File 868/1912 Pt 7 'Arms Traffic: Muscat Arms. - Disposal of. Sample Arms from Muscat. French stocks at Muscat.' [‎70v] (147/508)

They may be briefly summarized as follows :—
A rm s. 8,950 weapons in all were taken over and disposed of as under :
Kifles of *303 and -450 bores set aside for despatch to Kirkee Arsenal
{vide Statement C) . • •• • • * * * * 6 ’ 458
Rifles etc. of other bores retained for sale {vide Statement D) .. 2,055
’ ’ 437
Rifles jettisioned in deep sea .. • • • • ''
8,950
Ammunitim .—All ammunition for -303 and -450 bores was jettisoned in
deep sea.
All ammunition for other bores was jettisioned except a suitable proportion
for such rifles as were retained for sale.
4 Statement ‘ C ’ gives the list of arms of -303 and -450 bores to be sent to
the Kirkee Arsenal. These have been packed as carefully as possible m wooden
eases marked on the outside with the number of weapons m each case, their Serial
No according to the original Inventory, and the calibre. It is hoped that this
arrangement will facilitate the work of disposal at Kirkee. These arms are ready
for despatch and I would respectfully solicit early orders regarding their shipment
to India as the damp climate of Maskat is likely to prove detrimental to them.
5. Tabular Statement ‘ D ’ shows the arms and ammunition retained for sale.
As these will have to conform to the Maskat Arms Warehouse Regulations, they
have been brought on to the books of the Superintendent of the State Warehouse,
though they continue to be stored under a Guard in the British Consulate^ where,
as a portion of the entire French stock, they were brought for examination and
disposal by the Committee.
6. The total of arms acquired by Government, according to the original
Inventory, comes to 8,988, while the number now actually taken over amounts
to 8,950.
The discrepancy of 38 is accounted for as under :—
Samples already sent to Europe (vide Enclosure to Maskat letter* No.
****-* «—• ***.i±t&i % 890, dated the 6th September 1913, to
the Secretary to the Government of
India in the Foreign Department.. 33
Received short (vide ‘ Proces verbal ’) • • • • • • ^
38
7 A report regardirg the expenditure incurred by the Committee in connec
tion with the disposal of those stocks is being submitted to you separately.
■ 8 In concluding this report I would beg to express my appreciation of the
assistance rendered to the Committee by Captain A N. Dickson I.M.S. Captam
Oliver, 102nd K. E. O. Grenadiers, and Khan Sahib Ikhlas-ud-Din, Police Inspector
on special duty, all of whose services were invaluable.
The work of jettisioning the rejected weapons and ammunition was entrusted
to Lieutenant Palmer, R. N, Commanding H. M. S. Armed Launch “ Mashona ,
to whom I am also much indebted.
9 A copy of this report, together with its enclosures, has been despatched to the
Secretary to the Government of India in the Foreign and Political Department,
Sub-Enclo. 1 of Enclo. of Serial No. 101.
Proces verbal.
A Mascate (Oman),
En presence des soussignes : Lt-Colonel Benn, Consul de _ S. M. Bri-
tannique a Mascate, et A. Jeannier, Consul de France en la meme residence,