Abstract: The file concerns the correction of shortages in the weights used by shopkeepers and merchants in Bahrain, and the manufacture of a set of standard weights. The file includes papers recording fines for shortages in weights issued to the foreign shopkeepers who came under the judicial control of the British Political Agency, with notes in Arabic, record of explanations given by individual shopkeepers, and correspondence about the fines between the Political Agent and the Ruler of Bahrain, Sheikh Esa bin Ali Al Khalifa [‘Īsá bin ‘Alī Āl Khalīfah], April-May 1909; papers concerning the replacement of weights, destruction of old weights, and a proposal to manufacture new weights in India, May 1909 - March 1914; correspondence between the Political Agent and the Army and Navy Co-operative Society Limited, Bombay, concerning the supply of standard weights, with invoices, March - April 1914; correspondence between the Political Agent and the Ruler of Bahrain (including letters in Arabic) concerning a notice to merchants and shopkeepers warning against the use of short weights, September 1917; correspondence between the Political Agent and the representative of the Hindu Community in Bahrain concerning the weight of a
Ruba, September 1917; and correspondence between the Political Agent and B R Herman and Company, Karachi, concerning the supply of sets of iron and brass weights, October - November 1917.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation system in use commences at 1 on the front cover, and continues through to 66 on the back cover. The sequence is written in pencil, enclosed in a circle, and appears in the top right hand corner of the recto page of each folio. Foliation anomalies: ff. 1, 1A, 1B. The following folio needs to be folded out to be read: ff. 18-20.
Abstract: This untitled volume was written by John Pybus, an employee of the East India Company from 1742 to 1768. It contains notes relevant to trade in ports of the Persian Gulf, Indian Ocean, and South China Sea. Subjects include:The weights, measures, and currencies used in different ports, and methods of converting between these units and British Imperial measurementsDescriptions of trading ports, including routes by which a ship could reach them, goods that can be traded in each port, and customs feesAdvice on the most profitable methods of trading in different portsMethods of assessing the quality of gold, silver, pearls, and other commoditiesThe personalities of important individuals at each port.The volume also includes a letter from Governor Thomas Bradyll and his council at Fort William, Calcutta [Kolkata] to Richard Bourchin and David Findlay, giving instructions for a trading voyage to Manila via Malacca.Physical description: Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1 and terminates at the inside back cover with 97; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.Pagination: The volume also contains an original handwritten pagination sequence.