Page 478 - Belgrave Diaries(N)_Neat

476

1929

in the morning. Shaikh Mohamed's son is an ill mannered youth, Abdulla's is rather taking, very plain but with a grin,
the other, son of old Shaikh Ibrahaim is much older than the two. Mohamed was fussing about their journey and trying
to get second class fares changed to firsts. Went to call on Zayani in the afternoon. One of his relations was with him.
We went to his garden where he goes every evening and on the balcony of his garden house, rather a pleasant place
looking onto the tank and the green garden. He said he had heard that the lady though of a respectable family was not
quite all that she should be. She has been married before and according to ideas here is no chicken as she is twenty.
After some talk in which old Haji Seggar got very excited, naturally, he agreed that it would be best not to break off the
marriage, as it was to take place tonight. Went out to have a look at the Suk al Khamis school. Fahad al Bassam came
to see me in the evening after dinner. He seemed very aged and didnt look well. He is a nice old man.

Friday 13th September
Painted in the morning. Didnt go to the Bank as I was not sure that after all they had not gone out to the pearl banks.
Tea at Mespers and tennis to celebrate John's second birthday. He had a lot of toys, all seemed to give him toy motors.
Good tennis. Played bridge afterwards but as I had D.G. for a partner I went down heavily. He plays atrociously.
Quite cool but warmer than the last few days.

Saturday 14th September
Shaikh Mohamed came round in the morning with the two boys who are going back to school in Beyrout. He fusses
about them in a most silly way and is desperately anxious that there should be a distinction between the Khalifa boys
and the others, a most unwise idea and I sat on it. Boys of that age ought not to be trained to think that they are better
than everyone else even if they do belong to the Royal Family, such as it is. Called on the Sunni Kadi Shaikh Abdel
Latif. He had his little daughter there, a little girl of about six, very pretty little thing and very intelligent. As usual he
was very full of complaints and asking for more pay and money for various things. Motored round the gardens in the
evening.

Sunday [15th September]

Sulman came round in the morning with a lot of notes for my pedigree of the Khalifa family. We worked at it for
about an hour. I have got the rough copy of it pretty well complete now. It includes 12 generations, but that is not as
long a period as one would imagine as they marry so young and have children so early. There are five generations
alive now. Sulman is very interested in the work. The Engineer, Jordan, arrived on the boat and D.G. brought him to
call in the afternoon, just after lunch, such an awkward time. He is very like Major Holmes, not a gentleman but quite
pleasant and gives one the idea of being very capable. His looks and manners are extremly like Holmes, I am sure the
natives will think that all engineers are cut in one pattern. He hopes to bring his wife here as soon as he has settled into
a house. In the afternoon I took him round the town and showed him the proposed site and the main roads, he doesnt
like the Biladya garden as a site at all, the soil is too damp for foundations. Went along to the Customs in the evening
and then to dinner with Haji Seggar, his "wedding breakfast". The dinner was in the bride's house, rather a poky little
place in the bazaar, very hot indeed. We sat on a slooping roof very shut in and had dinner in the bridal chamber, hung
as usual with coloured silks, almost filled up by a huge bed. The Arab ideas are very quaint. Left at once after dinner,