'Muscat Dhows Arbitration. In the Permanent Court of Arbitration at the Hague. Grant of the French Flag to Muscat Dhows. The case on behalf of the Government of His Britannic Majesty.' [‎52v] (115/208)

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of the vessels were released on the 18th January, p -
1898, at the request of the French Consul.
Whatever concessions or usages there may-
have been in favour of the French practice on
the part of the Sultan of Zanzibar before 1890,
this does not affect the distinct Sultanate of
Muscat, and there does not appear to be any
record before 1891 of any protection by France
in Oman of any native ship-owners. Before 1891
the objections of Great Britain related to the
abuse of the French flag on the high seas, and, ix
naturally, did not apply to its use in the territorial
waters of other Powers or in British waters, the . »
flag in such positions being unavailing against
the territorial Sovereign. But the passing of the
Act of Brussels in 1890 marks a distinct stage in
the question of the francisation of native vessels.
The provisions of that Act, which were accepted
by France in 1892 (see British Case, pp 10-14),
imposed a new obligation on France, and appear
to make it unnecessary to go into detail as to the
legality and regularity of the French practices
said to have been in vogue before that date.
though all rights to contest such validity are
hereby fully reserved. Q
So far back as 1891 the Sultan found that the
use of French flags by his subjects at Siir was
interfering with his authority. He consulted the
British Government, and buffer their dissuasion p 57 _
would have then lodged his protest with the
French Government; and, as already stated in the
British Case, pp. 12 and 53, His Majesty's
Government called the attention of the French
Minister of Foreign Affairs to the existence of
this abuse. Moreover, it will be seen from the
document presented at p. 58 of the British Case
(No. 10), that the Wali of Siir had, so early as ^
1891, received orders to require Siiri ship captains
to return their French flags.
These protests arose immediately out of the
policv adopted by France on her partial accept
ance of the Brussels Act.
According to the statements in the French
Case, instead of taking the opportunity of their
qualified adhesion to the Act to clear tbeir
registers of Omani vessels, the French Govern
ment, in 1894 j , set to work to register all vessels
previously francises, regardless of the question
whether they were qualified for registration ^
under the Brussels Act (French Case, p. 13).
They sent a Consul to Muscat, and the course