"MAN OF PEOPLE”

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 56, Issue 236, 18 July 1936, Page 5

"MAN OF PEOPLE”

TRIBUTE TO KING EDWARD. GREATEST ROYAL DEMOCRAT. MR SEMPLE’S STRIKING WORDS. (Per Press Association.) CHRISTCHURCH, This Day. A striking tribute to King Edward as the greatest democrat .‘who has sat on the throne of England, or any other throne in the world, was paid by the Hon. R. Semple this morning, when expressing his great relief that the attempt on his Majesty’s life had failed. “It is a blessing that the fanatic did not fulfil his murderous mission,” said Mr Semple. “The British Empire would have suffered a terrible shock if lie had. The present King is the greatest democrat who lias sat on tlie throne of England, or any other throne in the world. As I have said on former occasions, in other countries democracies have perished and desperate dictatorships have emerged out of the ruins. England. is the one country which lias stood steadfast for democratic principles and lias played a wonderful part in attempting to keep the peace of tlie world. , The King is a man of the people. His attitude toward the Welsh coal strikers proved him to he one of the most humane monarclis who has ever lived, and lie is primarily responsible for the great activity in clearing away the slum conditions in the great cities of the Old Land. ,

“It is indeed fortunate, in these changing times, when democracy is at the cross-roads, that ive should have as our King a man so beloved of liis people and who lias been standing foi years for the rights of citizenship fl om the poorest to the richest. “The attack on the King’s life is a warning to the authorities in the Old Land to he more careful. It is not always the tyrant who is assassinated. Great humanitarians, such as Abraham Lincoln and Jean Jaures, of France, were assassinated, and this ought to be a warning because these fanatics never attack a. man when he is protected, but usually shoot him in the back.” NEW ZEALAND’S SYMPATHY. GOVERNOR-GENERAL SENDS MESSAGE. “OUR SENSE OF EXTREME THANKFULNESS.” WELLINGTON, July 17. His Excellency the Governor-Gen-eral (Viscount Galway) ha 3 sent the following telegram to his Majesty the King: Your Majesty’s Government and tlie people of New Zealand, with whom my wife and I desire to associate ourselves, wish to express to your Majesty our profound sympathy in respect to yesterday’s occuirence and our sense of exereme thankfulness that the incident led to no serious results. . ' GALWAY.