File 2249/1915 Pt 4 ‘Oil: Mesopotamia & Persia. (General File) 1920–24’ [‎9r] (17/484)

ensuring the development of the Mineral resources of the
territory w-ich they will he called upon to administer*
• have also felt that to ©pen the. occupied territories
to prospectors during temporary mill tar;/ teriure weal, he most
undesirable a as it would inevitably lead to a rnuh of speculators
and others who, under the guise of simple investigation t would
aim at securing definite and exclusive rights or options from
native landowners*. i%rther, while a certain amount of freedom
of ©ommun i c at i on with towns and ports in Ee so pot ami a and
Palestine has been allowed in the interests of trade, it would,
he quite incompatible with the conditions of war which still
prevail in those countries, tl',at this freedom should he
extended to individuals who desire to travel and carry out
investigations in the interior*
Pith regard, to the Bta^idard Oil Company, 1 realise
that their complaint arises out of the fact that a representative
of the dhall group visited K© scoot ami a in tm early part of
this year* 1 think , however, y u already know that the visit
of tills representative was vu\ ertakcri without the knowledge or
consent either of this department or of tiie 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. , end
that steps were imnediateXy taicen for Ms recall an soon as
the object of his mission had been ascertained* The two
members of his party who remained behind were not permitted to
work mvf oil lands except for military purposes, and have
only been allowed to stay because their services have been
required by the nilitary authorities for the repair ma working
of certain refineries at %uaiyara in order to obtain supplies
of oil needed for military and transport pur;.-©see* They will
be recalled as soon m there is no further use for their services
in this direction*
I greatly regret that the mistake to which X have
referred was committed* But the worst way of rectifying it
would be to consent to its repetition* do innocent, indeed
have Ms Majeoty 1 s Oovemment been of any conscious discrimin
ation that we have refused at least eleven applications from
British