"دليل الخليج. مجلد I. القسم التاريخي. الأجزاء Iأ و Iب. ج.ج. لوريمر ١٩١٥" [‎٨‎٧‎١] (١٧٨٢/١٠٢٦)

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pain of destruction of the liouse, its inmates, and all that it
contained, the instant surrender of these obnoxious refugees 3 whereupon
the Agent, losing Courage, caused them to be thrown from the roof, and
they were cut to pieces almost before they had reached the ground. The
unwarrantable and impolitic behaviour of the Agent on this occasion
was punished with immediate dismissal, and the countenance of the
British Government was finally withdrawn from the Shaikh, on whom,
however, it was not considered necessary, in the circumstances, to make
any express demand for reparation.
In March 1843, after the landing of Shaikh Muhammad'^ partaans
on Bahrain Island, an order was promulgated by Shaikh 'Abdullah, harbour,
then at Muharraq, thatno vessel should anchor near Manamah town. 1813
This regulation having been broken by a Ghunchah which was entitled to
use the British Hag, and which carried a packet and stores addressed to the
British Commodore at Basidn, two boats manned by Bedouin mercenaries
were sent with an order to the Niikhuda to move over to Muharraq ;
but these unreliable and dangerous messengers, on reaching the vessel,
boarded her, plundered the cargo, including the British packet and stores,
and hauled down and tore to pieces the British flag. On behalf of
the Shaikh, who denied having ordered or in any way countenanced this
outrage, it wag urged that the Ghunchah had not shown her colours on
entering the harbour ; that her use of them was suspected to be a mere
ruse ; and that the fleet of ' Isa-bin-Tarif and Bashir-bin-Kahmah was
at the time momentarily expected. A British war vessel was immediately
despatched to Bahrain to make full enquiries ; but. before any result had
been reached, the expulsion of Shaikh 'Abdullah by his rival rendered
further action useless.
About the same time as the last affair, but possibly before it, a Charak
boat under the Persian flag, into which goods from Bombay consigned to
Hindu merchants in Bahrain had just been transhipped, was plundered
in the harbour of Manamah by Bani Hajirand Sulutah Arabs subject
to the authority of Shaikh 'Abdullah. The hostilities in Bahrain
prevented immediate attention being given to this case, and on t le
first accession of Shaikh Muhammad to power it was considered inexpe
dient to press the claim upon him too strongly; but in February of
the following year (1844), on the matter being brought to his
notice, he submitted without demur to the British demanu 01
compensation.