'Reports of administration for 1918 of divisions and districts of the occupied territories in Mesopotamia. Volume I' [‎10v] (25/470)

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(c) Dali ‘Abbas. The area watered by the Mansuriyah, the Shirwin
and the Khalis Canals as far as the Khirr al Mujaddad. The district mclu es
the large desert area, stretching towards the ‘Adhaim, over which t e
‘Azzah roam.
{d) Daltawah. The whole of the tail of the large Khalis Canal, stretching
from the Khirr al Mujaddad to within a few miles of Baghdad. The
Waziriyah Canal in the extreme tail of the Khalis has been under Daltawah
for revenue purposes, but the portion reserved for the Agricultural
Department has been under the A.P.O., Baghdad.
Population .—From the pure nomad to the townsmen, almost every grade is
represented. The chief tribes are the ‘Azzah (Shaikh, Habib al Hazran), whose
“ dirah ” stretches from the Khalis at Dali ‘Abbas to beyond the ‘Adhaim.
Members of the tribes are found all over the Division, in scattered groups, working
.as fallahs Arabic for ‘peasant’. It was used by British officials to refer to agricultural workers or to members of a social class employed primarily in agricultural labour. , but in the main they are unsettled. They cultivate Daim land at ‘Ain
Lailah, Khakachan, &c.
The Shammar Sayih (Shaikhs, Midhri and Dulaiyan) were for a time on the
Mahrut and Ruz Canals and the Ab-i-Naft River. They are pure nomad, following
the pasture and do no cultivation. Some of the Bani Tamim have settlements
on the ‘Azzah, a large distributary of the Mahrut, but most of this tribe live on
the tails of the Haruniyah and upper Ruz Canals (Shaikh, Hamid al Hasan). On
the middle Mahrut are the Karkhiyah (Sh., ‘Abdul Karim) and below them Sukuk
(Sh., Hassuni ibn Muhd).
Round Balad Ruz are some six or more tribes, Dahlaqiyah (Sh., Shatab), ‘Atbah
(Sh., Majid al Hindi). Daiyniyah (Sh., ‘Abbub), Shammar (Sa‘id al Alwan),
Shubailat (Muhd. al ‘Atrus).
The lower Khurasan below Ba‘qubah is settled by the Mujamma 4 (Sh., Salih
al Hindi). From Khan Bani Sa‘ad South the cultivators are mainly Albu ‘Amir,
with a sprinkling of Dnlaiyim (Sh., Ahmad al Sulaiman).
The Shaikh of the Jubur has his headquarters on the Shirwin, near Dali ‘Abbas
and his tribe spreads across the Diyalah to the Haruniyah Canal.
Such are the main tribal outlines, but on the Khalis and Khurasan particularly,
villages and small towns have sprung up, which have become the foci of local
population, and have done much to break down the tribal organisation. The
inhabitants are all settled, but in cases of crime they are apt to remember their
tribal origin and appeal to tribal custom. The chief towns and villages on the
right bank are Dali ‘Abbas (250), Mansuriyah (800), Tijdari Sarajik (1,500), Daltawah
(3,000), Khan Bani Sa‘ad (200).
On the left bank, Shahraban (4,000), Abu Saidah (2,000), Kharnabit (2,000),
Huwaidir (1,000), Ba‘qubah (5,000), Shiftah (500), Buhriz (2,000); on the Ruz Canal
Balad Ruz has a population of 2,000.
With the exception of the ‘Azzah, the tribesmen are almost wholly cultivators
and as such are on the verge of settling down into the life of village communities.
A list of the tribes in the Division, with the names of the paramount Shaikh, is given
in the Appendix, but it must be pointed out that the Shaikhs have very little
influence, and that the tribesmen in most matters look to the Goverment A.P.O.
and Mamur, and not to the Shaikh, as the person to whom complaint should be
made. I regret this tendency, as it involves a much greater number of minor
Government officials than would be otherwise necessary. In tribal matters the
Government officials of the Division, even when complaints are made to them,
as far as possible follow in their decisions tribal custom which is obtained by the
appointment of an arbitrator or arbitrators agreeable to both parties or b}^ a majlis
of notable persons. c J
The custom prevalent on the lower Tigris, of sending a complainant or
defendant to swear to the correctness of his statement at a holy shrine, is only
followed to a minor extent. ’ ^
The part of the Division on the left bank of the Diyalah has been on the
whole, quiet throughout the year. A party of ‘Ubaid from Samarra Division raided
the Bani Tamim in August and carried off 40 camels, of which 15 were subsequentlv
returned by Mulla Naif. The Bani Tamim threatened reprisals; but A P
Shahraban, had no difficulty in persuading Shaikh Hamid to leave the
restitution in the hands of the Government.
The Bani Tamim have not yet paid up the first instalment of their dues to the
Sukuk, according to their agreement of October 1917, but they have paid the whole