One-Day “Reign" Over New York

Press, Volume XCVI, Issue 28415, 23 October 1957, Page 13

One-Day “Reign" Over New York

(Rec. 9 p.m.) NEW YORK, Oct. 21. New York welcomed Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh as its own today in their 16-hour whirlwind tour of the city. “Queen Reigns Over City Today,” New York’s newspapers proclaimed. The hundreds of thousands of Americans cheered as enthusiastically as British subjects from every vantage point as the Quean passed through the city, and the police had hard work preventing eager crowds from breaking through the barricades in the streets. The Queen, followed by the Duke, stepped off a train from Washington on to a long red carpet at Stapleton, Staten Island, across the harbour to the sou’h of Manhattan, to be greeted oy the Governor of New York (Mr Averell Harriman). A bright autumn sun beamed down, and a crispness in the air lent an invigorating touch. From the first instant, the Queen’s visit went at a breathtaking pace Harbour Crossing First, the Queen and her party were driven through streets lined by thousands of flag-waving Staten Island children to the island city of St. George. A crowd of more than 5000 there watched her board a gaily-bedecked ferry boat for a trip across New York harbour. During the voyage, the Royal craft took her dose by the Statue of Liberty for her first view of the great American landmark. Thousands of New YorKers thronged the famous Battery area where the Queen and her par tv boarded cars for the ticker tape parade to the City Hall. Hundreds of thousands jammed the parade route along Broadway. Thousands of others leaned from windows to cheer and send down confetti and lorn up telephone books. As the Royal paity passed historic Trinity Church at the in tersection of Wall street and Broadway, the church bells pealed out “God Save The Queen.” When the Queen's car rolled to a stop in front of the Cilj Hall, the crowds shouted greetings and a 21-gun salute roared out. Twenty thousand spectators nad gathered in City Hall Park. They watched intently while the Queen went into the City Hall, where she received an official welcome from the Mayor (Mr Robert Wagner). He presented the Queen with the Award of Merit medallion and a memorial volume

The Mayor’s citation praised the Queen for tollowing lhe example of her parents who “exemplified the British people's courage and devotion to freedom, justice and good will.

For her arrival tn New York, the Queen wore a rust-coloured velvet coach-style coat trimmed with a white minK collar. Her hat was also rust velvet. She wore diamond and pearl earrings, a pearl necklace, brown shoes and carried a brown leather bag. From the City Hall, the Royal Party drove through more cheer-

ing crowds up Park avenue to the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel for a reception and luncheon tendered by the city. The Queen thanked the Mayor, Governor and people of New York for the “wonderful welcome.”

“When we were in the United States before, we were both very disappointed to miss New York, so now it is a great joy to see this fabulous city, even if only for a day,” she said. “New York is one terminal oi the most important physical link binding your country to my own, by sea and air. 1 believe it occupies a similar position in the links of friendship and understanding between us. It is impossible after a journey such as this not to be impressed by the enormous fund of good wixl which exists between us and which I pray may long continue. I hope that I will be able to come here again.” , The visit to the United Nations building followed the luncheon, and there, after being greeted by the President of the General Assembly, New Zealand s Sir Leslie Munro, and the SecretaryGeneral, Mr Dag Hammarskjold, the Queen and the Duke were escorted into the Assembly, where the Queen addressed delegates. From the United Nations, the Royal couple went to the Empire State building, there to be whisked up by express lift to the eighty-sixth floor observatory, and later to the 102nd floor of the 1250 ft building for a view of New York and the surrounding suburbs. After having tea in the executive suite on the eightieth floor of the building, the Queen went to the Waldorf-Astoria, and the Duke to the American Institute of Physics. Banquet for 4000 The Royal couple linked up again at the Waldorf-Astoria, where they attended one of the largest and most glittering banquets given in New York. Seven banqueting halls were used for 4000 guests of the Pilgrims’ Society and the English-Speaking Union. From the banquet, the Queen and Prince Philip drove to the Commonwealth ball —the lasi function of their short tour. The Queen arrived at the ball wearing, a slender gown of multi-coloured lace and tinted jewels, with her tiara. The lace on her gown was re-embroidered in all iridescent shades of pale pink, pale green, and pale blue pailettes. From a low waistline at the back of the dress cascaded a fantail train of all the rainbow colours in floating silk tulle. The delay in the departure of the Royal ‘flight to London was partly caused by thousands of penpie who lined the roads all the way from Manhattan to the bridge to Long Island. Even though it was after midnight, hundreds of children waved Union Jacks and shouted their farewell. The Royal couple sat in the back of the plastic-domed limousine with the light on so that the crowd could catch a final glimpse of them.