"تقارير إدارية ١٩٠٥-١٩١٠" [و‎‎١‎٢‎٥] (٦١٦/٢٥٤)

AND THE MASKAT POLITICAL AGENCY FOR THE YEAR 1907-
57
On the 1st July Salar-ed-Douleh left Kermanshah for Tehran accom
panied by Saif-ed-Douleh, the Governor, and Zahir-ed-Douleh, Governor of
Hamadan, was appointed to act in the latter's place.
Zahir-ed-Douleh had arrived on the 20th June as Commissioner to
enquire into the state of affairs at Kermanshah. On the evening of his
arrival he came to the Consulate to see the refugees but did not come up to
visit me as he did not wish to meet Salar-ed-Dowleh. He persuaded Agha
Mahommed Mehdi and others to leave the Consulate and then went to the
Telegraph Office, where certain of the aristocratic party had taken "bast"
and induced them also to go to their homes.
Having accomplished this he telegraphed to Tehran that not a soul was
left in " bast in either places. This was a piece of oriental phraseology for
as a matter of fact the whole of the heads of the various trades and their
folio wings, being about three-fourths of the total refugees, refused to leave till
they had received some pledge through me and did not quit the Consulate
till two days later.
Thus the refugees having left on the morning of the 22nd Jure and
Salar-ed-Douleh on the evening of the same day, I was considerably freer
than I had been for some time past.
Zahir-ed-Douleh was now confirmed in his appointment. He told me
that when he visited Salar-ed-Douleh's camp the latter had not above 1,000
men, badly armed and clothed, some even without either arms or clothirg.
His Imperial Highness was apparently a great believer in bluff in which he
succeeded to a certain degree. He ga^e out that he had lO.OOu men with
him in the hills and I do not think that even the i'ersians knew quite how
many men could be raised in l.uristan. Sa 1 ar's object was not to fight but
either to frighten his brother into giving him the governorships which be
wanted or else to attract to his standard the local tribes and thus increase his
strength to the point required before taking the field. The chief mi>take he
made was in that he imagined that his personality attracted others like that of
Napoleon or Nadir Shah, to both of whom he frequently compared himself.
He had correctly gauged the political situation, he knew that the Shah would
not deal fairly with the Constitution and that there would be great distrust of
him ; he therefore proposed himself taking the side of the Constitution and so
gaining the people's affection for himself. Had he had another character,
had he been of a more honest nature there is little doubt that he would have
had an opportunity which would have with good management brought him
very near that unstable and undesirable seat, the throne of Persia.
If Salar had obtained the four Governorships for which he asked, there is
equally little doubt that his idea was to so strengthen his position 1 —he had
already allied himself by marriage to several of the chief tribes including that
of the Wali of Pusht-i-Kuh—that he could on opportunity arising attempt by
force that which he was now endeavouring to attain by policy. The mistake
he made w^as in imagining he had that which he has not—a character which by
its own force surmounts all difficulties.
To resume, Zahir-ed-Douleh had now turned his attention to the work for
which he had been appointed, namely the settling of the disputes between the
two parties, the determining with whom lay the responsibility for looting the
bazaar and in what manner the losses so incurred were to be repaid.
It is curious thnt he did not succeed in fully gaining the confidence of
the people for his sympathies were supposed to be very much with the
progressive party. _ On the 12th August he held a meeting for the decision of
certain points but it was not attended by any of the people's representatives,
in fact on the previous day a large crowd had visited his residence and had
roundly abused him while his attempts to pacify them were without result.
In m Pantime the presence of Agha Mahommed Mehdi was required at
Tehran in connection with the enquiry being made there also at the instance
of the Assembly into the cause of the riots. A large number of people
doubtful of Zahir-ed-Douleh's assurances had proceeded to Tehran and had
induced the members of the parliament to take up a separate enquiry.