Page 740 - Belgrave Diaries(N)_Neat

1932

and very slow, they invite people at eight and dine at nine. I hit my face hard with my tennis raquet while playing and gave
myself a bad black eye, a most unusual thing to do, I was trying to take a ball that bounced right on top of me. Had no four for
bridge as the doctor and de Grenier left early going to dine at the Haenggis. Hot day as there was no wind in the evening.

Sunday [3 July]

Court. In the afternoon I went up to the Fort to pay out, in order to find out if there is any truth in the matter of debts owed to
the men by the Superintendent I asked every man when I paid him whether he owed or claimed any money from anyone.
They had a lot of small debts among themselves but none claimed any money from the Superintendent. Came back after and
stayed about the garden.

Monday [4 July]

We worked on the Siadi case all the morning and got quite a lot done on it, I shall be thankful when it is done, it has been in
court over two years now, part of it has been going on for much longer. Cooler day, a good shamaal blowing. Prior Ham and
the doctor are having a series of races in the sailing boats which they seem very keen on, the whole thing bores me very much
and I can feel no interest in it at all. At the Fort again in the afternoon paying out, one or two disputes among the men about
small debts but nothing more. Afterwards I went out for a drive and on the way back had a bathe in Idari, there were some
Hindus there but they kept at the end of the channel. I find now that by having breakfast always at eight oclock I can get done
in the court much earlier as Sulman always comes at eight and we start now at about half past and lately have been finished at
half past twelve.

Tuesday [5 July]

The old Kadi came to call in the afternoon. Manama Biladya meeting, nothing of any great importance. On the way back went
into the Police Station and saw the people in the case of the sepoy and the little Baluchi girl, the parents have persuaded her to
say that she doesnt want to marry the man and they have also decided that the girl is none the worse for her three nights with
him, which is in my opinion unlikely, but it suits them as it will not damage her value in the marriage market, so the case has
come to an end and the father said he wanted nothing more to be done about it. Busy preparing the draft treaty with Ibn Saoud
for the mutual surrender of criminals. Down mail came in. In the evening I went out to Ain al Hakim and had a bathe, first in
the sea as the tide was high and then in the spring which was very nice. I took the dogs and gave them all a good bath.
Afterwards I sat for a long time by the spring talking to a diver from one of the near villages who had come back yesterday
from the sea, he said how much better the pearls were this year, he belonged to a boat which was financed by Yusuf Fakroo
and he was saying how all the divers knew that he cheated them and did not give them a right share of the pearls, he talked
much about the diving and said it was a poor game now and nobody got any profit from it from among the divers. Dined with
D.G. and discussed the question of the redemption of the 5% War Loan in which our Provident Fund is invested, he wants to
put it into a Building Society, I think I shall leave mine in as it is in the new loan. A bad dinner, he always has such nasty
puddings, very solid jelly with messy sauce, he eats simply stupendously, every helping heaped all over the plate, so nasty in
hot weather.