payment of this balance in China, though the youngest
brother of Mr. Bamani, Mr. Ahmad Namasi, has been to Swatow
and searched for the debtor: the conditions at Swa tow
during the recent troubles have made it impossible to bring
the debtor to book in a Mixed Court.
How Mr. Hamasi's firm have heard that this defaulting
Chinaman is again sending the same steamship to Bushire
(possibly with the same supercargo) and the ship should
be at Bushire this week to purchase and load a consignment
from the Behbehani and Kasaruni opium firmm (it is not
certain which).
Mr. Hanasi on behalf of his firm applied to me for
British assistance to have this fresh consignment attached
on account of the Chinese buyer's debt to lessrs. Namazi
after the supercargo or representative of the Chinese buyer
has paid the Behbahani or Kasaruni firm, and while it is
in the lighters for shipment, or at any rate in the Customs
at Buahire. Once the opium is attached, Mr. Banasi is
confident that the Chinese buyer will come to term and
pay the major part, if not all, of his debt to Messrs. Namasi.
Mr. Namazi is sending a special representative to Bushire,
but not going himself, in order not to excite suspicions
among the Chinese on the vessel: and he is anxious that
the attachment should take place at the last moment before
the opium leaves the shore, in order to ensure that the
Behbehani or Eazaruni firms will have no further claim to
it, and will not join with the Chinese in opposing attachmen“
I pointed out to Mr. Hamsi, in the first place,
that legal action was required in Bushire, that I could
take no action in Shiras, unless he osred to forwa rd
through