A ROYAL TRIBUTE

Auckland Star, Volume LI, Issue 293, 8 December 1920, Page 5

A ROYAL TRIBUTE

TO NEW ZEALAND'S LOYALTY.

THE PRINCE'S IMPRESSIONS. VISIT FAR TOO SHORT. IBy Cable.—rrcss Association.—Copyrlght.l (Reeeiveil 11.30 a.m.) LOXDOX. December 7. The Prince of AVulcs attended his first public function since his return from his world tour to-day, when he was entertained in the Guildhall by the City of London. Large crowds lined the route and Cheered She Prince during Ims drive to the (iuildhall. Even the Thanres Embankment, despite the cold weather, was lined with crowds waiting an hour for his appotinincc. Traffic was diverted, and poliiemcn were stationed along the whole route at short intervals on both sides of the roadways. The city was a blaze of colour, all the buildings being be.riapged. some Hying ihe I'nion Jack and the Southern Cross together. Tho Prince, in the uniform of a naviil captain, drove in an open carriage, preceded by n guard of khaki mounted men, with swords drawn. On arrival at the Guildhall the Prince received the Boyal salute, and was given an ovation on entering tho library.

Those present included several members of tiie Royal family, the'whole of the Prince's suite, leading commercial men and financiers of London. Mr. Andrew Fisher, Mrs. Fisher, and the Agents-Grnprnl.

The Common Sergeant read the address of welcome in the library. The luncheon followed. •CEMENT OF FRIENDSHIP. Mr. Lloyd George, in proposing the health of the Prince of Wales, said that the Empire was the most remarkable in the world's history. It was loosely knitted. There was no do__ination, but all Dominions were equal. There was no csrrtrc from which dominion was exercised. 'Hie Empire wns a partnership, but of free nations, controlling themselves, free to choose their own path, free to choose their own population, free to make their own history. Such a combination was very weak if not cemented by friendship, but very strong if influenced by mutual attachment and goodwill. Everything depended on the existence of the invisible attachment of the emiiire. The great services of the Prince of Wales consisted in the fact that he had strengthened those invisible ties by qualities which the Empire now knew, as we knew before, by "his charm, tho remarkable charm, the winning charm, the joyous charm of his personality." (Cheers.)

Mr. I.loyd George hinted -Rat the reaction following the war created a vital necessity to find some method of keeping Britain and the together. The occasion demanded a man for the emergency, and the Prince of Wales was such a man. (Cheers.) He was just as much at home in the Dominion's cities as in London, just as much at home in the Dominions' wildernesses as in tho cities, which latter was a rjbod omen, because,the .future of the Empire might well depend on the development of those Vast regions. THE CHARM OF HOME. The Prince, replying, said:—"We meet in happier circumstances than at the time of the coal strike, which necessitated a postponement. You addressed mc in the name of the whole City of London, which I, in common with all my fellow Londoners, regard as the greatest city in the world. Distant travel gives mc ever increasing appreciation ot its influence and charm. I find 1 love it better every time I come back."

The Prince thanked Mr. Lloyd George for his presence and his speech. Though he was sorry that he was not visiting India until 1021, he was delighted at the prospect of an undisturbed year in the Old Country, a treat he had not had for six years. The Prince raised a laugh by saying: "When a man is handsomely entertained it is usually because his hosts wanted to get something out of him. I know you want to get some account of my latest Empire tour out of mc. My impressions are still rather kaleidc.se.opic, but I will do my best." He detailed his reception in the West Indies, and the achievement in getting the Renown through the Panama Canal, whence she went to Honolulu and Fiji. THE NEW ZEALAND VISIT. Crossing two oceans, where every group of islands rang with the names of British sea captains and explorers, made one realise the spirit of those men of old, who faced uncharted seas in shipnot one-sixtieth the tonnage of a modern battle-cruiser. When he reached New Zealand and Australia he felt that he had come to tho culminating point of the untiring work of the early pioneers, for there were two great nations settled and developing in the very furtherest quarter of the globe from their original liomc.

When he landed in Auckland the New Zealanders made him feel at home at once. Within a few days he visited the Maori people at Rotorua, a gallant, remarkable race, who were not unknown in London. He was grateful to them f gathering in such large numbers to greet him.

"I worked my way down the North Island to Wellington, the capital city,* he continued, "where I was specialty entertained by Air. Massey and his Government. 1 spent a week in the South Island touring, and finally crossed the Otira Gorge to the Canterbury Plains and Christchurch, and thence went to Dunedin and Invercargill, where I almost felt that I was back in Scotland. Auckland's kindness and enthusiasm was carried on everywhere. What impressed mc was the intensely Old Country character of the people. You have a pretty sound and powerful patriotism here in the City of London, my Lord Mayor, but I assure you, you have your work cut out to show it more thoroughly than they do in New Zealand. It was with regret that. I sailed from Lyttelton; a month in New Zealand was far too short." LONDON OF THE SOUTH. The Prince continued: "I landed in Melbourne on the Queen's Birthday. I had to spare you details of my New Zealand travels, but must be still more sparing in regard to Australia. I had a wonderful time in Victoria, but no better than in New South Wales. Comparison is odious, and both States together hold well over half the population of the Commonwealth. Sydney, as I told them myself, is indeed a London of the southern hemisphere. If any Sydney men are present 1 wish to tell them not only did I see their harbour, but I appreciated it. (Great laughter.) I only wish you could see the kind, enthusiastic crowds ni those two great cities. I was welcomed with the same (enthusiastic crowds in those two great

other States. I was able to visit several goldfields and get some idea of life in the backblocks on sheep and cattlo stations, it would take a man at least a year to see Australia properly. 1 was sorry to leave, having missed so much." (A. and X._. Cable.)

Australia was a land of great spaces, of immense resources, and vast possibilities. Its history was only a century old, and the continent, as lar<>e as Europe, had a population much les3 than London.

A striking indication of Australia's power and character was the size >md beauty of the capital cities, which held one-third to one-half of the population of their state. He thought those cities iin impressive sign of the quality of the people who were building them. The developed area wns also a splendid testimony to Australian worth, although the area population bore but a small proportion of the size of the country as a, whole, and of its cities. This was n situation which involved great responsibility, but the courage and self-confi-dence of Australians was amazing, and he assured his hearers that, it required both assets out there to succeed. CHILDREN AND DIGGERS. '1 he Prince went on to describe the return journey, and then recalled two features of his visit to Australia and New Zealand, which, he said, he had very closely at heart. In both Domin ions he was very much struck hy the appearance and bearing of the children, and the wonderful way the Government was carrying on their education. One could truly say of their systems that they instilled discipline and patriotism into their youth without militarism. Gatherings of thousands of school children were organised for him everywhere, and he never saw a single child which did not reflect, on its healthy, hnppy face, that widespread well-being which was the pride of those Dominions. This was indeed a happy augury for the future.

"You will guess the other feature I have -very closely at heart," continued the Prince, "the Australians and Xew Zealanders who fought and Avon in the Great War. I felt I was a comrade to the 'Diggers.' I- need not explain what Diggers are. I first met them in Egypt and France, hut I had not landed one moment before I was hailed as a Digger, and by the time T sailed from Sydney in August T hardly knew how to answer to any other name. Xow T take that as a very great compliment, and hope they will always regard mc in the same way. ns T want all ex-service men in the Empire to look upon mc as a BACKBONE OF THE COUNTRY. "You will not be surprised to hear that in both Dominions I found exservice men the backbone of thp country. (Cheers.) Think what they did, volunteering in thousands to face the great adventure of war for nn Empire thousands of miles away. Can anyone dare to say in the face of that fact that the same spirit which took the old sea captains and explorers across the world is not only alive to-day, but thriving in the young British nations? (Cheers.) But then all ex-service men are the backbone of their peoples, whether in the Old Country or the Dominions."—(A. and N.Z. C_.ble.) comrade."*