Coll 28/120 ‘Persia. Ahwaz – Consular diaries.’ [‎73r] (146/669)

2
IV. Jlconomic.
(14j over ®ne inch of rain fell in sdiwaz in the laet v;eek
•f the month and the crop prospects, provided the locust menace
does not materialise, are good; another shower after f T owruz
y^shouid ensure a buuiper crop. ( As the rains hf ve interrupted
communications badly, it has been impossible to verify reports
that in the hills on the south east of the district the
rain lias been the heaviest v/ithin living meinoiy ano h^o
alone consiaerable damage.^ The badly-nee dec rain has engendered
a degree of pptimisui and a certain ainount of grain has Deen in
consequence sent into the towns.
(15) The general level of prices, however, shows no tendency
to fall and it is understood that all the Persian government
de oar tine nts have recommended an increase of 5(/ in uhe salaries
of their staffs.
(16) The efforts of the British authorities to persuade the
Persians to attempt some control of prices meet with a. vane Vt /
of obstacles and some success. The Governor-beneral, when^pressed
to take firmer action against hoarders, produced a letter irom
the Ministry of the Interior forbidding him to interfere in the
work of the other departments 'in view of conrolaints received
from various departments and particularly from the Dep<-nme n t of
Justice”. (Tliis appears to be a frank reversal of the polliy
uijder which Governors and Gov^rnors-General were _ enjoined zo
take the responsibility for all decisions affecting nam^n-
'fcuilding' activities.) "'he ‘'Peace Court* (Gulhieh) ’••• iich tries
offences involving the giving of short weight - one of she
shookeeoers* favourite devices - still lacks a magistrate and no
reuly has been given to the local Justice Department s request
for reinforcements, (compare para 25 of the diar^ for second half
of January). Rome progress has, however, been made with tne
execution of the anti-hoarding laws. "’he Director of the
' Municipality has informed His ^i.jesty’s Cons-otGeneral that the _
courts’are at last imposing reasonable sentences for profiteering
and adduced one instance where an offender had been sentenced
to five months imprisonment as well as the payment ol u . ine and
confiscation of tne goods involved and 2 cases of 3 monons
imprisonment. It is proposed to give publicity on. tns -Oc<ao. news
broadcasts to tnese convictions in
orofiteering will be encouraged to
the hope th? t victims of
come forward with information.
V.
Yibal
17) The security of the Gach Caron ar^a has be^n marred by
i series of incidents. On 16th February, a gang believed to oe
composed of Boir Ahmed Ssrhaadis looted Bavi camps on o^e Basnt^
?oad. on the following day, a gang, w.iich is reported ,o nav^ -seen
the one involved in the previous days' incident, held u
\nglo-Iranian oil Company lorry on tne Behfcehan road ani robbed
the driver and later looted a party of Anglo-Iraniac )i_ Company
foad labourers, D.C. o. and tliree men from the gendarme) if.
post of Gach navaz went in pursuit of the robbers and a_l except
ene gendarme were killed. Col. Purrastegar, VT ho was going to Gac
3aran on 19th February to investigate these incidents, was held
ao at Gach Havaz; one gendarme of the party was killed on the
spot and of six others wounded one subsequently died. Co,.
Purrastegar was obliged to return to Behbehan and the Persian^
nilitary forces from Gach Saran, who had gone out on information
received from a couple of travellers who had been hexd _ui at
Gach tfavaz earlier in the day, failed in tne absence oi ~ny senior
officer tr make contact with the gang.
(lb) /v clash is reported to have taken place at Zrid^r. on 13th
February between the gendarmerie and an armed gang. T *o details are
yet available, but rumours hav^ been heard of gendarmerie
casualties and the A.A.O. reports that a gang whs seen l*ter in the
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