Coll 29/22 'Compensatory allowance in lieu of customs exemption to officers serving in Persia and the Persian Gulf' [‎95r] (191/396)

from the Vice-Consul’s house, while the houses of the
European colony are scattered over a large area at
considerable distances from each other.
6. The electricity supply is provided by the
Public Works Department of the Oovernment of India at
twelve annas a unit and the consumption is as heavy or
heavier In summer - on account of the use of fans - as
in winter.
7. The customs item represents landing and
clearing charges only on imported articles, as until the
last few months Mr. Baillie has enjoyed customs exemption.
The period of grace has now ended and hia expenses have
been greatly Increased by customs duties, which with road
tax amount to over one hundred per centum of the value of
some articles. Unlike posts on the Persian plateau,
Bushire im a place where almost everything in the way of
foodstuffs, especially fruit and Vegetables and butter,
has to be imported. The drain on the pockets of those
who live there is correspondingly severe. I enclose
some figures Illustrative of the duties and taxes paid
on imported goods in recent months by residents of Bushire.
8. You will observe that in Mr. Baillie’s
budget no allowance is made for medical treatment (that
is, nursing expenses or any special treatment which the
Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. surgeon, cannot provide), dental treatment (as
the nearest dentist is at Abadan or Karachi, the actual
dentist's bill would be a mere fraction of the cost of
treatment), expenditure on clothing for himself, his family
and servants, servants' new year gratuities, saving in
anticipation of leave, newspapers, children's education,
or the subscriptions to which Consular officers are
constantly exposed. Even without these necessary, and In
/most