Coll 30/110(4) 'Trucial Coast Oil Concession: Muscat Oil Concession. Hinterland Exploration & Survey.' [‎289r] (579/675)

Chief Geologist, London
So. TFw/a/ssa
iotos on Trucial Const
XO i *
in Bccordence with your telegraphed Ins truction I a?*do r, i vS durin,: my
> r ^ Cent visit to Gharjeh regarding the prospects of eterting geop:/y jloel work
,«i.oag the rruoiftl Coeat this autuan, Suami?rising, I consider that although
me political situetioa has improved beyond recognition duriiL- this winter, *he
jjroblaa of suppiiee and ©silled help are atiil extremely difficult, and 1 sx^tild
* 'f 0 * 11 ebout sanding e geophysical party this year, olthou ( *h « annU
>o/;icf 4 l party of aay two men could probably Btan^ge.
|g-/P^it,ic6l situation Tnis sinter the Beni Chittab have at long last deigned
W .. v attend ^etings with the Political authorities end
wita th© cosstal sheikha. Their sheikh iiohaiaaed ^11 al Luwaidin has visited the
rteeidency Agent in Cfearjafe, although it eaaaot yet be said that he is on cordial
terms wita the Jheikh there. Ue also attended a perty nenr Lnaid, at which the
r'oUticttl tt*©ideal, the ' oiltleal A^ant, and ell the ceeetal Bheiahs east from
i»ubAi to n«s al Khairna were present. I syaelf visited Ifcaid with the local
political Gffieer to inspect the water channel there, which was bein- repair**
(vide GK.77. Page 1). 1 waa then invited to cccoapaiiy him to n loeslity called
liamdas, socae IE ailca south of Lhnid, i-ad ©bout 4 mtloa from JabRl yaiyah, where
we act *QhammeG Ali end had coffee end a snack with him. I wra introduced as
the wster expert who was working for the itAJT, end who had com# to inspect the
work et Lhfiid, no raeation boiug made of course to my connection with an oil
company. It m$ noteworthy that two Indian members of the anti-locust commission
dressed in felt hats ©ad gents' lounge suits, were collecting two guards, who,
tae old ma assured them would suffice as protection anywhere north and east of
Jabel Feiyah. To the west end ^uth, he insisted, however that they should
hev * ai * me,i * Although this iadicetes a very marked ehen^* of attitude from
that * iopted in 19i58, it should not b« helled with exceseive optimism, as a
sign that Lotapaay men Cf’ii more in »t once. It should be remembered that the
shaikha and their people are at present all dependant on the British Government
for such staple articles of their diet as tea, sugar, coffee, flour, etc., and
ns the locust men ere apparently harmless people whom it pleases the Government -
to send in hunting locusts, they also rrs toler*t«d. Nevertheless they are
::u>viag about in cars, with no attempt at dressing up as Arabs, and they are
neouctoain : the inhabitants to these novelties. Thqy have also cleared tracks
in certain parts. One example iu the motor track which tUynn Jones and X
followed from Bharjah to Dhaid, and thence south to the foot of Xabal nodhs,
(vide map 08.77-1). ?hi« is now passable through the Oman mountains by way
of the fcadi nl uor to Aalbe. These locust hunters have also driven from
Jh&rjah to the Has© province of Saudi Arabia via Abu Dhabi and oabkhet Hstti.
The Political people suggest that it i« perhaps rather early to begin tying up
the *.seni whitish with formidable documents such as concessions. They suggest
th«t the Sheikh of Lharjah be given the chance *p make some financial agreemont
with them, so as to includo thoir territory in Sharjah concession. Then
as it seems most unlikely that afcarjsh will be persuaded to disburse enough
aoney for this, we could than go direct to the Beni Jhitteb and say that we
want to run e survey over the whole of the Truci&i Goast from the mountains to
Abu Dhabi irrespective of whose territory we pass through. *s can then offer ^
them « lump ©u® to allow us to include their lend whatever may be Its limits, ^
in this ©urvey. Later, when iohameaed Ali has handled some of our money a
couaensioa agree^ut eta be introduced as a means of letting him have some more.
Without an agree?aent he would ondoubteiily try to extort more money out of us
in the first season, but as all the other sheikhs seem to do this even with
them, it would not appear to be very different. X ayself feel that this might
be the best means of approach. it is virtually what I had to do with .^alkh
at Jiratal in 195b. Despite all the payments made by Muscat to him,
presumably to cover our survey, ho would not bu^e or allow ue to do any work
until X paid up* while I fully realise* th„t A>*re is o desire in «^oudon to
have the boundaries clearly triced on t. map,dad the signed and witnessed
egrosments ©11 filed, I venture to state that so-ae elasticity must be allowed
when dec ling with the Gheikho of the interior. They themselves are guite
Illiterate and are much lese aecuatofned to western weys of dealing than the
oLfeikhs on the coast. They are therefore moat suspicious of any document
whioa tney cannot understand, end are quite liable to give n categoris "no"
retire to the mountains if any attempt is made tc coerce them into signin f a
any hard and fast sgrsement. (»Vc once had e drilling superintendent in the ° ^
Company who had the seme suspicion). Cue more point U cortf in. As X fere 7