THOUSANDS LINE STREETS

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25243, 23 July 1947, Page 6

THOUSANDS LINE STREETS

CHEERING WELCOME BY CROWDS

SCENE OUTSIDE THE BARRACKS One of the biggest crowds in the history of Christchurch was waiting to welcome Field-Marshal Lord Montgomery when he entered the city yesterday morning.*Every street along the route was packed with people and for two hours thousands streamed towards the King Edward BarracKS to see the man of whom they had heard so much. The crowds were not demonstrative, but there was no doubt of the warmth of their welcome. Most of them were so excited about seeing the famous figure in the well-known black beret and British warm that they forgot to cheer. But the thousands of eager children who lined part of the route more than made up for their elders’ forgetfulness. It was perhaps the biggest day in their lives, and as FieldMarshal Montgomery’s car passed through their ranks, they welcomed their hero with shrill cheers and a furious waving of flags, which almost every boy and girl seemed to have.

The biggest crowd was assembled along the route leading towards King Edward Barracks, but thousands waited patiently in the- main streets and Cathedral square until the civic reception ended. Their welcome was even more enthusiastic than that of those who had the first glimpse of Field-Marshal Montgomery.

No signal was needed to tell the crowds that “Monty” was coming. As soon as the pilot car turned the corner into Cashel street hundreds of people made an involuntary surge forward, and many who had been waiting on the Bridge of Remembrance started to run towards the barracks. Some over-excited children wasted their streamers on the pilot car but ran out and retrieved them before Field-Marshal Montgomery himself arrived.

A few minutes later the waiting crowd saw the legend in person—- “ Monty” himself, the trim,, little keeneyed soldier, who “knocked Rommel for six out of Africa.”

There was a brief but full-throated cheer, shouts of “Good old Monty,” flags were waved in the bright sunshine, and Field-Marshal Montgomery responded to the crowd’s enthusiasm with the familiar half informal salute which finished up as a cheerful wave of the hand. Confetti fluttered in the air, a few streamers found their mark, and as the official party halted at the entrance to the barracks, the crowd surged round Field-Marshal Montgomery’s car. Triumphal Progress The official party entered the barracks and most of the crowd in Cashel street made a rush to the entrance to hear Field-Marshal Montgomery speak* When the reception ended the crowd surged around his car again. In spite of police efforts to restrain them, Field-Marshal Montgomery had to pause and wave before he could resume his triumphal progress down crowded Cashel and Colombo streets. Outside the United Service Hotel another big crowd was assembled. It had been waiting there for nearly two hours in the sunshine, and as the official cars turned the corner loud cheering mingled with the joyful pealing of the Cathedral bells. The crowd made no attempt to move forward, but cheered repeatedly as Field-Mar-shal Montgomery stepped from his car and stood beside it for some moments smilingly acknowledging the welcome. In a few moments Field-Marshal Montgomery stepped out on to the beflagged balcony of the hotel to be greeted by another outburst of cheering. He took off his coat and stood at the edge of the balcony, smiling and waving but refusing all demands for a speech. Even in those few moments he was not free from photographers, who had their cameras trained on him from the time he stepped on the balcony. When Field-Marshal Montgomery left his hotel early in the afternoon to begin his visit to hospitals there was another dense crowd outside and, once again, he had to stand for a few minutes and respond to its welcome.

, h ®,. dr °X« through the suburbs people lined the streets, four deep, particularly in the shopping centres and cheered as he passed. Even in the thinly populated areas people werfe there to greet him, and it was obvious that many had driven from the city to get a closer glimpse of him.