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Persian Gulf Administration Reports 1883/84 - 1904/05 [‎278r] (560/602)

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The record is made up of 1 volume (299 folios). It was created in 1884-1906. It was written in English. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .

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eesidency and maskat political agency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent. for the year 1903.1904.
15
We enjoy in Maskat the rights and privileges of the most favoured nation,
our interests are carefully guarded by our Consular authorities, and we
experience complete toleration in matters of religion. There is an absence of
unnecessary litigation amongst us, British subjects, and justice is readily and
promptly obtainable in the Agency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent. Court.
In matters connected "with our dealings with the natives of Oman, while
we are accustomed to receive a courteous hearing from His Highness, never
theless we often experience difficulty in obtaining relief, and this is partly
owing no doubt to the unsettled state of the interior. In this latter connec
tion, we make bold to explain to Your Excellency that, whereas, considering
the degree of enlightenment among the Bedouin Arabs, inter-tribal strife and
turbulence are within the nature of things, and when they are limited to the
interior of the country do not immediately affect our welfare any more than
that of other peaceable members of the community; nevertheless, when, as is
sometimes the case, the scene of the strife is transferred to the coast ports, or
their immediate neighbourhood, our commercial interests do imfnediately
suffer; and we are put to anxiety for the safety of the lives and properties of
our fellow-subjects. Eor, as Your Excellency is aware, at many of the coast
towns of Oman (often far removed from the capital) small communities of
British Indian subjects reside, in whose hands all the local trade is centred,
and who, in however humble a capacity, are the pioneers of British Indian
commerce in these waters.
Thanks to the vigilant activity of successive Political Agents and of
British Men-of-war at seasons of unrest, there is little actual danger to the
lives and properties of these our fellow-subjects, but the detriment to their
trading operations and ours is great, and we venture to hope that Your Excel
lency's Government will see its way, either by strengthening the hands of the
ruler, or by active interference on the coast where necessary for the preserva
tion of British interests, to take measures which will deter the unruly tribesmen
of Oman from disturbing the commerce of the country by their dissensions.
In matters of commerce generally, we continue to prosper, and though
during the last few years signs have not been wanting of foreign competition,
Indian imports rule the market.
There is one depressing factor, however, of comparatively recent growth
to which we make bold to draw Your Excellency's benevolent attention, and
that is the demoralising fluctuations in the silver exchange. Since the closing
of the Indian mints in 1893, and the consequent fall in the price of silver, the
local Dollar exchange has not ceased to exhibit remarkable fluctuations, which
greatly prejudice and impede the local import trade, from the fact that the
currency value of the rupee is fixed and that of the Maskat Dollar is not.
We therefore humbly commend the matter to Your Excellency's wise consi
deration in the hope that, in co-operation with the local Government, some
means may be devised of bringing about a better state of things.
In conclusion, we beg to reiterate our welcome, and to assure you that
this visit of Your Excellency and your gifted Consort will be a landmark in
the history of M askat and will live green in our memories ; and it is our
earnest praver before the Supreme Being, in whose hands the destiny ot all
of us lie, to vouchsafe to Your Excellency a continuance of bodily health and
strength to enable you to render further great services to the Empire and to
bind fresh laurels on your brow.
We beg to subscribe ourselves Tour Excellency's most humble servants.
11.
Eis Excellency's reply
Gentlemen,
It is with much pleasure that I have received the loyal and t^
address which has just been read, and that on crossing

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Content

The volume contains printed copies of Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. Administration Reports. The Reports are incomplete (according to the introductory letters and lists of contents). Some of the Reports bear manuscript corrections. The following Reports are represented :

The Reports include a general summary by the Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. (covering the constituent agencies and consulates that made up the Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. , and topics such as the slave trade, piracy, the movements of Royal Navy ships, official appointments, and the weather); meteorological tables; separate reports on Muscat (also referred to as Maskat); reports on trade and commerce; and a number of appendices on special topics, such as supplementary notes on the care and culture of date trees and fruit (Report, 1883-84), historical sketch of the Portuguese in eastern Arabia (Report, 1884-85), notes on a tour through Oman and El-Dhahireh [Al Dhahirah] by Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel Barrett Miles (Report, 1885-86), notes on cholera in Persia (Report, 1889-90), report on the cholera epidemic in Maskat, Matrah, and Oman (Report, 1899-1900), and information on individuals and tribes.

Extent and format
1 volume (299 folios)
Arrangement

The Reports are arranged in chronological order from the front to the rear of the volume. There is an introductory letter/table of contents at the front of each Report, but these show that the Reports are not complete.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation system in use commences at 3 on the second folio after the front cover, and continues through to 299 on the back cover. The sequence is written in pencil, enclosed in a circle, and appears in the top right hand corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. page of each folio.

Written in
English in Latin script
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Persian Gulf Administration Reports 1883/84 - 1904/05 [‎278r] (560/602), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/1/709, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023373227.0x0000a1> [accessed 20 February 2025]

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