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221 Fuad Bey is probably correct in claiming, as he has done m conversa
tion with His Majesty's Minister, that constitutional forms matter very little
in this country, and that the King has five men whom he trusts and through whom
he works, without being particular whether he always uses the same channel
five are the Amirs Baud and Faisal, Sheikh Abdullah feulaiman, Sheikh Yusuf
Yasin, and himself, Fuad Bey. It is, however, important to keep in mind a point
which Fuad Bey did not mention, viz., that one of these, Sheikh Abdullah
Sulaiman, differs from the others in enjoying a wider measure of independence
or rather in having some independence whereas the others have none, it seems
certain that the King, who manages all political affairs himself, gives Abdullah
Sulaiman a free hand in the Finance Department so long as he produces funds
for the Royal purposes whenever called upon to do so. It is curious that a man
with so deep a knowledge of Arab human nature as the King possesses should
be so indifferent to the effect of heavy taxation on his people. A recent calcula
tion shows that the retail price of sugar in the Jedda bazaar is over four times
the cost c.i.f. Jedda, and that nearly all the difference goes into the coffer of the
State or rather into the coffer controlled by Abdullah Sulaiman On the other
hand’ Abdullah Sulaiman seems to make no attempt to effect regular payment ot
the salaries of small officials and police, but makes odd payments now and then
to keep the complainants alive and at work. Mr. Philby, who as an ex-Indian
Civil Servant has been brought up to realise the immense importance of revenue
policy, criticises this indifference of Ibn Sand's on this point as a great defect
in his regime and a serious danger. He maintains that not only has Abdulla
Sulaiman a free hand in finance' but that he keeps no proper accounts, and it is
considered that this charge is probably well founded.
IV.— Military and Naval Organisation.
222. The prospect of a steady flow of cash into the Treasury from the Hasa
oil royalties has encouraged Ibn Sand to express the intention of establishing a
standing army, and a Mecca paper even announced a forthcoming militaiy review
of 30,000 men at Riyadh. In fact, it is improbable that much has been done to
develop the armed forces of this country beyond making small increases m the
three existing military bodies, “ zikurt," “ shurta ’ and the army proper
(paragraph 189 of 1937).
223. In the Interior of the Hejaz little military development took place,
but along the northern frontier continued activity is reported. Guns as well as
machine guns are said to have been seen at Tebuk, while the detaenments holding
frontier posts on the Iraq frontier are now equipped like those on the Trans
jordan side, with cars, wireless and riding camels.
224. In March a consignment of guns and small arms presented by the
Italian Government to Ibn Saud reached Jedda. It was said that the present
was to give Ibn Saud an idea of what Italy could produce in the way of arms, but
nothing has been heard since of any orders for quantities being placed, though
an unconfirmed report indicated that an order had been placed through a Swiss
firm. At the time Ibn Saud told His Majesty’s Minister that he had been obliged
to accept the present against his will.
225. Saudi Arabia still possesses nothing in the way of a naval force.
V. —Aviation.
Saudi A ir Force.
226. In spite of the acceptance by the Saudi Government of the Air
Ministry’s offer of training of Saudi mechanics at the Royal Air Force depot at
Aboukir, no attempt to take advantage of the offer was made during 1938. The
legation never discovered what was the cause of the delay, though at one time
the authorities seemed to have been waiting for the British to take the next step,
whereas the arrangement had been that the details should be settled between the
Saudi representative in Cairo and the British authorities concerned. It is