Page 791 - Belgrave Diaries(N)_Neat

Wednesday [21st June]

Fort. Finished work on the range. The men did quite well & are very keen on shooting. Office. The Shaikh came in,
went to see Lock & then came back to me. As I thought the APOC have made a move, verbally with the Shaikh and by
letter to Lock asking for "sole right" to negotiate for the rest of the area. Went to Agency later on & had a long talk
with Lock.

The bazaar rumour is that the Shaikh of Kuwait has come to marry a wife from the Khalifah & Sh Hamed to take one
from the Subah - I told the Shaikh the first half of the rumour & he was much amused & interested but said it was the
first he had heard of it - others say that oil is the reason of his visit, perhaps more likely. Wrote in afternoon & then
usual tennis party. James went swimming, he has not been lately as he hurt his foot but it is now recovered. The
Shaikh talked about Mohammed the Subah & the Police Station.

Thursday June 22nd

Cool windy day. Office in morning. Motored in afternoon & played Bridge & dined with de Grenier. After dinner
played piano - he plays quite well, & then I "played" which I enjoy though others probably don't.

Friday 23rd June

Went round the town in the car. Looked in at the DGs and in afternoon tennis at Agency, got some very good games
as most of the dud players happened not to be there. Then went to DGs where we played Bridge. The Shaikh of
Kuwait asked us to dinner on his yacht but we refused saying we had "previous engagement". We had asked the
Skinners to dine but as a matter of fact they refused.

Saturday [24th June]

The Amir of Muharraq came over early & reported that he had found arak being distilled in the house of one Abdel
Latif, head servant and sort of confidential man of old Shaikh Rashid, the Shaikh's uncle and father-in-law. Went
across in a sailing boat and examined the house where we found a lot of arak being made from raisins and all the
apparatus etc for brewing liquor. The house is part of Shaikh Rashid's house and immediately adjoining to Shaikh
Hamed's house. Came back & wrote to Sh Sulman who was exceedingly interested and fairly let himself go about old
Rashid, Ayesha and various other matters, he said she was much too free & easy with people such as Abdullah Jabr &
Shah etc & he said she & her father had put Sh Hamed against him etc etc. After court Sh Rashid came round in a