File 1707/1924 ‘Arabia:- Jeddah Situation Reports. (1924-1930)’ [‎169v] (343/898)

it easily possible for the Hejaz to spare this sum. The pilgrimage is being well ’
it easily possiuie i , •> t yf ecca i s n0 w adequate. The number of pilgrims
organised. The water supply at Mec C a 5 iS ) no ^ ^ ^ gailed ^
n 000 a from MaTayan liid 3,600 from Indian ports. There has been a considerable
shortage oTcmnels! and pilgrims have been much t res ° b ^
the reduced fares consequent on the introduction of motor tiansport, tares Dy camel
are so reduced that there is little or no profit and owners will not supply animals
There Tre ft the present moment more than sufficient cars for the transport of all ,
oihrrimf 6 but certain pilgrims, especially the Javanese, consider that the value ol
their pilgrimage is lessened if they perform it otherwise than on camel back,
their pilgri g limiting the import of cars has aroused considerable resent
ment and petitions on the subject have been addressed to the King. It is felt that
Xe regflafion operates unfairly in favour of the ,13“^J,! h r t
nlrpnrlv imnorted their full complement of cars, this company, though not
fubsidLd, fs yet generally regarded as a government concer^ It was started rt the
instigation of Ibn Saud, who wished to ensure for the pilgrims a rexiabie service ot
comfortable ears at reasonable rates. Influential merchants and officials were invited
to provide the necessary capital. The policy of the company has not been beyond
reproach fares have been reduced to a commercially unsound rate in an endeavour
to drive the small owners either to abandon the unequal struggle or to join forces
^thgthe T k e new condenser, ordered in view of the shortage of water at Jeddah last
vear has arrived and is in process of erection. It is capable of a daily output ol
150 tons, and, as it will be in working order in two months’ time, pilgrims will have
no cause of complaint during the present year’s pilgrimage.
7 The mission to Sanaa, sent, it is understood, not to negotiate but to prepare
the ground for future negotiations, has returned with a delegation of Yemenis.
They await Ibn Sand’s orders as to whether he will receive them at Riyadh or
Mecca It is generally believed that the Imam is well disposed and that there is hope
of an agreement being reached shortly. It is rumoured that the Italians are losing
ground in the Yemen, that the Imam is dissatisfied with the quality of the aeroplanes
and arms supplied and is turning to the Germans. ,
8 Although no official account has appeared m the press it is generally
believed that the Emir Saud, Ibn Sand’s eldest son, was_ recently proclaimed m
Riyadh heir to the joint thrones of Nejd and the Hejaz. He is expected to pay a vmt
to Mecca in that capacity in the near future. .
9. Mohammed Tawil Bey, ex-Director of Customs under King Hussein, Has
been arrested in Mecca and sent to Riyadh. The reason for his arrest is not known.
He was known for his pro-Hashimite leanings, and had openly stated that he would
accept no post under the present regime. He was not, however, believed to be taking
any interest in politics. His activities were purely commercial; he had succeeded m
forming a transport company, and was endeavouring to hold his own against t e
competition of the “Saoudieh.” Some of his intimate friends, indeed, maintain
that his arrest was engineered by his commercial rivals.
10. The Dutch bacteriologist, to whom reference has been made m previou
reports, embraced Islam this month. He had hoped that permission to visit ecca
would be immediately forthcoming. Opposition by Syrian doctors in Mecca was,
however, so strong that the Government have informed him that he must undergo
year’s probation, after which time he will be allowed to reside in Mecca it ne s
wishes. As the King could not have been consulted, Dr. Van der Hoog has wn
through his consul to Riyadh, and has left the country, to return only if the King
answer is favourable. . , ,
11. Ibrahim Dupui, the acting French consul, has left Jeddah on sick ie •
He was latterly quite unfit to perform his functions. He wearied his colleague
with highly coloured accounts of the condition of his entrails. After i n( l u ^ in §
Italian consul to wire to his Government for the information of Paris that the s
of his health was critical and that he must leave immediately, he delayed
departure many days after his leave was granted in the vain endeavour to marry
young daughter of a Jeddah notable. He already had one native lady with i
12. The British colony has been swelled by the arrival of a Mrs. Violet Cre^y
Marcks, armed with letters of introduction from Hafiz Wahba to the Emir e
and to the Kaimakam of Jeddah. She had no plans for her accommoda ion, ^
spoke vaguely of pitching a tent in the desert or living with a local rami y. ^
neither of these plans was practicable or in the interests of British prestige, a