'Volume I. MEMORANDA REGARDING PERSIA AND NORTH-WEST TRANS-FRONTIER. 1905.' [‎15r] (34/310)

[ 3 ]
Hardinge, whilst several Azerbaijan merchants
took bast (Per.) A Persian custom allowing an individual to seek asylum at a designated location. in the Indo-European Telegraph
Company’s premises at Tabriz until persuaded
to re-open their shops on the promise that
their grievances would be investigated.
The Saod-ud-Dowleh, referred to in para
graph 2 above, has promised to hold a full
enquiry into the matter and to remove Mons.
Leleux, the Acting Director-General of Customs
in Azerbaijan, and replace him by a less strict
official, who is at present the chief of customs
at Astara. His idea is to depute a permanent
delegate from the Ministry of Commerce to
each of the important towns of frontier pro
vinces, to supervise the application of the
Eeglement, and to act as a mediator between
the Persian mercantile community and the
Belgian officials. In the meantime Sir A.
Hardinge has suggested to His Majesty’s Gov
ernment the appointment of some local British
resident as a Commercial Agent or Attache to
the Tabriz Consulate-General.
10. Arabist an .—Further details of Mr.
Van Roggen’s Karun river irrigation scheme
(w'cte paragraphs 18-20 of the Memorandum
for February) show that his anticipation is
that, in spite of the withdrawal of water for
irrigation, the navigation on the Lower Karun
will always be possible for steamers of the
size and draught of those of Messrs. Lynch’s
Company. In 24 years a block of land,
80,000 acres in area, is to be dealt with, of
which 59,300 acres are to be cultivated, the rest
being used for canals, levels, and roads. The
difference would perhaps also include patches
of land which are unsuitable for cultivation.
Year by year l-24th of 59,300 acres would be
dealt wdth, and at the same time a reservoir
wmuld be dug to supply water for irrigation
purposes to this area at seasons of low water.
Major Morton considers Mr. Van Rog
gen’s scheme fantastic, and does not place
much faith in it. He is of opinion that the
construction of a dam at Ahwaz will interfere
with the navigation of the lower portion of the
Karun river. He thinks that, if the irrigation
scheme is required, the navigation of the Lower
Karun should give way to it, but if the naviga
tion of the Lower Karun is the more import
ant, the irrigation scheme should give way.
In a telegram, dated the 13th March, Sir
A. Hardinge suggested to the Secretary of
State that the proposed loan to the Persian
Government for the construction of the dam,
should be refused in consequence of the attack
on the Military Attache and Lieutenant Lori-
mer, unless our demands for compensation
were acceded to, but His Lordship replied
that no decision would be come to regarding
the loan pending Major Morton’s report on
the scheme, when it would be considered on its
merits.