Page 876 - Belgrave Diaries(N)_Neat

874

1934

Friday 2nd March

Motored to Sitrah in the morning, crossed the sea at the shallow place & got on to the island in the car.
Met Deacon who showed us around & we went out in a little boat with an out board engine. It was very
nice down there. Everyone seemed very busy & lots of Americans everywhere who looked rather
astonished when they saw us. It is wonderful what they have done there in a pier and all sorts of
machinery working and cars and caterpillar tractor running up & down pulling pipes for the pipe line.
The one tanker is about 3 miles out busy discharging cargo. Tennis at the Agency in the afternoon and a
dinner party at the Steeles, played Bridge after dinner.

Saturday [3rd March]

Fort. My men are getting on very well at lathe work. It is a useful thing to know and in future if there is
any sort of row they will know how to deal with it. Agency in morning & had a long talk with Loch
about finances, oil & other questions. he had some letters to show me from I.O. Mrs Mallett, wife of the
charge d'asffaires from Tehran who was here recently is staying at the Agency, a nice woman & very
honest. In the afternoon the Shaikh called to say goodbye to M & James. James was very funny &
insisted on the Shaikh going to the nursery to see Nanny who was rather embarrassed. He stayed quite a
long time. Afterwards we went for a drive and the doctor came in & had a game with James. The doctor
will miss James a lot, he is very fond of him & James is devoted to the doctor. I hear Yusuf Kanoo who
came back by air mail, had no success in Kuwait. I am very sorry as I fear it means he will go bankrupt.
Cool day and a slight shamaal.