VISITOR FROM SIAM.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LI, Issue 15578, 8 April 1914, Page 4

VISITOR FROM SIAM.

"*" MASTER OF THE HORSE. A PROGRESSIVE COUNTRY. i | [FROM ovr OWN fORKESTONDKST.] ■ Sydxkt, March 28. , As interesting visitor to Auckland shortly will bo Phya Asvabadi. a Siamese noble- , man, Master of the Howe to the Kin.; of Siam. who is accompanied by Mr. H. It. ] Tabuteau-Henick, an official in ik . Siamese Government sen-ice, 11 private secretary, and a European valet. They ' are now in Sydney, aril, according to present arrangements, will leave for Auckland ' on Wednesday. April 15. or foj,Wellington on the previous or subsequent Saturday. ' After touring the Dominion they will return to Sydney, journey to Queenslandand thence back, via Java, to Siam. The. mission of Pliva Asvabadi, who is addressed by those in his entourage as "His Excellency," is to study horse-' breeding in Australia and New Zealand. Interviewed hero a few days ago, he stated that he had charge of about 300 horse* for the King, who wag a good judge of horseflesh, and liked to have the very Inst. Most of them were used for State functions, Mich as procession.". The others were racehorses, a great proportion of which were bred in Australia, their climate not being suitable for English horses. Pacing was very popular in S mi, the chief event being the King's Cup. Ho had attended a couple of race meetings held in Melbourne, and was pleased iwth the. appointments of the courses. He would probably take a number of horses nek with him. What they wanted were remounts and chargers, as well as iacchorses. Very few Australians, he went on to My, realised how up-to-date Bangkok, the ( capital of Siain, was, and what a progressive place Siam was generally, llifl population of the country was between 10,000,000 and 12.000.000."They had .-.mpulsory service, and an nr'my whoso strength and efficiency would certainlv ho an eye-openor for Australians if they iviild see it. They had a Hying corps, \vi'!, ft fleet of 18 aeroplanes. their navy >a> small, but Siam did not have the (*«»• necessity for sea defence as other nutic-i 5. In other respects, Siam was up to «L'.c. They, of course, had trams and ehvric light, and a very good railway system. A big undertaking that would be complied in about two years was a railway com.n'ting Bangkok with Penang, in the M.ray Strait*. That would reduce the dist. 'ica to Bangkok by three or four davs. It was only a matter of time when Banflok would bo linked up with the system of Burma and India. Bangkok much resembled a Continental city. Sonic of iheroads were magnificent, and as far as ho knew were only equalled, and certainly not excelled, by the Parisian houlevails. They were wide, with smooth surfaces, and lined on each side with beau'.iful trees. Practically every European in Bangkok, and all the leading Siamese, I ad motor-cars. Tho houses . ! the r*lter classes were of a palatial rharackr. Mid ( fitted, with every modem convenience. The King of Siam. the visitor proceeded,, was a very progressive monarch. He 'ad been educated in England, where lie ! ad ; spent 10 years, and had been attache, to the British Army at Woolwich. M»t of the young Siamese noblemen linked off their education in England or (•'rmany. The curriculum at the Ugh. School in Bangkok was about the sain, as at .any Australian High School. English .', and French were compulsory subjects. The great feature of tho State pro »- ; sions in Siam were the elephant para 'lis. The principal procession took place when His Majesty paid his annual visit to (ho I temples, about 40 of tho Royal elephants ;« participating. Some of these were the famous white elephants. They had r..mo | that were snow-white. They 'were really* . ; i "pinky grey," ho said. They were all very proud of these white. ci'phants, lis-f cause the collection of them was the bat's in the world, 1 1 I! ■■■■•