Coll 30/33 'Persian Gulf, Trucial Coast. Policy of H.M.G. List of Trucial Sheikhs' [‎344r] (687/818)

20 members Its meetings are weekly—10 members sitting on alternate Thursdays,
iintler an A1 Khalifa president. It deals with trade disputes, on the whole
expeditious y and well. Its members aie all appointed by Shaikh Hamad subject, in
the case of foreign members, to the Political Agent’s veto.
1 he Salilah consists of three Arab experts versed in the customary law relating to
living. Uefoie 1*123 ibis Court consisted of one venal old man, whose decisions were
a disgiace to the State. Xow, except for a bias against foreigners, it functions
satisfactorily.
brom this description it will be seen that except in the Court of the Political
Agent- established under the Order in Council—a member of the A1 Khalifa is
-associated with all the proceedings of justice. Even the Political Agent’s Court refers
many matters for native opinion and advice.
As aheady stated, the A1 Khalifa are uneducated and ignorant, and it. would be
impossible for them to manage affairs without the support given them by the Political
Agent or the Adviser. Both Shaikh Hamad—when he can be aroused to interest him-
sell—and his son, Sulaiman, on all occasions, are excellent in dealing with cases
demanding local knowledge; but as they themselves confess, they would not pass
sentences of death or take action against prominent men without the support of their
-advisers. In the course of time Shaikh Sulaiman may get sufficient courage to stand
on his own feet. A successor will be trained to take his place when he succeeds his
father in the rulership or gets tired of his magisterial work.
(f) Before 1923 the divers were wholly in the hands of their nakhudas and the
merchants, who worked through the single venal member of the Salifah. Now a
proper system of accounts has been established and, thanks to the supervision of the
Courts over the Salifah, the divers have very little cause for complaint. Their lot,
from being the worst, has become the best in the Gulf.
(g) Bahrain, in addition to town sites, has an extensive area under gardens. It
was found that Shaikh Isa, as Lord of the Soil, in his happy-go-lucky wav, had
frequently sold or gifted the same area to two or even three different persons" ’ The
result was innumerable disputes, which could only be terminated by careful enquiry
followed by an accurate survey. A survey of all towns and of certain village areas
followed.
At first the survey of villages was resented, as people could not understand the
reason for it, but now they have come to realise its benefits. Those villages which
have not hitherto been surveyed, owing to paucity of staff, have begun to demand
that a survey should be carried out immediately.
(h) Public works have not been numerous, and there is no regular Public Works
Department; but public utility works, such as the sea wall and the road alongside
it, are much appreciated. One of the-results of these works is. that the inhabitants
of Kuwait and other ports are apt to point to the deficiencies of their home towns
-and get into trouble with their Shaikhs, but the leaven works. If Bahrain continues
on his own initiative to supply public gardens and walks, start electric schemes
and carry out works for the public benefit, such as the proposed causeway from
Manama to Muharraq, it is sure, by its example, to ameliorate the conditions in its
lesser advanced sisters on the Arab coast, and wean ihem from that surly isolation in
which most of them live.
I mention “on its own initiative ” because all public utility schemes—except the
Manama sea wall and road, which are the work of Major Daly—were conceived by
Bahrain subjects themselves, though they have looked to their European advisers
for guidance. The British name is benefited by this progress.
(t) Education is still backward, but thanks to the push of Shaikh Abdulla, the
Ruler’s brother, it has made immense strides during the past two years. The drive
in this case has come wholly from Bahrain subjects themselves Except in the
matter of making hitherto fruitless efforts to persuade Shaikh Hamad to educate his
own sons, neither the 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. nor the Adviser has taken any steps unduly to
push education, although their services in obtaining masters from Iraq have been
put at the service of the State when asked. Syrian and Iraqi masters have been
imported in most cases without the intervention of the 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. or Adviser,
at good salaries, and there are now five indigenous Arabic boys’ schools and one
girls’ school on the island, in addition to two Persian nationalist schools. In addition,
eight Bahrain boys, including three close relations of the Ruling Chief, have been
sent to the American University at Beirut for education.
I trust that these three boys will turn out well, and with Shaikh Mubarak—the
most promising of the sons of Shaikh Hamad—will provide material for the higher