"ملف رقم II/٩ مذكرات معلومات من إدارة الخارجية بخصوص شؤون الخليج الفارسي ومسقط والساحل العربي من الخليج الفارسي. نوفمبر "٠٧ - ديسمبر "٠٨" [و‎‎٢‎٦] (١٣٢/٥٣)

PERSIAN GULP.
38. (Vide para. 11, January 1908.)
Abu Musa red oxide On the 10th January,
concession. His Majesty s secre
tary of State forwarded, for criticism and
correction of the statement of facts in the
German case, papers regarding the Abu Musa
affair.
The observations of the Political Resident
in the Persian Gulf were invited, and the latter,
on the 1st March, submitted material for
a rejoinder to the German arguments. On the
21st March a telegram to the following effect
was despatched to His Majesty’s Secretary of
State for India :—
With reference to the first German point,
viz., that Salim, uncle of Sheikh Sagar, was
the owner of the mines, and that as the lease
was given by him to a company in his capacity
as owner, Sagar had no right^ to annul it—-
it was pointed out that nothing in support of
this allegation was to be found in the papers
forwarded with the German case. The history
of the island showed that it was an integral
part of the dominions of the Sheikh of
Shargah, and Sheikh Sagar, in two letters to the
Resident in 1881, referred to the fact that Salim
only resided on the island on sufferance
It was a fact that, by personal and verbal
arrangement with Sagar, Salim did enjoy
the income of Abu Musa since Sugar ouste
him from the Sheikhdom. Sagar admitted
this, and said that Salim had also been allowed
by him to retain the rent for the mines paid
under the terms of the contract now in ques
tion, in order to stop Salim’s^ complaints as
to the inadequate allowance given by Sagar.
But all right of ownership of the island had
now categorically been disclaimed by Salim
in a letter to Sagar, dated the 21st February
1908, and bo had declared that in granting the
lease’he merely acted as proxy for Sagar.
An examination of the Agreements of
1883 1884, and 1889, between Sagar and
Salim, supported the genuineness of this
declaration. Further, the Sheikh in a letter
K Resident, dated the 11th October 1902,
referred to the fact that Salim had leased the
produce of the mines, while acting as Regent
in Shargah. f
The German argument based on Salim s
rights could not therefore be maintained.
° 39 As regards the second German
point, viz., that even if power to grant a lease
Lanated from the Sheikh, his cancellation ot
it was uninstifiable—it was stated that the
Sheikh was a law to himself, and had absolute
right to do as he liked, subject to such general
control as was exercised by the British Gov-
ernment** The Sheikh’s territorial rights over
the island had been admitted by the Germans;