Royal Gesture in Rain for Winnipeg’s Waiting Multitude

Northern Advocate, 25 May 1939, Page 7

Royal Gesture in Rain for Winnipeg’s Waiting Multitude

(Received noon)

WINNIPEG, May 24. ARRIVING AT WINNIPEG IN RAIN, THE QUEEN ORDERED THE HOOD OF THE CAR TO BE LOW ERED FOR THE DRIVE FROM THE STATION. EQUERRIES DEMURRED, BUT HER MAJESTY WAS INSISTENT. i

The King’s naval c.ape was hastily secured. The Queen had no -umbrella but a bystander handed her one.

Mr W. L. Mackenzie King, Prime Minister, commented, “You are very, very brave,” to which the Queen replied, “We don’t want to disappoint the people.” .

Winnipeg’s population, swollen to 400,000 by 150,000 Canadian and 50,000 American visitors, gave a tremendous reception when they saw the Queen driving through a steady rain in a light biege ensemble holding up an umbrella.

When the King detrained it was noticed that two of his fingers were bandaged. He had slammed the door on his hand this morning. However, he is shaking hands quite cheerfully.

Prior to the Royal procession through the city, the crowd demonstrated against the Nazi flag flying at the German Consulate. Upon the Mayor’s orders, it was pulled down. • ■

When the Mayor asked the Consul to pull down the flag,the latter refused, and the crowd demonstrated until Their Majesties approached, wf|en “boos” turned to cheers.

News of Queen Mary.

The King and Queen learned of Queen Mary’s accident when the Royal train stopped ,at 1.50 p.m. (local time) to take in water at Schreiber a tiny settlement in the heart of James Oliver Curwood’s Canada. They learned direct from Buckingham Palace that the Queen mother was “unhurt and quite well.” The King immediately despatched a message of sympathy' to Queen Mary. Their Majesties did not change their programme for the day except to make several unscheduled appearances on the observation platform of the rear car to acknowledge the cheers of people who had travelled unbelievable distances. Spirit of North-West. At every Hudson’s Bay Co’s post there were groups of trappers,, lumber men, half-breeds and Indians. The spirit of the North-West was typified by one isolated trapper, who, with a tiny Union Jack fluttering above his log hut, stood stiffly holding his rifle at the “present” as the Royal train passed. It was snowing when the train reached White River, the coldest spot in Canada, where the mercury is sometimes 72 below zero. Nevertheless, Their Majesties left the train and chatted with the train crew. The Queen talked with an Indian woman with a papoose on her back, who told Her Majesty that she had paddled 80 miles. Birthplace of Hiawatha,

The King was obviously touched when two bearded trappers told him they had come 400 miles on the off chance of seeing the train pass through. The sun was turning the waters of Lake Superior to a sparkling blue when the train • reached Fort William, the district of the Thunder God and the traditional birthplace of Hiawatha. Their Majesties received a welcome from representatives of all the Indian tribes in the backwoods. At Fort William and Port Arthur, 1500 miles from the ocean, they drove through the world’s greatest grain ports and saw giant elevators with a capacity of 93,000,000 bushels.