Page 804 - Belgrave Diaries(N)_Neat

Didnt go out in the morning, Gastrell came over with a letter from APOC, but not much point about it as it only said
that they were prepared to be interested after this Coy have allocated their 100,000 acres, and that is not till
December so we cant hope to get any money out of them till some time after then. Discussed various matters, he is
very free & easy & most indiscreet, just the opposite to Lock. Agency tennis party in the afternoon & in evening we
gave a dinner party for the S.N.O, only ten people, the SNO's Secretary, Ward-Smith, was at school with me so we had
him, quite pleasant but fat & bald & rather jocular. He seems to have known us very well at Bedford but I simply
cannot remember him which is so very awkward. Tomorrow we dine on the Shoreham and next day a cocktail party
at 11 am in the ward room which I wont go to as I have a court, also I think cocktails in August in the Persian Gulf in
the middle of the morning are suicidal.

Saturday August 5th 1933

Rifle range in morning, the last batch of Police recruits are doing musketry & firing very well. They get so keen on it.
Court. I bought a pearl for M's birthday present, a very fine one, to be made up into a solitaire ring. Pack
recommended it, it is a good match to the ones in her necklace in colour but much larger than the biggest of those.
Drove the family along the Rafaa road & then wrote letters. The sloop sailed having sudden orders to go to Kishm(?)
island where the Persians had landed some sailors and taken down the Union Jack, a serious thing to do. Mrs Holmes
came across in the evening & while she was here & we were all sitting on the veranda the wire came saying that Mum
was seriously ill.

Sunday [6th August]

M's birthday. Court. Sent a cable home. Lot of big cases, one about a man & woman who married & as usual
borrowed a lot of gold jewelry for the wedding & then stole it all, pretending they had been robbed. Ham came in in
a great fuss about the dud coin business, after Court Gastrell & I went to see him at the Bank. For years people have
been sounding all coins as there are so many bad ones & the bank has refused doubtful ones, now Ham has decided
to take all coins provided that people take all he issues. Took the family to a place on the coast & bathed but it was
too rough for James & he wouldn't swim. Called on Holmes who talked about the crookedness of the Americans in
the oil Coy. Dined at the Agency, Gastrell and the doctor from Bushire.

Monday 7th [August]

Office. Motored in afternoon & played Bridge at Steeles.

Tuesday [8th August]