Coll 28/112A ‘Persia. Tabriz – Monthly despatches of internal situation in Azerbaijan & misc. reports.’ [‎549r] (1100/1237)

[32—38]
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that steps be taken to prevent a recurrence of such behaviour by British troops.
I gave him ample opportunity to pull gracefully out of his blunder, but there is
no grace in him, and five days after the incident I had to write him a firm letter.
Faced with firmness he gave me satisfaction at once and has since made very
friendly approaches. But he is no friend of the Allies- at heart. Soviet
colleague had reached this decision before I had, and both of us would be glad
to see him removed.
In the first months of fright and disorganisation following the occupation,
Persian officials were glad to visit the British and other non-Russian Consulates
in search of reassurance and comfort. They are still polite and obliging, but my
impression is that they are becoming rather more stand-offish again. It may be
that with time their fears of the Russians have diminished, but it is also possible
that they are returning gradually to Reza Shah’s policy of aloofness. I know that
Mr. Mahvi, sent from Tehran to administer funds for the relief of the pillaged
villagers at Rezaieh, wanted to come and see me, but was prevented by
Mr. Muvassaghi, the Governor.
8. Consular Colleagues .—The Consular Corps does not function as
such, but, if it did, the Turkish Consul-General would be doyen. He has two
vice-consuls, one of whom is a special service man. r l he other is being transferred
to Tehran, and it is said that a consul from the Foreign Office at Angora will
take his place.
With such a staff, the consul-general has little to do. He spends many hours
a dav listening to the wireless, and is soaked with German propaganda. In
one of his more excited moments he offered to give me a written guarantee, and
to back it with any sum, that the Germans would reach Tabriz this summer, and
that Azerbaijan would suffer even worse vicissitudes than during the last war.
Always nervous and much addicted to medicaments and injections, he spent the
latter half of June in transports of excitement over German progress in Russia
and in Libya, but the end of the month found him prostrate in great pam from
an appareiitlv inoperable abscess in the rectum.
The Soviet Consul-General is in the ranks of progressive Russian officials.
His countenance does occasionally become heavy, but he is generall} responsive,
and I think has become increasingly so since the treaty was signed. I consider
myself fortunate in having such a colleague.
The American Consul arrived in Tabriz a few days ahead of me. We have
much in common. He travelled part of the way by air, possesses two suits until
his heavy baggage arrives, occupies a partly-furnished house in lonely discomfort
and has a quite inadequate staff. He talks Russian well.
Since the death of the Iraqi Consul at the time of the Russian entry into
Tabriz the Iraqi Government has Kept here a timid and very junior vice-consul.
He would dearly like to get away, but apparently no consul can be persuaded to
come here. He^is well disposed'and gave a very good feast on the birthday of
his King.
At Rezaieh the Russians had only a very green vice-consul until after the
Kurdish trouble, when they sent a senior vice-consul from Tabriz, Mr. Maximoff,
with the rank of consul. Mr. Maximoff is a good man, with a sense of humour,
but he has to contend with some troublesome Caucasian political officers, who are
attached to the consulate and who tend to make him less forthcoming than he
otherwise might be.
The only other consular representative at Rezaieh is the Turkish. Normally
the post is held by a consul, a sick man still absent despite reports recently that
he was being sent back. The post is therefore in the charge of an ardent and
excitable man who is referred to here as a vice-consul, although I note that the
ambassador calls him a chancellier. He makes no secret of his distrust of the
Russians, and his favourite remark is “ Moi, je suis le seul temoin de leurs
crimes ! ” 5 He is given to exaggeration and indiscretion in speech. He lives with
a machine gun and a whole series of other firearms in his bedroom.
The Russians have a vice-consul at Maku, but I have not met him.
9. Public Health .—Nothing unusual to report. Drugs are supposed to be
very scarce, but the American doc*tor tells me that good stocks do exist, but that
they are deliberately being held back in order to secure higher and still higher
prices.
10. Public Order.—My munshi A term used in the Middle East, Persia and South Asia to refer to a secretary, assistant or amanuensis. Munshis were employed in the British administration in the Gulf. reports that, following the Kurdish trouble
in Rezaieh, people were sighing for the good days of Reza Shah and wishing he
might return and re-establish his wonderful order and security. I deal with the
Kurdish rising elsewhere.