Coll 28/95 ‘Persia. Relations with H.M.G. Private claims against H.M.G.: case of the S.S. “Kara Deniz”.’ [‎95v] (190/691)

24
omission of these war-time claims from the scope of the agreement would,
however, reduce the totality of our claims from the provisional estimate, made in
paragraph 39, of 15,228,725 krans, £361,810, 240,305 rupees Indian silver coin also widely used in the Persian Gulf. and 6,962 40 dollars
to some 5,155,075 krans, £266,841, 181,700 rupees Indian silver coin also widely used in the Persian Gulf. and 6,962-40 dollars, apart
from additions of interest, from any further claims which may yet come to light,
and from any underwriters’ claims which may yet be made. It would also throw
us back largely upon pre-war claims, where the evidence furnished is the most
defective.
66 . The proposal to eliminate these war-time claims arising between the
4th August, 1914, and the 22nd February, 1921, will doubtless provoke repre
sentations from parties who suffered losses during that period, but our case
against the Persian Government to repair these war-time losses does not seem to
rest upon any very strong ground, for most, if not all, of them may be attributed,
either directly or indirectly, to enemy action in Persia ; while we seem to have
admitted (to some extent at any rate), in the note which Sir P. Cox addressed to
the Persian Government on the 9th August, 1919, that Persia was powerless to
defend her neutrality. Towards the evacuations of Persian towns by British
firms and communities who had remained in Persia during the disturbances and
disorders which then prevailed, the correspondence here shows that His Majesty’s
Government and the Government of India went to considerable expense on their
behalf to convey them elsewhere; and often, in the case of our own officials, who
had no option but to remain, to compensate them for the loss or suffering involved
in outrages to which they were subjected. Incidentally, we drew upon Persian
funds to repair some of these war-time losses; while a waiver of them will involve
a non-settlement of such amounts as His Majesty’s Government and the Govern
ment of India contributed. It seems possible, however, that there may remain
one or two cases in which our officials sustained losses of property for which they
might represent they had not been fully compensated.
67. Peace-Time and Contractual Claims —If war-time claims were thus
excluded, these will remain.( 3 ) The following occupy the foremost places :—
Persian Railway Syndicate: £202,207, with 7 per cent, compound
interest. The figure is that given in 1924. In 1933 they offered to take
£134,653 odd; their latest estimate in 1934 makes the figure £373,331 odd.
Persian Transport Company: £50,000; but earlier £75,900.
Quarantine medical officers in Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. : 69.967 • 10 rupees Indian silver coin also widely used in the Persian Gulf. and
16,814-60 krans. We seem to be in need of a detailed account of these
figures from the Government of India.
Sir Wolseley Haig : £4,807. In 1921 he informed our Legation he
would be satisfied with £2,500.
Mr. T. Casey : £1,200. (Our Legation comment in 1909 on this was*
“It seems enormous.”)
The above total £258,214, 16,814-60 krans and 69,967 10 rupees Indian silver coin also widely used in the Persian Gulf. , leaving for the
remaining claims under this head some £8,627, 5,138,260 krans, 111,732 rupees Indian silver coin also widely used in the Persian Gulf.
and 6,962-40 dollars, which is distributed over a great number of individual
claims for highway robberies, outrages of various kinds, losses in civil
disturbances, tribal raids, piracies, burglaries, &c. Among these is the large
and very doubtful one for 2,302,905 krans preferred by Messrs. Lynch or the
Persian Transport Company for the cost of running the steamship Shushan from
1902 to 1913, which seems to have little to rest on. If this claim were omitted as
likely of rejection, we have a total when all is included, for peace-time and
contractual claims, of some £266,841, 2,852,170 krans, 181,699 rupees Indian silver coin also widely used in the Persian Gulf. and
6,962 -40 dollars, which, however, in itself includes a sum of about 468,000 krans
claimed as interest by a Mr. Haycock on an original debt of some 100,000 krans
owing to him by the Persian authorities. Reduced to a sterling equivalent at
rates of 50 krans, 15 rupees Indian silver coin also widely used in the Persian Gulf. and 5 dollars to the £, the whole body of these
peace-time and contractual claims might be assumed to amount to at most some
£340,000, apart from further additions of interest claimed in some cases, which
there can be no certainty would be awarded by an arbitral tribunal in the absence
of any treaty provision on the subject of interest.
( s ) A short summary of these is given on pp. vii to xxii of the volume Legation Claims
immediately after the index. [This summary is printed below as Appendix 3.]