"الإصلاحات في مسقط: الجمارك؛ الموارد المالية، والمفاوضات مع العُـمانيين" [و‎‎١‎٥‎٠] (٥٠٨/٣٠٤)

I hsjre the honour to acknowledge roceipt of your letter
no.454 dated 4th F'ebruary 1.120 forwarding a copy of your letter
no. 25 dated 5rd January 1920 In which you made an interesting
report on the working of the Gustoms arrangements in Muscat and
Oraan .
s l presume a copy of the report has gone to the Deputy Sacretar:
In the Foreign and Political t/epartment?
Oman suffers, though in a lesser degree than Persia, from an
enormously long coas* on which dhows can land cargo at innumerable
points; a preventive o rvice of sufficient strength to stop this
would I fear require a larger numhor of vessels and tugs than the
Customs receipts would stand. At one time the Persian Customs
had one vessel and five sea-going armed launches (three of these
are I f t now) but they did not reduce the smuggl i .g to any arpre-
oiable extent.
As you are accompanying Hi * Hi&hness the Sultan to India you
may perhaps be able to talk over the questions raised with the
Foreign Department and possibly the Customs Department, perhaps
it might "be possible to ofrto-u ujiu uf thgj l-oot Dif ^nm .-^jultii ba ta
obtain the services of a European or Eurasian subordinate of the
latter Department on loan (to be seconded from the -er ice for
(say) t^ree years) to perform the dxities of Director, if the Givi
Commissioner in yiesopotamia has not been able to surely one # ^
Possibly the Government of Bombay might bo ^blc to get on or
\ f'
two