Page 324 - Belgrave Diaries(N)_Neat

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1927

FRIDAY 4th Nov

Went over to Agency after breakfast & talked awhile to Bray, Barrett & the P.R. then went out in cars to see the tombs at Ali &
on to Rafaa. I drove with Bray, tete a tete, & had a long talk with him, most interesting. His idea is that everything should be
more Arab & that there is too much of the Indian & European element in the running of the state. He asked if I could do
without the other two Englishmen if they were replaced by Syrians or Egyptians. We talked hard the whole time & I told him
more & gave him a better idea of the place & local politics & feeling than anyone else had. He said so. He said he hadn't had
the least idea of the size, importance & progress of Bahrain & that it was one of the most difficult problems he had ever come
across. He was extremely nice & very clever in his questions & ideas. He complimented me on the efficiency of everything,
his only complaint being that the Arab side was being too much submerged by ideas of European & civilized efficiency. I told
him how difficult it was to push the Shaikh into taking as active part in ruling as he ought to. Motored back & then had lunch.

After lunch went with the party over to Muharrak. All the quay covered in carpets & decorations. Met by Abdulla & Suliman.
Drove to Shaikh Isa's house & paid a call, about half an hour. He hardly spoke & Hamed sat looking like a naughty boy. Sh
Isa hates him, the favourite being Abdulla, son of the old lady who rules Isa. He is 81 but looked very well though getting
rather blind. Then to the School where they put up a very good show, speeches and songs etc & all short. Then went a drive
round the island & back at sunset to Manama. The Shaikh came back with us in the little Agency launch. Went into the