CORONATION OF EDWARD VIL.

Evening Star, Issue 11696, 30 September 1902, Page 7

CORONATION OF EDWARD VIL.

fP*ox Oxm Sraaux- Goxjusronmr.]

LONDON, August 15. THE HJUJMENATIONS

were distinctly patchy, and as many of those who had made elaborate preparations to "light up" lavishly on the 26th June determnsad not to repeat their loyal manifestations i» gas or electric light it is hardly fair to criticise what light was shed upon the scene. Generally it may be said that it seemed as if each illuminator had been asked tha conundrum "Why is Edward VH.?" and had replied on the front of his place of business or residence " Because * E.R '" K.R.. and a crown shone upon you with damnable iteration, so that even " A.R." was a relief. Piccadilly, light and darkness alternating, was a vctv difference place from the fairy arcade that it seemed the night of the Diamond Jubilee, when the whole street was canopied in lines of delicate light. From the lofty campanile of the Roman Catholic Cathedral at Westminster glowed a huge electric crown and flashed the beams of a great searchlight. In Whitehall the Oananiaa arch showed like a Rontgen-rayed skeleton pavilion outlined in soft white light. Queen Victoria's statue in front of Blackgriars' Bridge, with its aureole of light, and the peace trophy erected round the statue ot William IV. in the City, with its pictured panels and its color scheme of ivory and gold, attracted many pilgrims from the crowds that flowed slowly up and down the mam thoroughfares. The centre of attraction was. however, the great space in front of the Mansion House, where the Bank, the Roya* Exchange, and the Mansion House glowed and gleamed a luminous triangle in the fashion of their June rehearsal then described. Many insurance companies' ofuces and other places of busiti«ks in the radiating streets from the City's centre of gravity made a tine show with celluloid balls, gas. and electric light. Pall Mall was fairly well aglow, and on the gates of Marlborough House branches of laurel loavea in cur crystal of various natural lints, jewelled with ruby berries, the whole being trained acioss the doorways and gateway to form a maia arch> over all. tm a crystal medallion, surmounted by the Royal crown and lion, was the King's cipher iu ihe centre, surmounted by tie Garter and mono of the Order. Tudor rose emblems ■»eie introduced with the Prince of Wales's plumes and dragon. The embankment, which would have lent kick' so well to a c-intpln outline ot" lights, was a dark crescent, St. Paul's and' the towers of the Houses ot Parliament looming dark at either end. The police arrangements were wonderfully t-flVctive. A thin line of policemen .it .-ieveral ixices interval w.-;s siatioued down the centre of each itreet. knots of men being kept in reserve n corners. On the whole, the people observed the injunction " Keep to the rk'ht " with marvellous unanimity, und the tun living .-treanvs tloweri .-lowly but steadily onward. At the Bank round the. Canadian arch, and at, the junction of St. James's street and the Mall, where the people coming down the former thcroughfaie h;..J to be diverted into ihe park, there was congestion and considerable but the crowd was considerate and good-tempered, a-nd fathers aria mothers with their babies in their arms managed to keep going qnitc comfortably. In the side ttreeu a few lads and lasses with tricolor cans—a cross between a jockey'* cap ;>nd a Chinese lan!xrn—paper sun-bonnet:- or paper coronets cm their bowler hats, were prancing along with " We'll all be merry, drinking vrhiskv, wine, or sherry, on Coronation Jy; " inquiring "Oh, Flo. why do you f;o, riding along ot a motor ,-ar? " or carolling " ({ood-bve, Dolly, I must leave you" : but the hooligan, the tin trumpet, the tickler, the .«qnirt, and , : the confetti were all absent. The characteristic feature of !x>th the day's and the night's proceedings was the entire absence of Marlicking. The people were <«ee more clothed and in their right minds, and the police wisciv left ihu poj>ulace to regulate itself. COLONIALS AND THEIR KING. REVIEW AT BUCKINGHAM PALACE. " GOD BLESs~YOU ALL." " I donL know whether you"ll be able to get in, sir. It will be very select," said the office-keeper of the Board of Green Cloth to whom 1 applied for admission to the review by the Ring of the colonial troops at Buckingham Palace last Tuesday. It was very select, but the endoisement of the Premier on the back of my card proved an "Open, Sesame" even to the gates of Buckingham Palace, and I formed one of an audience fit but few that witnessed quite one of the most brilliant of all the Coronation spectacles. The colonial soldiers bad marched from Victoria station along the mueh-heflagged Buckingham Palace road, greeted by a regular roar from the crowd, who were not slow to pick out the V.C.s, Lieutenant Hardham, of the New Zealandera, aec-erring a special ovation, and when I reached Buckingham Palace the colonials were drawn up iu seven long hues on the emerald green lawn at the back of the Palace. To the right of the front line were a few Canadians, then came the Australians under Lieutenant-colonel Cameron, and then the beginning of the New Zealanders under Colonel Porter. The rest of the New Zealanders tVmed the backbone of the second line. Round them ran a scarlet border of the Grenadier Guards, stiff as pokers, and the leafy elms completed the framework of the picture. The troops had the lake at their hack, and their faces to the rear of the grey Palace. Before them was spread the scarlet-and-gold canopy, with stlvered bamboo poles, which the King brought with him from his tour hi India. Prom the bay window in the eentre of the Palace a crimson carpet covered with Oriental rugs stretched down the terrace steps to the canopy. Under the- canopy, on a crimson carpet, were two gilt chairs for the King and Queen, and seats for the rest of the Royal Family; on the right were the tables with hoies full of Coronation medals. Two rows of Grenadiers lined the passage from tha Palace to the canopy. On the terrace to the right was a glittering group of generals, ambassadors, and admirals, in scarlet, blue, and gold, colonial statesmen in dark, Privy Councillors' uniform, ladies in summer costumes of delicate shades, several of both officers and ladies perparing their cameras to " snap" the King and his consort. To the left was a dark cluster of jouraalirt*, whose black coaus served as a foil to tie gay group opposite. From the roof and comers of the Palace Royal servants jgaaed at the " khakis" on the lawn. While we were waiting and picking out the celebrities so clogo to us the King was presenting their Coronation medais to the colonial Premiers, and various prominent members of the military group were summoned into the Palace. After a little stir two Chamberlains, in black uniforms with blue sashes, backed out of the bay window cacrying wands in their hands. * Behind them came the King, in scarlet field-mar-shal's uniform, walking briskly across the terrace, and bowing to the" courtesy jug ladies, and saluting officers. The Queen, in pearly grey dross and-toque, walked bv him, leading by the hand her little grand"child, Priaeesa Victoria of Wales, a pretty litthj girl in white. Then came the Prince of W»ltjß in genernTs uniform in scarlet, the PThwseas of Wales in wfute, with her two little bc>ys in white sailor suits, (M)d behind ih«B fifteen more of the chief royalties preaeet at the f-'onmafcjon. As the King took his stand in front o£ the uanopv the band ejf the Grenadier Guards swuck up th* N«tj»W Anthem, and the troops g»ve * Royal salute. First the King pinned the V.C on thebretutof Sergeant Laurence, ot the 17th Lonofers. Then the men grounded arms, and the mareh past in singte Hie began. Before reaching the Kin" the men passed between two officers of the Grenadier Guards, who announced the n»nie of the detachment, called out the naraea of the officers, and prevented the men from following too close on each other. The King remained sitting on the men passed before him, but carefully returned each salute. The Prince, standing on his father's right, with Geofiral Cook© by his side, handed the men their jaedals in bojeg. Rack man saluted first the King and then tha Pfinee with the right hand, received the nedal with the left, gave a partimr »kte with <,he right, and fcteu *J,

enre regain*! fcfc lay the ratio. 1 to came the remnant pi the Q*n*dje»s, I then the Australians, the moot compact j body of men, and then the N«w Zealandew, whOe the 400 SoqEh A&oum e* «.*. Ba▼*na brought up the «wr. When the front rank was reformed tin men in it lay or sat down comfortably on the ground and watched their comrades go by. This characteristically free-and-easy colonial way of making themselves at home even in the presence of the King caused much surprise among the Englishmen usjed to seeing Guards standing for hours rigid as ramrods. Perhaps the new precedent mav be followed hereafter with benefit to the regulars. The army of photographers, too, had unwonted freedom. Not only were they allowed to take views from the right and left, but a couple of them were permitted to set up their cameras right in front of the King and to take him point blank. The presentation to some 1,900 men took a considerable time. While it was proceeding the group of generals in soarlet and white plumes, of colonial Premiers, of Indian Princes, of English statesmen and foreign envoys grouped themselves round the canopy, and, chatting to one another. formed in the sunlight an ever-shifting series of bright clusters. Here was Lord Kitchener in scarlet, with a bluc-and-red sasdl, hie breast covered with stars, actually smiling as he talked to Sir Kdmund Barton, | whose dark uniform and G.C.M.G. blue-and-pink sash became him well. On the other side, in the front rank, " Bobs" and King Dick were having a confabulation. Mhs Hime, limping about with the j aid of sticks, had to reply ! many times to the querv " How's your poor feat?"' Mr Chamberlain, looking yellower and thinner than usual, and accompanied by Mrs Chamberlain, who, no matter how distinguished the crowd, always looks one of the smartest in it, moved freely among the celebrities present, and was su|>ported bv Lord Onslow and Sir John Andev son. The grey-beard colonel Aslam Khan in khaki and grer-n. Sir Pertab Singh, in cream and gold, and pale blue turban, with waxed upturned moustaches, and King Lewanika, a tall, thoughtful, intelligent-look-ing man, in a dark-blue uniform and a wkiti yachting cap, were three of the most picj turesque figures at. the back of the King !?ir John and Lady Forrest were also in evidence, and Mr Seddon had with him Mrs Seddon in black. Miss Seddon in bine. Miss May in heliotrope, Mrs Dyer in pale blue and a deep green blue toque, and Mr Dyer. conspicuous as the only civilian in frock coat and trip hat. Although the Agents-Generals' offices in Victoria stTcet were quite oil the Hue of route and shut off from Broad Sanctuary- by a great green barricade, they made a hfave, if nor a very- tasteiul. show with their laurel garlands, their trophies of State flags, and their crystal illuminations. The blue Ensigns, largo and small, hanging over the < ntrances, made a fine waving line of soft color, but. most of the offices udded vallances of the. crudest crimson with fringes of the most violent yellow and loyal greeting-; iu the same color that were a regular nightmare. When you looked at them you turned lis dizzy ;-«s if you bad been painting the town red all eight after a heavy supper of lobster And mayonnaise. Their "bright sinilo haunts me stili." although it is now a week after the fair. "God Save the King; Long May He Reign," said Queensland, and its transparency enclosed the Queensland Star. " Hearty Greeting from Tasmania" blazonedtforth the Apple Orchard. The monogram •• Ji.lt." was in its crystal, and the lion ramped on its shields. New South Wale.- went "very strong with the Federal Red JJnsign in the centre and th-s State flags on either side. " New South Wales Wishes a Long and Happy Reign " was its unexceptionable sentiment. Along the parapet on the first floor was a series of mysterious boxes like red rabbit hutches. They were not ornamental by day, but at night they glowed with patriotic fervor. Jn the centre and largest one New South Waks

'• offered homage " round its arms and abuve the flannel Slower and waraiah. In the smaller hutches were crown* and E.R.s and the star of the garter and the arms of Australia with "Advance Australia."' New Zealand and the Navy League hung out red, white, and blue Kusigns, and the Britain of thi^ South had numerous red stars of th«: SouWrru Cross on shields. " God Bless the King" said the red Ensign, and on the crystal oval were the words '• New Zealand's Greetings " round the Southern Cross. Western Australia kept fairly sober with blue hags with black swuns, and the same black swans swimming on yellow shields. Victoria, by way _of. a change, went in for pale blue hangings—a tit of blues generally does follow the process of painting the town red—with gold fringe*. The cabbage garden remarked " Hail King fckhvard Vfl."' Gold bannerets over the door no doubt were a broad hint oi tliu State's mineral capacities. The windows :ind parapets of the offices were outlined in blue, green amber, and ruby fairy lights. It was evident that each Agent-General was a rin» supporter of State rights, and that United Australia was still to seek—in decoration at all events. The rest of London bedecked itself with variejrated bunting, as often as nbt topsy-turvy. The Australian federal flag and the Japanese flag, the red sun throwing out, red rays on a white sky, were, I noted, much iu evidence. (

The most noticeable features of the filing past were the omission of any sal ate by the West African gun bearers, who shuffled by swathed all in white, their mouths covered up, a patch of purple or green showing under their white robes; the smartness of the tall Chinese regiment, soldiers every inch of them, in their grey frieze tunics and knickerbockers, grey patties, and purpls belts and turbans; the gait of the Maoris, headed by those two roiling giants Taranaki and Uru, resembling that of a lion, and the siaz of their calves; and of those of the Fijians, whose full score of men were present. Not a man's salute did the King fail to return. When the last of the medals has been distributed. General Cooke orders the officers to the front, then the whole body of the troops advance by a slow march several paces nearer the King, and to a few bars of the National Anthem the Rov.il salute is again given. The King having acknowledged it standing straight and firm in front of the canopy, takes a pace or two forward, and says: " General Cooke, officers, non-commissioned officers, and privates of the contingents from my Dominions Beyond the Seas, who came here to take part in the Coronation.—lt h;is afforded me great pleasure to see you here to-day, and to have the opportunity of expressing my high appreciation of your patriotism" and of the way in which you distinguished vourselves in South Africa. The services which you have rendered to the Mother Country will never be forgotten by me and will, I am sure, cement mote firinly than ever the union of our distant colonies with the other parts of my great Empire. Your stay has been longer than was originally intended, owing to my illness, but I hope you have enjoyed it, and that you have derived pleasure from your visits to various parts of the land of your ancestors. God bless yon all. I wish you a safe and pleasant return to your own homes.''

Witnessing the vigor and alertness of the king, it is hard to tealise that six weeks ago he was thought to be on his death-bed. General Cooke calls for three cheers for the King, and the men, taking off their hats, give the only cheer of the afternoon, but it is a " nmser." Then fours are formed, and the men march past the King and out of the Palaco gates and wo soon hear the crowd eheering thtsi occc more vocjf«xon?rr. Some go by at tii« trail, some at th& sjiope, some at th? shoulder, some are armed with rifle;*, some with carbines, but tbev all swing out in a war that may not be njqch to look at IroTii. a parade ground point of view but is -a good'un to go." The Prince stands by his father, and as the Maoris go by 1 see him chatthig and painting. evidently grvmg the King the benefit of his ttotorui expentiice. As the Kotrtb African colonials bring up the rear the setting sun throws its rays on the scarlet canopv and the radiant gronp, the King turns to Lord Roberts for a few words, the little princes swing on the ropes of tlio canopy, M'ss Brooke-Hunt id presented, and curtsies low As the King passes Sr Pertab S.'ngh the Oriental Prince cl ,sps his Sovereign's 'hand between his own, and then raises both his hands before biro jia if jp prayer. The Queen shakes hands with Lady Barton and Mrs Seddon, and the Prince does not omit tbem nor the Alisses Seddon in his progress, saying to the latter as they make their curtsies : " I see yon remain "faithful s*, Xew Zealand." It "is their greenstone I

' So the "the the two Hie •alute of just at reaches tha boy gives a( skip and a juanHuajso disappears. The; Royal guests folioJF, and we " select" jour- 1 nalists depart by the back door with King Lewanika.

Perhaps it is pot very courteous to look gift medals in the mouth, but I must saythat they are the most miserable, paltry tokens that I have seen for a long time—as you might expect to be given to children at a school treat or enclosed in crackers. The medal is attached to a ribbon of blue-and-red with white fringe by a small crown. A raised wreath forms the edge, enclosing on the obverse the profiles of the King and Queen crowned, looking to the left, on the reverse the moribgram R.E. VII. under a crown, and above the words "26 Jnne, 1902." Neither the designer nor the manufacturers (Elkjngton and Co.) can be very proud of the result.