Coll 30/200 ‘Persian Gulf. Tour of Political Resident from Bahrein to Muscat in L. T. Nearchus.’ [‎19r] (38/133)

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15* I then went to eee the wireleefc fetation
whicii was under Japtain .-dimed'e charge* He had been
supplied with comprehensive orders by Jap tain Keen,
when he was at Bandar .dibas. Instructing him how to
proceed, and it wag clear from hit remarks that he
was suffering from a slight excess of zeal* He
complained bitterly of the dishoneety and incapacity
of the local iersian off id alt ana appeared very anxious
to set the acta inis tr&tl an right, but i advised him to
proceed slowly and stick to the duties outlined for him
which were to control the wireless station and supply us
with what information he could secure* K* ie, however,
a very promising young man, with «|ulte a respectable
knowledge of tertian, and i have every hope that under
>r* Rogers' direction he will prove entirely satisfactory*
He controls the isdrelesc station by the simple process
of locking the door of the place and taking the key away with
him md did not consider it was possible to immobilise the
macnineiy during his absence, but was <iuite certain that his
method was fully effective* the actual work of transmission
is supervised by him personally* He has, however, made
certain other arrangements to keep himself informed of the
Telegraph Master'a actions*
«
I than visited the light house and inspected Its
me onanism and m quite convinced that my original diagnosis of
it a irregular! ty was correct, ly that it had not been
signalling; to ax. 13 submarines but that the personnel had been
misappropriating the fbel for the lamp*
• 15* It is coca si anally suggested that Persians cannot
abide Indians in a position of authority *nd that it is out of
the question to utilise them in this country* while it is oleai
that a Dravidian coolie A term used to describe labourers from a number of Asian countries, now considered derogatory. is not likely to have much influence,
1 have never found that there is any objection to Indians of
good status, especially those from Northern India, and I have
frequently recommended their employment* 1 was much impressed
by the success attained by dap tain Ha»san in the Kerman
f 1 district, in a post that brought him into conflict with vested
interests, and it is interesting to record that Captain Ahmad,
who is almost straight from college, has at.t^lned a complete
asowdanay over his area, without, so far as I could ascertain,
any objections using raided*
17* My distinguished predecessor, the late Sir Percy
Cox, prophesied that the raising of customs dues and the
extension of Persian bureaucratic control would lead to the
decline of the south Persian ports, and that Sharjah and Dubai
would rise in their place* this has largely come to pass
thanks to the Pahlavi regime, but the war has greatly increased
their difficulties* _ The restrictions upon exports to and
imports from India, Iraq and the T>*S*a*, the diversions of
shipping and the dislocation of internal security have had a
deadly effect and caused untold misery to thousands, in fact
there can be few areas, apart from Central Europe, which will
have paid so great a juries for the ultimate Allied triumph*
In 1941 I met many colonies of Persian emigres on the Batlnah,
and numbers have sold themselves into slavery in order to eat*
Last Spring 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. Bahrain saw hundreds of 4
destitute Persians who were crowding into the Truoial Coast,
and counted ten corpses on the beach at Sharjah in a single
mornir^i •