Coll 6/9 'Jeddah Reports Jany 1931–' [‎94v] (189/802)

4
personage was to come here on an Italian warship to present Italian three
engined aeroplanes to an allegedly Italophil Amir. Jedda, however, waited in
vain, and local pot-house politicians are believed to be nonplussed by the grant
of the Red Sea oil concession to a British company, when Italian interests were
only too eager to compete, at least for the Farsan Islands, and at a time when the
Italo-Saudi relations are apparently so cordial.
IV.— Miscellaneous.
287. (Reference paragraph 254.) The French warship D'Iberville arrived
on the 5th August and embarked the body of M. Biraud, leaving for Suez the
same day.
288. Mr. H. M. Eyres went on leave on the 5th August to the United
Kingdom.
289. (Reference paragraph 259.) The name of the Turk who arrived here
last month from Ethiopia has been given as Ahmad Sayam-bin-Muhammad
Kemal-ud-Din.
290. (Reference paragraph 196.) Mr. Philby has been reported from Aden
as having entered the Hadhramaut via Najran with a party of about thirty men
and at the end of the month to be at Mukalla.
291. The position as regards the manumission of slaves by the Legation
during August was as follows :—
On hand at the beginning of the month : Three males, four females.
Took refuge in August: One male.
Manumitted and repatriated : Nil.
Locally manumitted : Nil.
Left voluntarily : One male.
On hand at the end of the month : Three males, four females.
292. Two cases on hand are those of slaves against whom the Saudi
authorities have preferred accusations of robbery of money and property
belonging to the ex-owners. The Saudis have demanded delivery of the two slaves
for trial, but the Legation, dissatisfied with the bona fades of the charges
preferred, has refused. No solution of the difficulty has yet been reached.