"دليل الخليج. مجلد I. القسم التاريخي. الأجزاء Iأ و Iب. ج.ج. لوريمر ١٩١٥" [‎٥‎٦‎٠] (١٧٨٢/٧٠٣)

Pablic
annoupce-
ment by the
Sultan of
cancellntion
of his grant
to the
French.
Continued
French intri
gues in
'Oman.
560
sent to M. Ottavi in which the Sultan justified cancellation on the
ground of the Agreement of 1891 with Britain, also a copy of the
original grant to the French. It was not, however, entirely satisfactory,
and a personal interview was still insisted on. The grant to the
French, now seen for the first time, conferred on them a coaling-place,
but left the exact site undetermined ; it had been granted on the 7th of
March 1898, during the visit of the " Gabes " to Masqat. At length,
after various delays, the Sultan came off to the Admirals flagship and,
after a long discussion, submitted unconditionally to all the British
demands; when he returned on shore it was under his ordinary salute
of 21 guns. M. Ottavi immediately protested in writing against the
cancellation of the French grant, but without effect.
On the 17th of February the Admiral paid a visit to the Sultan;
and in the afternoon of the same day, at a general Darbar attended by
all the leading men of Masqat, the Sultan announced the renewal of
amicable relations between himself and the British Government and the
cancellation of his agreement for a coaling-place with the French, which,
he said, had been entered into in forgetfulness of the rights of Britain.
French policy in 'Oman after 1899,
The result of these proceedings was to deprive the French of the hope
of obtaining a naval base in 'Oman under their own control; but they did
not as yet despair of the success of their other designs, and for the next
three years French intrigues continued to be rife in 'Oman, The Wazir of
the Sultan was still Muhammad-bin-'Azzan, who owed his appointment
to French influence; 'Abdul 'Aziz, the dragoman of the French Consulate,
though ostensibly dismissed from His Highness's employment, for a time
continued to have free access to his presence; and in May 1901 Hilal-
bin- Amr from Zanzibar suddenly arrived at Sur and commenced an anti-
British propaganda among the tribesmen of the Sharqiyah district. This
Hilal was a brother of Muhsin-bin-'Amr, the rebel of 1895, and a son-
in-law of the notorious Shaikh Salih-bin-'Ali; as chief adviser of Hamad-
bin-Thuwaini of Zanzibar he had encouraged that prince to take a
mischievous interest in the affairs of 'Oman; and in June 1896 he had
been deported from Zanzibar to Aden, but he had subsequently been allowed
to return to East Africa. The number of French agents in 'Oman was
increased by the arrival at Masqat in 1899 of a Frenchman, M. Goguyer,
who settled theie as a dealer in arms and ammunition, became in 190].