Coll 28/67 ‘Persia. Annual Reports, 1932–’ [‎18v] (36/644)

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188. During the year every opportunity was taken of explaining to
Teymourtache the modest nature of the naval establishment, which included
nothing remotely resembling a naval base. Teymourtache showed that he quite
understood the nature of the depot, which he described as a “ gar^onniere,” but
explained that the Persian attitude was not based on any material consideration,
but on purely psychological factors. In September, after the formal request for
evacuation had been made on the ground that the anchorage was needed for th^
Persian navy, His Majesty’s Minister gave him a copy of Admiralty Cha^^-
No. 3597, showing “Henjam Sound,” and a plan of the shore buildings based on
a sketch-map prepared by direction of the Senior Naval Officer in 1928.
189. In March the Protocol Department asked why the British flag was still
flying at Hen jam, where there was no consulate (the fact that it flew from a
flagstaff was not specifically mentioned) : and were told that this was a part of
the status quo agreement, an explanation to which they demurred. At the same
time it was suggested that if the question were to be raised, Teymourtache should
raise it with His Majesty’s Minister, who was then in the Gulf. Nothing further
was heard of the question, but in the subsequent discussions as to the line to be
eventually adopted, the Admiralty expressed the opinion that if the Persian
Government made the discontinuance of the flag a sine qua non for the grant of
facilities, to comply would be preferable to leaving altogether.
190. In view of the uncertainty as to the continued grant of facilities at
Hen jam, it proved impossible to make any progress with details, such as the terms
of the suggested lease. His Majesty’s Minister formed the opinion, however, that
the prospects of obtaining a formal lease were very remote, and that the most that
might be hoped for was some assurance that His Majesty’s ships would be allowed
to visit Henjam as in the past for the purposes of refuelling and recreation. His
Majesty’s Government, while preferring a lease, appeared willing to accept this
if nothing better could be obtained.
Henjam {General).
191. Such incidents as occurred during the year were mostly due to the
mistaken zeal or malicious perversity of the quarantine medical officer. On the
9th April the Anglo-Persian Oil Company tanker Khuzistan arrived in the
anchorage and went straight alongside H.M.S. Fowey without waiting to obtain
'pratique. Although no communication took place between the two vessels, this
was a technical breach of the regulations, and the Persian Government would have
been quite justified in formulating a complaint through the diplomatic channel.
The quarantine medical officer, however, notwithstanding the fact that he found
the Khuzistan free from infection, took it upon himself to adopt what were, in
fact, disciplinary measures, by refusing the Khuzistan pratique and placing the
Fowey in quarantine for twenty-four hours.
192. A little later, on the 20th April, the same official refused to allow the
agent of the British India Steam Navigation Company to go aboard the steamship
Baroda or to permit members of the crew of H.M.S. Shoreham to collect mail and
provisions brought by the Baroda for the Shoreham. He gave as his reason that
the Baroda was in quarantine, but he allowed passengers to land and the mudir
of Customs and the Admiralty tally clerk to go on board. The next day he
explained that the ship had never been in quarantine, and that his orders were due
to the fact that the ship’s deratisation certificate had expired. It was
subsequently shown that the certificate was still valid on the 20th April, though
admittedly due to expire in three days’ time, and that in any case article 28 of
the International Sanitary Convention, under which the Persian Government
later sought to justify his action, afforded no ground for such action, least of all
by an official of a port not scheduled as possessing deratisation facilities.
193. Both incidents formed the subject of energetic protests at Tehran.
194. In June the quarantine medical officer informed the officer commanding
H.M.S. Fowey, the only ship then in harbour, that in future all members of the
crews of warships must either be distinguishable by their uniform or produce a
written pass signed by their commander. The enforcement of such an order would
have caused the greatest inconvenience, as the ships’ crews constantly landed in
sports kit or in “tropical dress,” with which they wore no badges of rank or