"دليل الخليج. مجلد I. القسم التاريخي. الأجزاء Iأ و Iب. ج.ج. لوريمر ١٩١٥" [‎٩‎٩] (١٧٨٢/٢٤٢)

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In 1751 anarchy prevailed, Persian merchants began to emigrate from
the country m large numbers, and trade came to a standstill. A Baluchi
raid occurred in the Shamll district. The Huvvalah * sent a fleet of a
dozen Trankis to Bandar 'Abbas, ostensibly to congratulate Mulla 'Ali
Shah, the Persian Admiral and Governor, on the marriage of his daughter,
but in reality to carry off his vessels ; and that astute individual, making a
virtue of a necessity, presented them with a ship and two gallivats, which
left him with only one ship in his possession.
At the beginning of 1752 Nasir Khan, chief of Lar, suddenly attacked
Bandar 'Abbas, captured Mulla 'Ali Shah with his family and his remain
ing ship, and plundered the wealthier inhabitants of the town, one of
whom died under torture. The Khan paid a friendly visit to the British
Factory, where he offered to appoint as governor of Bandar 'Abbas any
one whom the Agent might desire,— a suggestion which was evaded " as
genteely as possible,"—and received ]00 Tumans as a present from the
Factory. This did not prevent his extorting other 80 Tumans from the
Hindu merchants under British protection, but no protest was made on
this score as more than six times the amount had been taken from
che Dutch. Soon after the Khan's return to Lar, trouble arose between
him and 'Abdul Shaikh of Qishm in consequence of the sale of a Persian
ship by the latter to the Imam of 'Oman; the Khan at once sent to
Mr. "Wood, the British Agent, requiring him to recover the ship, which
bad not yet sailed; and that gentleman most reluctantly complied, des
patching the « Drake " and the " Rahmani" to Laft, by which means
the surrender of the disputed vessel was obtained without the firing of a
single shot. At the end of the year the Khan again visited Bandar
'Abbas in person with 2,000 Afghan and Persian soldiers and contracted
at the British Factory a debt of 99,935 Shahis, " in broadcloth, tabbies
and sattins ' probably " to make Apparel for his Families and Dependants,
"which they by no means could avoid supplying him with, as the hazard of
a refusal would have been far greater than that of trusting to his honesty
" m regard to payment." In discharge of this debt the Agent icceived, as
did also the Dutch Agent for purchases made at the Dutch Factory, a
parcel of bad bills ; and in the case of the British five unserviceable brass
guns were thrown in, which were consigned to Bombay as 997 maunds of
old copper. Before he left, the Khan re-appointed M la 'Ali Shah to the
governorship of Bandar 'Abbas, in subordination to himself. Some hopes
* Possibly those of Bahrain, but more probably {tbose of the Persian coast, who
were in the 18th century the main part of this so-called tribe. See Niebuhr's Descrip
tion de I Arahie, pages 271-272, in whose day most of the coast Arabs from Bandar
Albas to Rangun were considered to be Huwalah.
16 A
1751.
1752.
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