The role of trust in long-distance trade has been a topic of inquiry and debate among economists, sociologists, and historians. Much of this literature hinges on the social, legal, and economic structures that undergird, if not obviate, the concept of trust. This article draws on assemblage theory to suggest that trust in Indian Ocean trade is better understood as a key component of a commercial assemblage. Laws or social mores are not external to but rather enrolled within an assemblage constituted by people, commodities, profits, and “feelings,” as well as judicial systems. This conceptualization of trust is demonstrated through a close analysis of one trading relationship between a Somali merchant and an Indian merchant based in Aden and trading in the Idrisi Emirate of Asir. They established a partnership to exploit elevated prices in Asir during the First World War. After several months of trading, accusations of fraud and embezzling unraveled the partnership and entangled both men in years of legal battles. By tracing the changing socio-material assemblage of this partnership, the article demonstrates how trust should be understood as a dynamic and contingent factor in the operation of commercial agency.

中文翻译：

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关于委托人和代理：重建对印度洋商业的信任

信任在长途贸易中的作用一直是经济学家、社会学家和历史学家之间探讨和辩论的话题。这些文献中的大部分都取决于社会、法律和经济结构，这些结构支持（如果不是排除的话）信任的概念。本文借鉴了组合理论，表明对印度洋贸易的信任应更好地理解为商业组合的关键组成部分。法律或社会习俗不是外在于人、商品、利润和“感情”以及司法系统构成的集合体，而是被纳入其中。通过对索马里商人与亚丁印度商人之间的贸易关系以及在阿西尔伊德里西酋长国进行贸易的密切分析，证明了这种信任的概念化。他们建立了合作伙伴关系，以利用第一次世界大战期间阿西尔的高价。经过几个月的交易，欺诈和挪用公款的指控破坏了合作关系，并使两人陷入多年的法律纠纷。通过追踪这种伙伴关系不断变化的社会物质组合，本文展示了如何将信任理解为商业代理运作中的动态和偶然因素。