheiks at Sib signed in the presence of the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. foui-
prisoners relations of Sheikh Isa who had been held by the Sultan for two
years were released, and they then departed to obtain the signature of the Imam
and several other prnmment Sheikhs. The document signed by the Imam
the chiefs of the Hmawi and Ghafiri confederations, and all the most promi'
nent sheikhs of Oman was received back on the 7th October. In the meantime
1 S1 o'[ A d ° cument had ljeen obtained from the Sultan's Government. Qn
the 8th October peace was proclaimed and the penal zakat was lifted.
The eight years rebellion of the Oman tribes is therefore for the moment
at an end, though he would be an unwise man who asserted that the last
Chapter had been written. The Omanis have attained in their own eves
complete independence, and practically they are correct, though the Sultan mav
assert that they only have home rule. The Sultan is relieved of the trouble of
having even a thereotical sway over the interior, and he no longer need fpar
attacks on the coast. a r
a .The remainder of the year saw the agreement working satisfactorilr.
Ap am after a lapse of years there is normal intercourse between the coast and
the interior, Omanis throng Muttrah and trade is brisk.
In the interior itself the Omanis seem to he making an effort at governnW
Wahs, m several case men famed for their wisdom and political acumen have
been appointed in the more important towns, while the aggressive puritanisa of
the late Imam has given way to a wise tolerance. The stability of this rule
huwever depends on the personal factors and on the strength and iealousies of
the tribal confederations. But the Sultan's Government have little to fear as
the power of the Omauis should it be directed against them, will automat:callv
become less as the reform of the Sultan's administration progresses and its
strength increases. ^ ttliU ils :
(3) Reform and progress of the Sultan 's
controlled hyhim.
, end of 1919 had seen the Sultan's debts paid off by a loan of six and
and a half lakhs One lakh is equal to one hundred thousand rupees ^f rupees Indian silver coin also widely used in the Persian Gulf. , a radical change in the customs administration
under the control of Egyptian officers, and the rough fixing of the monthlv
Sta,te expenditure and of the Sultan's privy purse. The three months workuJ
of the new system from October to the end of December 1919 has so far iusti?
of RsTlam treasury after meeting all expenses showed a balance
Much however remained to be done, and the appointment of a British
adviser to the Sultan had been sanctioned as an experimental measure, in the
hope that he would be able to inaugurate the reforms and to impart such momen
tum to the wheels of the administration, that the machine would be able
in a short space of time to function by itself without outside assistance This
JVbruary? n McCollum, I. A. K. O., arrived in the middle of
(a) Finances,
aotual finance of the State was clearly the most important matter as
on this depended the security of' our loan, and the ability of the State to
provide personnel and to pay a levy, without which things it could never hope
to stand by itself and so to relieve us of our heavy expenditure and dispropor
tionate responsibihties. The British adviser at once undertook a compHe
overhaul ot the salaries and establishments throughout the State. A uew and
reasonable civil list was prepared, surplus and useless personnel was ruthlessly
abolished and absurd contracts which had existed unchallenged for yealTwere
replaced by businesslike arrangements. New sources of revenue Were explo-
red. The quarantine and landing arrangements were put on a sound footing
and proi ed a lucrative source of income. At the same time old and useless