"ملف 19/175 البحرين - تجارة اللؤلؤ" [و‎‎٢‎١] (٨٣/٤٠)

JD.O. J>3
The r'oliticiil A^tncy
Baiirain.
Ac .TT >
] S U^Hii^u RES^g^NCV- t
/es~
Reg. No.
'V.?#
OONFlOEtiTlAL RtCOROS.
Please rel«r t» your D.O. No 457-a of I(i25.
I hav# not replied earlier because your letter was received while
ShaiJc ilamad was away^fc since he returned 1 i.ave had conversations
v .ita him^nd have discussed various points with others interested
in tlie natter,
/y-tf
I iiuve read with interest kailam f s letter 95 /9/5
^ I think he would agree,i we discussed tiie watteija little teiore
he left.tnit the practical difficulties in carrying out some of his
suggestions are insumountable. I cannot help thinking that fcallam
was a little bold in coming to conclusions about toe diving on the
strength of only siai months experience,4= handicapped as he was scius
by lack of time ZMmm. to study it^i by an insufficient knowledge of
arable to enable him always to get to the bottom of the inttiaaites
& ramifications of the subject.
Jus statement that the measures of reform introduced
included the abolition of the old Salifeh Court is an error. The
Saliieh Court had died a natural death a long time before the re
forms started. The <Court- had consisted of one very venal old man,
who received no salary for his duties^ depenued for his- livlihood
on subsidies paid him by the Kaichudas themselves. Prom my arrival
in January '21 till the introduction of reforms in 1924 I do not
\ recollect a single case in which a diver obtained redress in the
o-diieh court. In iac1,xa at that time,accounts when kept (generallv
t^ere were none) by Kakhudas,were so completely unintelligible that
even had the Salifeh Court been reasonably just-which was notorious
-ly not the case-it would have been incapaitle of arriving at any
decision. As a result of this state of affaire for a year or more 7
before the institution of reforms.divers who were protected ptr-
sons & whe appealed tol the agency for redress,when informed that
the onl_v .nachinery J or dealipg with their cases was the 'Salifeh*,
invariably dropped their cases, as the result was a foregone con
clusion,,. the fact that they had complained^antagonised the Kakhud*.