Page 242 - Belgrave Diaries(N)_Neat

240

1927

houses paying 8 annas each. Actually the poorest people should have a reduction of half - this caused an uproar, as I
expected, as the whole idea was for the benefit of the members of the Council who mostly own several big houses & are
taxed high. Afterwards went over to Sezireh island. Its a very pretty little island full of springs & streams & fine date gardens
with a splendid crop this year. Vistas of brilliant blue sea seen through the date palms, an attractive place. Lunched in a reed
hut built by the main spring, a big pool with a masonry edge round it. Talked much of the time with the people of the village
about some gardens & water rights. The old man come & shout but they mean no harm. Never have I seen worse teeth
than here, its simply awful, if they have any they are huge yellow fangs protruding from their mouths. Perhaps the diving
causes it, that & eyes are the bad points, 8 out of 10 have groggy eyes! & 9 out of 10 have no teeth or awful long ones. Went
to another little island which I have always liked the looks of. On my way back, I'd like to buy it & make a summer house on
it. Parke came to see me after dinner very angry & upset at the affair of the motor accident. It appears the passengers were
two of the clerks of Abdulla Kuseibi, whose brother is bin Saoud's Agent in Bahrain. Parke questioned them & they denied
any knowledge of the accident - obviously lies - so he put them in prison. Kuseibi came & asked for their release, Parke
refused, K rushed out to the Shaikh, as usual, & got an order to release them which Parke had to obey. Insufferable. The
Shaikh ought not to behave like this, but he always does. Alban very angry about it too.

Wednesday 22nd [June]