'Selection from Correspondence Relative to the Traffic in Arms in the Persian Gulf, 1897-98. Part II' [‎50v] (46/52)

stoppage at Bushire of 13 cases of rifles and four cases of ammunition
belonging to them, alleged to be intended for Maskat. Interference on
their behalf was, however, refused by the Consular authorities, and the
arms were duly confiscated. On the 8th of April 1895 the Sadr-i-Azam
addressed Sir M. Durand in these terms:—“ According to the reports
“ received from the ports in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. fire-arms are imported
“ from time to time as e merchandize 5 into the interior of the country
“ through the ports. When any officials of the Persian Government get
“ to know of the fact, the owners pretend that the arms are destined for
“ the district of Oman. In order to prevent this pretext it is necessary
“ that an order should be issued to the effect that all fire-arms intended
“ for Oman should .be imported direct by sea without entering the
“ ports of the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. .” The Persian Minister added that “ fire-arms
“ found in the ports shall be confiscated by order of the Persian
“ Government.” It was after this renewal of activity on the part of
the Persian Government that Messrs. Pracis Times turned their attention,
as already shown in paragraph 3 of this letter, to the establishment of
a dep6t on the island of Bahrein. That the prohibition of the Persian
Government was well known to the trade, and that its consequences
were feared, is evident from Messrs. Livingstone, Muir, & Co.’s com-
„ , _ __ _ . munication to the Consul-General
No 77“tr.”is t Vn , :im Durand ’ ^ f Bushire, dated 30th October
1896,* in respect to certain rifles
carried by the “Zulu," in which it is clearly stated that a contract was
entered into “ to take all consequences of seizure ” at Bushire. The
reply given to Messrs. Pracis Times when they applied for an intro
duction to the Sheikh of Bahrein must be read in connection with these
facts. In 1896 a special preventive officer, Ibrahim Khan, was
appointed by the Persian Government, and he held his office till
November 1897. He was succeeded after a brief interval by the Malek-
ut-Tujar, who, on the 1st December 1897, informed the British Consul
General at Bushire that he had been ordered to seize arms illicitly
imported, and that he had received information regarding a con-
x c* tt 1 i ^ t signmentf brought in by a Parsee
t zS'cc Enclosure to Foreign Office Letter, j -a/t -m • nr
dated 22nd April 1898. firm named Messrs. Pracis Times.
It was on the 7th of December
that the premises of Messrs. Pracis Times, and on the 11th following
that those of Messrs. Dixon and Messrs. Livingstone Muir, were searched
at Bushire. While these events were occurring at Bushire the S.S.
“ Baluchistan ” sailed from “ Manchester ” on the 8th of December, and
after taking in a further supply of arms at Marseilles, she left that
port on the 27th of December. On the 23rd of December, while she
was still at Marseilles, the shipowners, Messrs. Strick & Co., wrote to
the Poreign Office stating that they were informed that the Persian
Government had given orders to prohibit the importation of arms.
They stated that “ our S.S. 1 Baluchistan ’ had already left this country
“ for the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. with a quantity of arms and ammunition on board,
“ before the shippers, or ourselves as carriers, had cognizance of this
“ decision.” They added that their agents had referred to the British
Besident, who stated “ that the arms are liable to be seized and con
fiscated in Persian waters,” and they asked for “ protection in this
matter.” Obviously their application implied that their shipments were
meant for Persia, and as Her Majesty’s Government made no promise
of protection the shippers must be presumed to have been aware of
the risk they ran. This inference is strengthened by the precautions
of secrecy taken by the persons engaged in the trade, to which reference
will be made directly.
7. Before, however, that point is dealt with, I am to refer to the
circumstances which led to the seizure of the arms on board the
“Baluchistan” in Maskat waters, by the authority of the sovereign of
Maskat. The Sultan of Maskat had, previously to the arrival of the
ship, undertaken to assist the Government of Persia in carrying out
its prohibition, just as His Highness had in 1891 assisted the British