‘File 2/32 ACQUISITION OF PERMANENT AIR FACILITIES’ [‎77r] (153/338)

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India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. ,
/.'life Hall,
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7th Jmie, -1944.
Dear Prior,
ionised in oir telegran, I enclose an entract
from Professor Coupl.a:.d ! s u fast nf^ica and its Invaders” ydich
ives ,q ..its an entertaiiiin _ ocqoi nt oi pur dealing's \/i uu u e
Iitari over the Hurl a uria Islands* according to douplano,
the incentive for 'cur >ro )osed acq’nisitibn ■, f c .e n.-i
provided 07 one Santa in Ord, the us ter o a iercnant shi , 4
;;ho touched at the Islands aiid sa , g a..io t-.ere <..nd on Is
return to mi; land v/rote to- the foreign Of .’ice aoout i*c>
uuano ha;o iened to be a latter in mich t.ie . ritish agric -tural
community was interested at t ie tie and Loro Jla-rendon ac
the Foreign office Look the natter up. The as; is ounce of
the Admiralty was invoke and instructions ere given to dapta
Fremantle of H* • . 0 • "Juno”, ,tnen 0 x*./g to sail iomuastralia^,
4 - t' /.ere
one
to call at Hauzibur, consult t a Poll leal ent,
; A;;or Ha: .erton, and proceed ..1th the latoer’s .assistance to
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let cor 1 ich -axle no ..HuSicn - : to .uano ,ut gave tne Imam to
understand that England wished to possess ti ese ±slau s in
order to .»revent the . coning, info the iossession of am; o oner
British steamers and as a naval station^for spores*
story is then continued in the enclosed extract.
Having thus obtained possession of the Islands, n.l ._
G. ;ere* af lie ted by certain d 01 Ijts as. to the genuineness c.
\iiat he robably '..miev/ already, namely, that a .lair., er reason ia
the Government 1 a desire to ac ire the Isl-aids h/as that there
out
... They therefore offered to pay him
a fixed s pm'ano. a sharefpf any profits 1 . at * 1 ,; it accrue
Laid would hot accept anything.
.Meanwhile Messrs. Ord Oc Co. having obtained, the
umno concession, a mh.le for t le protection of a n rs, ip b
ine Islands, but the iralty, on ap lication being, .ac" e to
tne i oy
Govemmen 4 "
the foreign Office, refused to co-operate.
nt ( Ho resented tie fLct t' ; .t they mad not previously
been .consulted), be in. asked j or tmeir s 1 st ice s no /c tmemt?
sieves frankly hostile to the -whole, enterprise. Meanwhile
Ord 1 s nart ' .••ere e.i Celled • ty 150 "aried pimtes - ” f rom ;he
mainland and claimed compensation from the Government ^ for their
failure to provide the promised protection. The Admiralty
finally a, read to send a ship to enaole Ord to - re-wc e operation
/)
-s.
ent at Adeii #
hired for tme
any ..ore from
was
regarding Ord 1 s treatment of the labourers lie mad.
..ork, amd . e ums fimll; ..for jicleesi to recruit
mritish •soil. A substantial a.uount of guano
, ho wever j s ecure; in smite of all lie dif icuities', a ic
the Spring qi 18; 8 as tang ak 10 s ips The branch of the British Government of India with responsibility for managing political relations between British-ruled India and its surrounding states, and by extension the Gulf, during the period 1937-47. were eng^.ged in she
■work. The. licence to Ord and Mis partners v; ~s formahlyj
*ter linated in 1861 and this sferiewbjat .discreditc ole episode
was thus brought to aix end.
* the Commander of ‘the ship and from the Political
in