Ext 5034/44 'Discontent among Indian Personnel of Arabian American Oil Co. at Al Khobar and Dhahran' [‎9r] (17/36)

I
by air* I did my best to persuade them to accept air passages
but they refused on the grounds that they would be separated
from their luggage* Some of them appeared to have passed
their time in composing articles for Indian newspapers and
petitions to the Protector of Emigrants.
4* Some few days ago I was informed that a further sixty
Indian artisans had left work and were awaiting at A1 Khobar
for onward transport to Bahrain en-route to India. I was
informed that their conduct while there was very reprehensible
and that they had come into conflict with the Saudi Police.
They were* I understood, being accommodated in a large house
or houses at A1 Khobar and were being rationed by the Company*
The Company^ representative here complained that the Indians
ware selling their rations and the plates with which the Com
pany had provided them. They were said to have been taken
from Dhahran to A1 Khobar as the Company had no wish for them
to mix with their other employees and possibly persuade more
men to cease work.
5# On the 7th Mr.. Hosman accompanied by Mr. Rodstrom
called on the assistant Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. and intimated that they
were making an effort at reconciliation and that a letter had
been drafted which they hoped the Indian artisans in Bahrain
would, be prepared to sign. The letter stated the Company’s
view point with regard to what had occurred and made two
conditions to be fulfilled as a preliminary to resumption of
work. The first was that the Company would provide cooked
food from the 11th of November and the second that the arti
sans would not receive pay for the period that they had been
absent from work. The Company’s representatives explained
that rather more than 50 per cent of the original party of 206
had remained at work throughout and had put up with rather
difficult conditions and had co-operated fully with the Company.
The Company felt that some difference must be nade between
/those