File 301/1921 'MESOPOTAMIA: INTELLIGENCE REPORTS' [‎76r] (162/586)

but he is a stranger and he speaks from far off; the people of the ‘ Iraq were
waiting tor the familiar tones which they are accustomed to hear from the
Kesidency. The state dinner given to the Amir by the Naqib served as a public
intimation that no opposition need be anticipated from that quarter. The
hJaqib,^ all honour to him, has been an essential factor in smoothing the way to
h aisals success. He has maintained unbroken his assurances of loyalty to the
British Government and when its policy was made clear to him he accepted it
without question. The scene at his official residence opposite the mosque of his
ancestor, Saiyid Abdul Qadir, under the ringed lights of its minarets, was as
impressive as it was touching. The Naqib, walking with difficulty on the arm
of his personal physician, met the Amir at the top of the stair
and after embracing him on both cheeks led him to his seat at the
upper end of the open diwan where the High Commissioner, the Commander-
in-thief and the Arab Ministers and divines were assembled. Faisal has
happily elected to appear on all public occasions in Arab dress; his white robes
and .headdress enhance his personal dignity and his choice of them has favour
ably impressed the tribal shaikhs who are flocking to Baghdad to pay him their
respects.
10. The recognition of the Amir as King of the ‘ Iraq on the part of the
Council on July 11 (see para. 6) sealed with an official impress the popular
tributes which he had received. It was the Naqib who proposed the resolution..
Faisal who from the first had been anxious that his election to the throne should
be brought about by constitutional apparatus, was overjoyed at receiving the
recognition of the provisional Government, but his opinion coincided with that
of the High Commissioner on the subject of confirming the decision of the
Council by a referendum to the nation and of using therefor, as the Council
had suggested, the machinery of the Ministry of the Interior.
11. The impatienoe of his supporters could not, however, be entirely
restrained. On July 12 the Mayor of Mu‘adhdham assembled the leading citi
zens and shaikhs who swore fealty to Faisal without further ado (see Press
Supplement, Al ‘Iraq, July 13, and Lisan al ‘Arab, July 14, where the text of
the declaration is given). Meanwhile a formula somewhat different from that
used at the Mu‘adhdham had been evolved by Naji Suwaidi as a text for a
declaration of allegiance which he and his group proposed to circulate for
signatures throughout the ‘Iraq, and forthwith began to circulate in Baghdad.
The formula was as follows:—
Referendum (Universal Suffrage) to II.H. King Faisal the First,
son of II.M. King Husain the First.
We, the undersigned, from ‘Ulama, Shaikhs, leaders of tribes, Asrafs,
notables and all leaders of middle classes also all tradesmen in general, of
different rites and religious sects, have sworn allegiance to H.H. King Faisal
the First, provided that he will be a constitutional king over the absolutely free
and independent cjountry of ' Iraq, with all its natural boundaries and head of
a constitutional representative Government and provided that the first work
to be engaged on is the election and convention of the general congress which
will draft the Organic Law and other laws which will be adopted. This work
must be achieved in three months’ time commencing from the date of taking
over his official duties.
12. It was felt that an unofficial document of this kind, distributed by
Baghdadis who are by no means favourably regarded by the shaikhs and citizens
of the provinces, would not inspire confidence. The Amir al Rabi‘ah came to
the High Commissioner’s office to protest against it, on the ground that it would
not satisfy public anxiety as to the continuance of British guidance and support,
and after him several leading tribal shaikhs came to enquire whether it were
the wish of the High Commissioner that they should sign. But already ^aissal
had given orders that the unofficial madhbatah should be stopped and the High
Commissioner, after consulting with the Amir, had instructed the Ministry o±
the Interior to form a small committee which included the Adviser to the
Interior Mr Cornwallis, ‘Abdul Majid Shawi, Fakhri Jamil /adah and Naji
Suwaidi’, to draw up an official madhbatah and decide on the best method for
circulating it.
13 The visit to Baghdad of delegations from Mosul, Basrah and other
towns was the occasion for a series of entertainments « i V n G n . h “ n ““
guests by citizens of Baghdad, culminating in a dinner in the house of Fahhii
Iffendi Jamil Zadah. These functions were accompanied by a great deal of
oratory the leading motive of which was the unity of the Iraq. The deput
ations "when they left published in the local papers their almost exaggerate
gratitude for the hospitality they had received. Oratory and parting thanks
Lay have been somewhat highflown, but words, wise or foolish, are
ant in this country to crystallize into lines of conduct, and the a
that Faisal ’s nresence in Baghdad has drawn the notables of the provinces int
S: cIpM iid Sven rSe totfie expression of a number of laudable sentimen*.