File 756/1917 Pt 2-3 ‘ARAB BULLETIN Nos 66-114’ [‎180v] (369/834)

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really belong to his confederation) is, he hints, his reply to Ibn
Sabah’s unfriendly conduct in harbouring his enemies the Ajman.
He greatly dislikes Salim personally in spite of the fact that Salim
is so strict a Moslem, so severe a Puritan, that he is as Wahabi as
any man jack of the Nejdis. Salim is close-fisted, he says ; but
another reason, I suspect, is the mutual jealousy, felt in this
instance to a greater extent by Salim than Ibn Sand. Just as
the latter complains that we have shown in comparison with him
undue favoritism toward the Sherif, so Salim asks me why we
subsidise Ibn Sand to the extent of £5,000 a month, implying,
though of course not saying, that we do nothing for himself.
^ *
u There is much to be said for Ibn Sand’s attitude towards
the Ajman. From old times these tribesmen have been rebels.
Time after time Ibn Sand and his forbears have been compelled
to inflict severe punishment, but the A jman have proved incap
able of reform, remaining natural rebels—a sort of local Irishry,
for whom there is no remedy but to be placed outside the Pale.
It is acknowledged universally that the Ajman do not obev their
sheikhs in ordinary times, though ready enough to follow them
and obey them implicitly in war. Their best friends and blood
connections, such as Ibn Sabah, admit that they are unreliable
and notorious brigands even among Arabs. 1 hoped last year
that the tribe had perceived the necessity for a policy of friendly
submission to the British Government and that they would
remain passively in the tract allotted to them between Kuweit
and Zubeir. They however chose to go after Dhaidan,the friend
of Ajaimi and the Shammar, who gave out to them and others
that the 1 urks were about to send 30,000 men down the
Shamiyah bank of the Euphrates to help their partisans.
It must be remembered that Ibn Sand has great difficultv
in managing the great confederation of tribes which have acknow
ledged his religious and secular leadership. According to him thev
consist of Muteir, Awazim, Beni Hajar, Manasir, Ajman, Beni
\nalid, Beni Abdullah, Qahtan, Duwasir, Sbei, Salmi, Anazeh,
Ateibah and Harb. That is to say, practically all the tribes of
enha Arabia. Over some of these his dominion is somewhat
shadowy no doubt, and, as regards the Harb at least, it is in
dispute with the Sherif.
vi ni <U l i 1U I he question of submission to Ibn Saud
wrt i i Dhaidan himself and learnt from his lips that the tribe
won < prefer to wander for ever in strange (liras rather than to
return under Ibn Sand, f have little hope that he is likelv to
prow eomp iant . le will probably take the tribe with him for
vh, i , wii K i dir "- 11,11 Sa»<l says that the
fwo hX : r; rel,el 10 ? a, ." W '‘ ut l-ssim muster more
y"" .! lat ^ th " Sabah or Zubeir have not the
( to fl,em, he will undertake the job. Tbri Saud knows