The New York herald., 1871-03-27
M ~ S 9 A r..
It's Political and Commercial Con-
dition, With tie Recent His.
tory Of ITS Royal Family.
Thoorkee Escaped at Last from
a British Prison.
The Qygthrow of Mohammedan Blue
Law nsot-Biography, Character and ta
Misf0rtpnes Of the New Saltan--Ah.
elo-1udiap Jqstlce-A Modem I'm.
pey-Descripdon Of Muscat.
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pey-Descripdon Of Muscat.
Far away In the East, almost in the very gate Of
the pearl<aed Persian Gulf stands the little city Of
Muscat. the capital Of the kingdom OF Oman, and
the political ana commercial centre OF the south.
eastern section OF Arabia Felix. A few weeks ago
1t was the scene OF successful revolution and the
news, after flashing over the wires through Turkish
Arabia. resting by the waysde at Bagdad, at Nine.
veh lMosull a. Diarbekir and at Aeppo to be re-
transmitted by many-tongued telegraph clerks-thls
one an Armenian, that one Greek, the third, per.
haps, Polish refugee-at last reached Constan-
tnople and thence leaped In q few hours, with the
names all misspelled, to London and New York. Few
Americans, perhaps, appreciate The Importance OF
the change that has thus been announced, and It is
worth while, therefore, to review the recent history
of Muscat, and to tell the story Of the
LONG POLITICAL ROMANCE
that has just ended in tho elevation OF Syud Th00r.
kee to the throne OF Oman f.
First OF all IL must be clearly understood that we
have direct interest In the affairs or this little
Arab kingdom. The United States is one OF the
three civitzed Powers tnat thought 1t worth their
WHILE thirty years ago. to make formal treaties OF
commerce with Oman, and it Is the only one that
transacts direct trade with 1t. England also has
small Muscat trade, but all such tranlc flows
to ana fro by the British Indian steam line to Bonn.
bay, and 1s there reshipped. But American vessels
owned In and manned from Salem, Mass.) sail al.
recuy from Boston every year to Zanzibar aud Mus
cat, and return home laden chiefly with .frailsu OF
dates-the same dates which we see In front
OF the grocery stores, jammed together In
q dark brown mass, and OF which Mus
cat Is the principal and almost the
exclusive market Perhaps half dozen vessels
thuc nolya
they take nothing out with them except ballast and
hard cash dollars but in former times before Brit
ish meddling had ruined Muscat they did an export
trade as well Of about three thousand bales OF cheap
cotton fabrics annually. Probably this trade Will
again revive, now that the country fair pros
pect OF permanent peace, under the rule Of an In
telligent and iberal-minded prince
= :r.a t-ss-sse. POLITICS OF MusCAT.
The connection between Muscat and the province
OF Oman Is very curious one. Nominaly the two
ore part and parcel Of the same Kingdom. But, in
fact, the country is only settled by permanently
fixed population for q few miles back from the
coast and the remainder OF the soil belongs to tribes
OF Bedaween, who combine in q strange sort Of way
the pursuits OF peaceful industry with taste for ha
btual bloodshed. These tribes subsist chiefly BY
their herds Of cames, horses and cattle. Tney live
In villages OF rude huts, built OF few poles
covered over with ,hatch Such cabins can be
erected In day, and whenever threatened by
danger the tribe deserts them and moves away to
Safer location. All these Bedaween, as matter Of
courtesy, acknowledge the sovereignty Of the Sultan
OF Muscat, who OF course can give them good
deal Of trouble II he chooses to lead his army
against them and drive them from pillar TO post;
and they even pay him O tribute OF 80 many camels
and horses year. But their allegiance is Of q very
fnsubstantial character. Here and there, however
even IN he desert" there are scattered colonies OF
civilized Arabs who have found patch OF eycep-
ttonaby good land and raise dates and
grain; but these are too few to have
any political weight Taking into account
therefore. this strange condition of Oman
1T can readily be that the city OF Muscat mods
the desinies OF the entire Kingdom 1t also has the
PRIVILEGE 81 raising neary all the taxes a" In ict
have any very definite existence
s.N WHAT MUSCAT Is LIKE.
Muscat Itself Is city OF about 10000 inhabitants.
tain spurs that run out to the sea from the main
range that towers directly up from the shore at this
In by nuge masses Of dark brown rock upon which |
grows neither tree nor shrub tuf OF grass. nor
even hint OF verdure; and exit the interior can
only be gained BY narrow dede. The harbor IS |
small and difficult OF entrance, but Is pretty well
s e orsaay Masd ns s
at eacn extremity Of tue harbor, while others |
up the rocks in the
atty are alone allowed to live within the
city precincts; the rabblc and the negroes ana Be-
sort Of extra mural town. The two gates are closed
at sunset, and general iusllade from all the forts
Muscat is the nolsies part Of the twenty.iour Iours
Every now ana then the sentines yell out to each
other raj peculiar signal howl and fort answers fort
stranger in Muscat sleeps alter daybreak at night
the time by looking at the blue deep OF the Arabian
heaven sparkling with stars OF golden fre-a heaven |
fs star stars vnrS wnSss s e ses9 else
-, rEz:E; swd6 YYvks FnEFE S:,fa,ar =
The population Of Muscat is mixed-very much
form at least third Of its total muster roll. Then
there Is Hindoo colony OF some 700 or 500 baniau'
loochees. The negroes have all originally been i'm.
ported as slaves, but Arabian slavery Is very mild,
master ste generally " his death m e free
Arab from concubine whether negro Or not are
looked upon as free and legitimate offspring That
and Christianity was never 80 mercifu, at least in
America. so, from these causes, II has come to
and In some Of the 1obiest Arab families The chill
ren Of a negress are the recognized chiefs OF the
house. The present royal family are all more or less
- -ls;y,y.~ PAST GREATNESS. a-s:.F..: -.
With thls general idea Of Muscat, the reader can
tory. Muscat belonged in very old times for cen
tury and half to PORTUGAL and after sub
becoming province OF Persia,
hundred years ago, through the heroism OF
o sheikh named Ahmed-ebn-Syud, in whose
family the throne has since remained. Muscat was
In the zenith OF It's prosperity about thirty years ago.
1t then had a navy OF thirty vessels, most OF them
small but embracing among the rest couple of /,
European frigates. The ruling Sultan, Saeed SYud, |
put down piracy IN ali parts OF the Gulf encouraged
trade and was very liberal TO Europeans. He died ,
In 1s53 and his son, ThOweynce, succeeded him as |
Sultan of Muscat while another son, Maid lwho /
died few months ago), was declared his successor |
ihnr Xnn ~ N a
toiore been united and Th0weynee disputed his |
brothers. claim, but N.--s's =
THE BRITISH STEPPED IN
and buled him into acquiescence. Under Tho- |
weynee Muscat rapidly declined. He was mere |
and While he was taking bang ana toying |
with his women piracy revived on the gull, and |
commerce grew less and less. HIS brother Tnoorkee,
however, who had been appointed by his father |
Governor of Sohar was q practical legislator and |