File 3852/1912 Pt 2 'Persia. Conditions in South Persia. German Documents' [‎226v] (84/280)

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III ' * 1
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diplomatic language, but clear enough to anyone who knows
how to read between the lines 1 ).
While refuting the presumption that England could on
its own initiative increase by 10% the import duties of the
sovereign State of Persia and designating this measure, which in
itself could only be welcome to Persia, as being within the pow
er of its government alone, he opposes to the English complav^
about commercial losses the fact that in spite of the general
“insecurity” the import into Persia in the preceding year had
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to as well as
gone up 10% f
England at last carried through its demands, even if in
a modified shape, jointly with Russia and of course in return for
new loans being made for which security was offered by pledg
ing in the first place the entire customs revenue and secondly
the receipts from the telegraphs and the mint. In these
loans the payment of the pension to the ex-Shah — the mainten
ance of the Cossack-Brigade (which since the beginning
of the constitutional movement had been used by Russia for
its suppression) the payment and arming of the troops, especi-
ally the creation of a gendarmerie occupied a large space.
Italy had declined to furnish instructors, but from Sweden
a consent had been received. On August 15% ipn, Hjalmarson,
the general instructor of the Persian Gendarmerie together
with two comrades arrived in Teheran; other Swedish officers
soon followed him. Thus the foundation was laid of that
Persian Gendarmerie whose acts aroused so much attention in the
world war — a body which had been created through the pressure
of England for the security of Persian trade routes of commerce
under the command of Swedish officers in the pay of Persia.
The year 1911 becomes one of the most remarkable in the
more recent history of Persia through the arrival of the American
Morgan Shuster whose services as Treasurer General had been
acquired by the mediation of the American Government and by
resol ution of Parliament and who replaced the Frenchman Bizot 2 ).
Thes
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toed by Rui
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' 5 »as said,with
I ) English Blue Books Persia No. i (1911) No. 199 and enclosure.
■) Shuster (Strangling of Persia, p. 66) characterises Bizots activity with
American outspokenness: “Bizot bequeathed to the patient and trusting
I ersian government a type-written report of 30 pages, edited in beautiful
Fiench and expressing Bizots opinion as to what somebody should do to reor
ganize Persia’s fiscal system.”