"دليل الخليج. مجلد I. القسم التاريخي. الأجزاء Iأ و Iب. ج.ج. لوريمر ١٩١٥" [‎١‎٢‎٠‎٥] (١٧٨٢/١٣٦٠)

1205
1731.
■'Iraq were greatly disturbed by the Persian invasion of that year; but
about 1737—39 the trade of Bandar •'Abbas, being seriously hampered by
the Persian campaigns in ^Oman which were being conducted from that
port, was largely diverted to Basrah, and the proportion of the
Company's consulage collected at the two places was reversed. Copper in
particular, imported into the Gulf in ships from Bengal, now went chiefly
to Basrah. In 1741 the British woollen trade at Basrah benefited by a
prohibition which the local authorities had imposed on the passage of
caravans between Aleppo and that market. In 1753 and 1753 there was
a great demand for perpets in Turkish J Iraq.
The question of the consulage and other dues collected by the Company's
representative at Basrah is frequently noticed in the correspondence of
the day. In the sense of the Capitulations all the collections of the
Company at Basrah were "consulage " •, but the Company seem to have
restricted that name to a portion which they allowed their officers to keep
for themselves and to have styled the rest " customs.'"
In 1731 Mr. French, the British Resident, obtained a Farman from the
Pasha restricting the Customs duty leviable on British goods at Basrah to
*3 per cent.; and, as Mr. French had made the disbursements necessary to
secure this concession from his own private means, while the concession
was expected to be highly advantageous to trade in general, he was
authorised to charge the outlay to the Company, together with an hono
rarium of 3,000 Qurush for himself. An additional duty, in the shape
apparently of one per cent, imposed on the Company's own goods and
an extra one per cent, on the goods of private traders, was at the same
time laid on all British trade at Basrah ; and it was ordered that this
arrangement should remain in force until the whole amount, with the
interest accruing thereon, should have been recovered.
In 1733 no consulage at all was obtained at Basrah, in consequence of 1733.
a cessation of trade due to the nearness of the Persian armies.
In 1735, whether before or after the charge created in 1731 had been
cleared off, an additional duty was again imposed by the Company at
Basrah in recoupment of the expenses incurred by them in connection with
the first Persian attempt upon the town. A separate account for the
fund thus formed was opened under the heading " Basrah Troubles. >}
Mr. French, the British Resident at Basrah, was awarded 100
Tumans by the Bombay Presidency in partial repayment of the expenses
of his journey to Baghdad in 1736 ; and he was " directed to charge it to
* This was the rate fixed by the Capitulations of 1661 but see footnote on page
1195, ante.
Consulage
and other
dues.
1735.
1736.
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