76 CHALLENGER 



As it was impossible to locate the Sheikh after anchoring off 

 Masira the Captain and the Political Agent made contact with 

 the Headman of Dawa, and it was explained to him that the 

 survey marks must be left where they were placed until the ship 

 recovered them. The islanders were friendly from the beginning 

 and the ship's medical officer, Surgeon Lieutenant Sloan Miller, 

 seeing their rheumy eyes, running sores and bad teeth, suggested 

 to Commander Baker that he might set up a camp near the village 

 where he could dispense medical treatment to those villagers 

 who were in need of it; at the same time this would further 

 friendly relations between the ship and the local people. This 

 relationship is greatly needed in countries where both wood and 

 cloth are scarce, as survey marks constructed of these materials 

 become a source of great temptation. 



Whenever the Captain made enquiries for Sheikh Khamis bin 

 Hilal he had either 'gone to Oman' or was 'away fishing' ; how- 

 ever. Miller, with the aid of his interpreter, Hassan Ramzam, 

 gained the confidence of the 400 or so inhabitants of Dawa to an 

 amazing degree, being hailed as 'Hakim' by all, and one day the 

 Sheikh, hearing of the medical camp, arrived there to visit Miller. 



Arrangements were made for the Sheikh to return to the camp 

 with his brother and the Head Man of Dawa on the following 

 Thursday. The Captain would be there to meet them and all 

 would then go onboard Challenger for a social visit. 



At the last moment, however, the Sheikh's heart must have 

 failed him for he arrived at the camp on Thursday with his 

 complete army, consisting of about eighty ruffianly looking Arabs 

 armed with an assortment of rifles of various ages and calibres, 

 and with a banner proudly floating above them as they approached. 

 The Medical Officer went out to meet this formidable party, 

 shook hands with the Sheikh and his brother and led the army 

 towards the tents where Buck, in full naval uniform, was waiting 

 to greet them. The Sheikh seemed ill-at-ease and made every 

 excuse possible for not coming onboard the ship. His advisers, 

 of whom there seemed to be a number, appeared to believe that 

 his departure onboard would end either in his drinking poisoned 

 coffee or in his being kidnapped. So the proposed visit to the ship 

 had to be abandoned, but the Captain was able to thank the 

 Sheikh personally for the fact that none of the survey marks 



