File 600/1905 Pt 3 'Aden Hinterland: Situation; Withdrawal of Political Agent from Dthala; Treaties with Haushabi, Kotaibi and Alawi chiefs' [‎231r] (457/508)

Prom tT - h U °’ ^ B ° ml5ay CaStle ' ^ 6tU 1906. "^51^
from—Ihe Honourible Sib Stevbt™ m 1 ,.
To-The theU ° Ve “ » £ Bomba^PolStiil DapaT^Bt 0 ' 1 ®-' Chief
T am G0Vernment Foreign Depnrrment.
I am directed to forward herewitli f • c
of India, copy of a letter from the Political ? f the 6ove ™ment
the Hth August 1906, and of 0, cci Resl(ient; ’ A ' lei ‘. Ko. 5039, dated
Political OfficiatDthalaiu mevoni ng serim,?V r ^^ inS . '" e ac,i °“ °f the
and Shairi tribes. peg serious hostlllt ‘es between tl, e Amiri
of the\®L“X ^f op~hlt Mart .TT Wit * h the rema '- k ’
Woodshed at the moment, and has increased t] s ^ ctl0n P rev ented
occurrence in the future by enhancing the resnect of 0 a similar
rendered to their Suzerain by the British 1 ^ tnbeS ±0r tbe 8 u PP ort
No. 5039, dated Aden Resiliency, the 24th August 1906.
From—— Majou-Cteneral E, DeBrath C B C T "F nn; ■ n v, • -r.
Aden, ’ > L 0ffic iatmg Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. ,
To-The Chief Secretary to the Government of Bombay From c. 1668-1858, the East India Company’s administration in the city of Bombay [Mumbai] and western India. From 1858-1947, a subdivision of the British Raj. It was responsible for British relations with the Gulf and Red Sea regions. , Political Department.
f 116 h l m0 ^ \° f o i - ward -herewith, for the information of Government
1he 17th instarit » received by me from the Political
A ent, Dthala, and to remark that under the circumstances the course of
ac mn nkeu by Major Jacob appears to have been the only one po~aud
not to have exceeded the requirements of the case.
Confidential.
c ^. <Iie 1 „ 5 t J 1 and synchronously with the Resident’s arrival in Dthala,
at tMc^n 8 ° f the Atmr > together with the people of Al Kabar (Amiri), stopped
t tins village a convoy of camels carrying rations from one of our camps
to another. The Amin soldiers claimed an illegal tax (as the Amir afterwards
admitted) from these camelmen, all of whom were Shairi-Amiri, and in the
ensuing brawl a prominent man, the Akil of “ Hazat-al-Khulaki ” (Shaid),
was shot dead. After a great deal of persuasion I induced both parties to cease
ring. Ihe ^ Sl^ri-Amiri relations have been strained for years, and just prior
0 my assuming charge in November 1904, a Jalila man (Shairi) had been killed
m light by the Amiri soldiers. These two deaths the Shairis have been
clamouring to avenge in accordance with the demands of the “ lex talionis.*’
1 hough averse to interfering in tribal disputes, I felt bound to intervene at
the present time, for, quite apart from the vicinity of our camps to the scene
of their operations, I had long since gauged the situation and had seen that
the Amir’s fogs were chiefly oL.his own tribesmen, and that sent here to < ive
the Amir moral support, it was incumbent on me to try by every means to
bring the parties to some amicable settlement. To tin's both the Amir and the
chairi Akils in part, were outwardly agreeable. Since the said 15th July,
I have striven to achieve my end, but owing to the presence of a few evil spirits
amongst the Shairis, and also, I regret to say, to frequent ill-conceived inter
ference on the Amir’s part, I had only a week ago told the parties! must with
draw from the position of arbitrator. The Shairi were told by me that I was
hound to uphold the Amir their suzerain, and, so if they made a wanton
attack on him in the vicinity of our camps, I should be obliged actively to
interfere; that if they would retaliate quietly on the principle of “an eye
for an eye ”, I should say nothing. They promised not to disturb the peace
of the country and left the conference.
On the 15th instant, at 10 a m., advancing in many bands, the Shairis
niade an unprovoked attack on Al Kabar. I sent word to the Amir to stop
his men participating, and this he certainly at first did to a remarkable degree.
I further sent 2 messengers to the Jalila people and Akils of the Shairis,
reminding them in express terms of the consequence of a continuance of the