'Reports of administration for 1918 of divisions and districts of the occupied territories in Mesopotamia. Volume I' [‎73v] (151/470)

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Hillah District.
ADMINISTRATION REPORT, 1918.
Preliminary. —From January 1st till the middle of November the district
was in charge of Major Macpherson, who combined the duties of P.O., Division,
and A.P.O., District. In the middle of November these offices were separated,
and the office of A.P.O., Town, was absorbed in that of the A.P.O., Hillah. At
the same time, Captain Livesey, A.P.O. Town, was transferred to Musaiyib, and
Captain Aston was appointed as Assistant to the A.P.O., Captain Hunt joining the
district staff on December 28th. I assumed charge of the district in the middle
of November, having worked as Assistant to Major Macpherson since February.
The Hillah Division was formed and its districts were separated during the year
under review. The Administration Report for 1917 dealt with the Hillah Division
as well as the Hillah district ; the following remarks refer to the latter only, and
hence certain matters touched on in last year’s Report do not re-appear.
1. Tribal and Political: (1) General Characteristics of the District. —The
Hillah district consists of the lands on either bank of the Shatt-al-Hillah from a
point just above the barrage to a point just above the take-off of the Shatt Dagharah.
The eastern boundary line runs midway between the Tigris and the Euphrates, the
western is approximately midway between the Shatt-al-Hillah and the Shatt-al-
Hindiyah. The land near the river is on the whole well cultivated, though much
extension of irrigation is possible, but the Jazirah land at a distance from the stream
is a grazing ground frequented in season by nomad tribes. The staple crops are
wheat and barley, while rice is grown principally in Jarbudyah and Khawas. There
are seven Shu‘bahs. In one of these there is a Mudir with three assistant mamurs,
in another there is a ma‘mur with two assistants, while in each of the remaining
five there is one ma‘mur with one assistant. The number of ma‘murs is excessive,
but it will probably be possible to effect reductions as routine is introduced and the
people grow habituated to the payment of revenue.
(2) Villages. —The only town of any size is Hillah, with a population of about
24,000, but a feature of the district is the villages along the banks of the river.
A trip in a hydro-glisseur through continuous lines of an enthusiastically cheering
populace is the nearest approach that life can offer to participation in a royal
procession. The villages are in all stages of evolution. Some of them are still
practically tribal, while others have progressed further towards independence of the
surrounding tribe, a development which the policy of supporting the Shaikhs has
to some extent arrested. Some are walled against the tribesmen, others are open;
some villages willingly refer their quarrels to the local Shaikh, others protest their
freedom from tribal authority. All are surrounded by groves, which are as prolific
of disputes as of dates. There is at present no organised local administration in
the villages, and the mukhtars are becoming somewhat uneasy. I hope shortly
to set this matter on a proper footing.
(3) History .—The past history of the district has been dealt with in last year’s
Report.
(4) Tribal .—There are six principal tribes.
(i) On the right bank of the Shatt-al-Hillah :—
Yasar - - - - _ Shaikh Rashid al ‘Anaizan.
Khafajah - - - - - „ Ibrahim Samawi.
Jubur - - - - _ Murad al Khalil.
(ii) Oil the left bank of the Shatt-al-Hillah :—
Juhaish -
MiTamrah
Albu Sultan
- Shaikh Faisal al Mughir.
,, Hazza‘ al Muhaimid.
,, ‘Addai al Jaryan.
Ihesc Shaikhs constitute the district tribal majlis, and receive each a errant
of Rs. 300/- per mensem. Shaikh Murad and Shaikh Ibrahim were appointed to
the majhs during the year. There are also in the North-West the Bani ‘Ajil under
Shaikh TTrnran al Zambur, who are treated as separate unit, and various small
tribes, such as the Albu ‘Alwan and Dulaim, which have been placed under the