"تقارير إدارية ١٩٠٥-١٩١٠" [ظ‎‎١‎٣‎٠] (٦١٦/٢٦٥)

0g ADMINISTEATIQN REPORT OF THE PERSIAN GULE POLITICAL RESIDENCY
riots of three years ago. Tbey knew that the Eussian Consul's relations with
the Governor were more than strained, and that they would have hissvmpath
if not his active help, and considered that their opportunity had com?
They accordingly put themselves at the head of the movement and carried
half the mob over to the Bussian Consulate, the Amin-ul-Islam being mos |.
active in this and offering the people all they wanted if they would leave the
British Telegraph Office and go over to the Russian Consulate.
The Russian Consul made a poor pretence of joining me in tryino" t 0
reconcile the two parties, but was largely coerced and partly voluntaiily 0 i e ^
to side with the popular party who then refused to be satisfied with the
dismissal of the Deputy-Governor, but insisted on the dismissal of the Governor
as well. They got their way, and the Governor was re-called to Tehran.
The Nazim was brought back to the town in triumph, and though there
has been a nominal Deputy-Governor in Kerman and several nominations and
cancellations of Governors by the Persian Government, the Nazitn and the
I^aib have since then ruled the Kerman city to all intents and purposes.
They at once elected a local Majlis according to their own emendation of
the Act of Parliament, but the Majlis has not been particularly happy either
in its internal harmony or outside confidence. The general anarchy throughout
the district, resulting from the absence of any central authority in it, dislocated
all business and reduced the value of carpets by 50 per cent.; carpets heino- the
chief industry of Kerman and the Nazim's following being chiefiy composed of
the workers in it he has naturally lost most of his popularity with his own
followers. He and the Naib have managed to offend the Julias, the merch
ants, the respectable classes generally and the sarbazes and every one of them
has had it brought home personally to them that any authority is better than
none at all. The Sheikhi Khans have found that the many-headed is also the
many-mouthed and as neither the Nazim or the Naib started with any money
in their possession the expense of keeping these mouths satisfied devolved on
them and they are thinking that the game was not worth the candle. The
Russian Consul gained a small temporary popularity largely mingled with
contempt which is more than effaced now and he must be ^orry that he did not
show a bolder front and take a longer view than he did. This Consulate is
now reaping the reward for maintaining a correct attitude towards both sides
and it is recognised with respect that neither iutimidation nor personal feeling
will make a British Consul disregard his orders and tUat he only receives one
set of these.
The Districts. Except under an unusually strong Governor-General like the Eerman
Ferma,^ Baluchistan has never been much more than nominally a Persian
possession or paid much respect to Persian authority, but the Persian hold on it
has never been so feeble as it is just now. Early in the year a young chief who
resented a^ fraudulent re-sale by the Governor of his ancestral fort which he
had only just purchased himself from the Governor held it with only a dozen
followers against the Persians, shooting a Sartip and about twenty men. By
way of vindicating Persian authority the Governor retreated to Bampur and
then resigned his Governorship and lett Baluchistan. After a considerable
interval, another Governor was appointed and^ after a protracted further delay,
he actually went to Baluchistan. He stayed for a short time practically in a
state of siege in his fort and then returned to Bam. Another chief, turned aa
honest penny by collectiug the customs at one of the ports, but unfortunately
for himself found that this brought him iuto collision with outside authorities.
Otherwise the Baluchis have been surprisingly quiet and have neither fought
among themselves nor raided into Narinashir or neighbouring districts.
In Narmashir there has been a good deal of conflict between the popular
party and the Khans. The local Anjuman in B im seem to have t :| ken up as
uncompromising an attitude as the Majlis itself and will stand no opposition
trom the Governors whom they turned out on the slightest provocation. Iu the
case of the Nasr-ul-Mamalik they pulled down his house and burned everything
tney could lay hold of in it. The sarbazes sided with the Khans for a long
time and there have been several conflicts between the sarbazes and the people,
but the popular party have at last won over the sarbazes and- this has left the
re-actionaries without a backing and they have had to. subscribe to the
constitution.