HEALTH OF THE KING

Press, Volume LXXXVII, Issue 26441, 7 June 1951, Page 7

HEALTH OF THE KING

Doubts About Tour Of N.Z.

(Special Correspondent N.Z.P.A.) (Rec. 8.15 p.m.) LONDON, June 6. The announcement that four weeks’ complete rest has been ordered for His Majesty the King has brought into the open the question whether he is fit and strong enough to make the projected tour of Australia fl nd New Zealand. Court officials say that arrangements are proceeding on the basis that the tour will take place. This, however, is not necewarily a firm indication because it would apply equally as well if, nearer the time of the tour, a switch were made and It was announced that Princess Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh would make the tour in place of the King and Queen. For a long time this possibility has been foreseen in the minds of those in close touch with the King, because of the obvious strain he has been suffering during the last three or four months.

The present decision of the King's doctors makes it impossible any longer the fact that tha King’j Mb ho. IS - n cither vigorous nor robust He has. m fact, never fully recovered from the arterial trouble in hfe lee Australian “ p s st Ponement of th*e ye U ars r^go n ‘ NeW Zealand tour i>n Tl th. oP . e s~ i ? n he underwent cleared up the symptoms and arrested the course, of the disease itself but left lnonu lnK « genera! constitution permh?nd affected - Ever since then, bescenes - the King has taken things very quietly with lenirthv P eri ods of rest every day, and has avoided walking as far as possible. “ JIL by doctors of the words at _A■ qualifying the four weeks’ thJv “fmficant and indicates that in - T ln ,d possibility of »nv period of prolonged rest. In fW ed 18 understood that an enof J rest and relaxation, with fatiguing duties outside the Palace cut to a minimum, is likely t 3 be introduced for the King when he 1 ecovers from the present trouble. a F ea infection in the lung Is taking longer to clear up than the doctors hoped would be the case, and ‘‘ ,8 th l s t 8 ke eping the King’s temperature fluctuating. This, coupled with the fact that the King succumbed to the influenza attack only a week after 10 days’ holiday at Balmoral, planned to get him over the strain of the panisn Royal visit and prepare him for the Irish and Scottish visits, which were cancelled, has caused most concern.

Strenuous Tour of N.Z. This has a distinct bearing on the question of next year’s tour. If the King’s health is such that even short tours like those to Belfast and Edinburgh have to be cancelled at the last minute, it is difficult to see how ho could undertake the four months’ tour, involving a continuous succession of strenuous days, with the added strain of long travel. ' The King himself is anxious to make the tour, but if his doctors advise strongly against it he must bow to their decision. The question of whether Princess Margaret will accompany her sister and brother-in-law if they go to Australia and New Zealand, is still under consideration. The substitution of Princess Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh for the King and Queen 13 understood to be what the Australian Prime Minister (Mr Menzies) had in mind when he commented that a “perfect understanding" existed about the tour and the King’s health.

There would be general concern that the King’s indisposition was more serious than the early diagnosis suggested, said “The Times” to-day in a leading article.

“Without doubt the strain upon His Majesty’s constitution entailed by the trouble in his leg two years ago has left after-effects at least to the extent that great effort is required by each task in his strenuous daily and yearly round.” “The Times" said that even after the prescribed rest, the King should not resume the full pressure of his work until he was fully recovered. "In view of the high expectation with which his visit is being awaited in Australia and New Zealand, it would be lamentable if anything prevented the fulfilment of the plans—modified as they may have to be.