Page 374 - Belgrave Diaries(N)_Neat

372

1928

Went over to Agency & talked to the Barretts, he seemed better though not very well, then went down the bazaar &
met Stevenson. Walked about the bazaar & did some shopping & called on de Grenier. Tennis at the Agency, very
windy & bitterly cold. Only played one sett. It was foolish of Barrett to play as he felt feverish afterwards when we
played Bridge.

Saturday 3rd [March]

Court. Stevenson working in my office. Motored out to Idari & Suk al Khamis. The work at Idari is getting on well.
Dined with the Parkes, Bridge.

Sunday 4th March
Office in morning. Went over to Muharrak in the afternoon with S. We had a walk through the bazaars and then drove
out through the town across the plain to Hedd. Stevenson, as I expected, was horrified by the narrowness of the streets
and decided that it was not practible to put in electric. If done at all it would have to be underground and so double the
cost of Manama. Rather rough going across but we went in a launch. A gray dismal day & cold motoring. S came in
to tea after we got back. The streets there really are awful for motoring, one grazes the houses at the side & in places
the car cant turn corners until it has backed up a side street.

Monday 5th March

Barrett ill in bed again. He has been ill on & off for the last 10 days. Went over there & saw Mrs B, offered to put up
part of "the Royal Family" ie the Resident & party.

Tennis at the Mission. Some of the officers from the ship came to tea & were saying that they had never
known such bad weather. One man had been 18 years in the Gulf & hadnt been in such storms. A woman from an
Indian Mission was there. Abominable tennis, it always is at the Mission though the best Court.

Dr & Mrs Holmes & Stevenson came to dinner. Played the gramophone. She is very deaf but seems to
hear better if the gramophone is being played.

Tuesday 6th [March]

Called at Agency in the morning. B was still ill. Stevenson out all the morning mapping the town. Went out a walk in
afternoon & called on de G. Stevenson came to tea. He becomes a shade boring with his everlasting talk of what he
did in Sialkot, or some such tiresome named town. He exudes electric light & his conversation is entirely of volts &
units. I certainly know more about electricity than I ever knew before.

Borrowed Holmes' gramophone records. They are horrid, all rag time & a few Arab ones. The Nearchus
came in but nobody came ashore. Very stormy looking weather. A few drops of rain.