'Administration Reports 1925-1930' [‎41v] (87/418)

67
Leading Shaikhs, such as the Shaikh of Yunkul and of the A1 Nairn tribe
of 1 )hank and south of Baraimi were summoned to meet him and piepaied to
pay their respects.
An important Shaikh,- the Shaikh of Tbri, surrendered his town and fort
at the persuasion of his fellow Grhafiri Shaikh, Shaikh Salaiman bin Hamyai.
'! }i(. latter promised that the surrender should be nominal and only for four days,
when the fort and town would be handed back.
As this was not done on the fixed period expiring, the Shaikh of Ibrl up
braided Sulaiman bin Hamyar. The latter went to Isa bin Saleh and demanded
thai he should keep his promise and hand back the fort.
A quarrel ensued and Shaikh Sulaiman left Isa bin Saleh^ taking away his
fighting' men with him.
This defection had an instantaneous effect on Tsa bin Saleh s schemes, "which
immediately collapsed. He was forced to beat a hasty retreat back to Kabil in
Sharqiyah, and the Ghafiri Shaikhs who were on their way to submit to him.
Immediately returned to their homes.
It is quite clear that if Ibn Sand wishes to invade Oman there is no one wk>
could make any stand against him.
It is generally believed that Ibn Sand is pro-British, or rather
that the British support Ibn Saud. Hence Sulaiman el Baruni's intrigues
in this matter as he always takes the side of the anti-Europeans,
El Baruni has been corresponding with Egyptian newspapers regularly
since his entering the hinterland, and the burden of his reports is to the effect
that the British Government, Ibn Saud, and His Highness the Sultan of Muscat
havo made a secret treaty by which Ibn Saud gets the hinterland of Oman, while
the British take the port of Dubai. It is not quite clear what His Highness the
Sultan of Muscat is to get out of this secret pact.
Arms Traffic. —No arms were imported into Muscat during the year under
report and if any arms are imported into Oman it is by land routes. The geo
logists of the Anglo -Persian Oil Company report that the Arabs in the interior
were well armed with small bore rifles.
Slave Trade.—B. unaway slaves from the Oman coast have frequently sought
protection at this Agency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent. . 31 slaves applied for freedom of whom 29 were
manumitted after investigation of their cases. Two cases remained pending at
the end of the year.
Registration of British Subjects and their interests. —British subjects ^ and
British protected persons have with few exceptions regularly registered them
selves at this Agency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent. . During the year under report 267 British subjects and
420 British protected persons were registered. Owing to the scarcity of ram
for the last 7 or 8 years the interior of Oman has suffered seriously. Many date
-roves have simply dried up for want of water and villages been deserted.^ The
absence of rain in Oman has greatly contributed to the geneial depiession ot
trade in Muscat. British subjects, who previously handled 95 per cent, ot the
trade in Muscat, are leaving Muscat and returning to India.
The fall in the prices of dates has been phenomenal this year. The aver
age price of wet " dates in 1924*was Us. 140 per Bahar'', i.e. 1800 lbs., while
this vear it fell to only Rs. 75. The reasons for this drop were the very bad
peariins- season and that there was no demand for dates at Dubai as in pre
vious years.
The price of a dollar veried from Bs. 159 to Es. 189 per $100 according to
the silver market and local demands.
The average price per 100 dollars was:-—
January
February
March
April
May
June
185
July
,, 168.7
181
August
,, 171.5
181
September
.., 168.5
181.5
October
,. 167.8
183.7
November
,. 171.5
168.5
December
., 181