'File 18/55 I (C 101) Bahrain Order in Council' [‎184r] (381/477)

of the aeaaona in the case of people intereated in the
pearl trade. The time of the Court taken up by cases of
this description amounts to a few minutes on each of two
days and only a very small number of suits are followed by
execution proceedings in which money is actually collected
and ^hidma* paid.
The total amount of ^hidma* paid to the Shaikh and
his officials amounted in 1913 to R3.2,255/- and in 1914
to Rs.v5,708/- . This latter sum represents all the fees
taken on suits of a total value of about Rs.5,00,000/- .
It must be noted that ^hidma* is taken, not only when
one of the parties is a subject of the Shaikh of Bahrain,
but even when both parties are British subjects or foreignera
3. The institution of a regular and inelastic scale
of fees on institution of suits, however light the fees
might be, would inevitably cause a very considerable amount
of discontent among people who have been accustomed only to
pay for reault^and would tend to check these amicablo settle
-ments. In the attached table I have suggested a form of
fee to meet the case, i.e. a fee of Rs.2/8/- for decisions
in suits settled by consent without hearing witnesses. I
have also suggested a much lower scale for the fee on the
institution of an ordinary suit than is taken in Bushire
i.e. Rs.2/8 per cent as against 3 annas in the rupee, but I
have suggested R3 .7/8/- per cent as a fee on amounts collec
ted by the Court. These three provisiions, while upsetting
local custom as little as possible, should brin^ in consi
derably more than the present 'khidma' .
The same principle has been followed in suggesting fees
for administration and bankruptcy proceedings in which ^/lO
T khidma 1 is now taken. The other fees suggested are modi
fications of the Bushire scale calculated to suit the poorer
classes in Bahrain who provide the majority of suits.
The t forma pauperis t clause is taken from Section 61
(2) of the Order in Council A regulation issued by the sovereign of the United Kingdom on the advice of the Privy Council. .
I have excluded proceedings in which Bahrain subjects
are concerned from the list of fees under the headings
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