KINS NED.

NZ Truth, Issue 179, 21 November 1908, Page 6

KINS NED.

His Visit to America.

The Triumphal Tour of Baron

Renfrew.

His Majesty King Edward VII., whose birthday we celebrated recently, is hardly entitled to be called a stay-at-home King, but, as monarchs go, is perhaps one. of the most widely-travelled of all crowned heads. Yet there are many portions of the Empire on which he has never trod, 'nor likely to tread, now that he is on the decline of life, and Australasia is one of them. It does ndt speak volumes for our leading politicians, neither does it say much for the influence of our noisy Empire and Patriotic Leagues, so-called, that the King has not visited these shores, to see m person the warm-hearted, the most genial, and probably the most enthusiastically loyal of- the English-speaking peoi-lts.

Forty-eight years ago, when the King 'was a young maa of 19, he made a tour of Canada and the United States, the latter country of which was, politicallyspeaking, a foreigH land. But, through the instrumentality of President Buchanan, who was m office m 1860, the reception accorded to- the young Prince of Wales — or, as he was then known, Baron Renfrew— lias never been excelled anywhere. He seems to have taken the .country by storm wherever he went. Inf fact, the Americans everywhere showed more public affection for Baron Renfrew than they ever did for the people he represented;, whom, four or five years later, they nearly involved m warfare /over the little Alabama affair.

Permission of her Majesty, Queen Victoria having been obtained for the tour, . on July 23 the Prince arrived, at St. Johns, Newfoundland, and, after staying some weeks m the British provinces, since united and named the Dominion of Canada, he^ finally entered American waters, between Windsor (Ontario), and Detroit (Michigan). When the boat reached the centre of -the stream, the Mayor of Detroit stepped forward and welcomed the Prince, amid about 50,000 onlookers. Next morning the Prince and his numerous suite, headed by the Duke of .Newcastle, left for- c-nicago, then a comparatively insignificant city, but already, holding pride of place as the Gate of the West. 'Arriving .-here, a vast assembly greeted him. The Prince rode along a line of excited people— who were kept back from him by ropes — bowing, with hat off, ; amid much cheering. As he passed m an open barouche, a rush was nnally made, and, m spite of, a small army of policemen, the crowd surged m like "a sea. At tho hotel where he staved a mob of several thousands hung around gazing at the windows, m almost perfect and order, waiting to see his shadow even. Here the' most splendid hoiiois and hospitalities were heaped upon him, exceeding anything of the kind ever before known m that city. , . From' Chicago tine' Prince journeyed to the Agricultural FaY at St. Louis (Missouri), thence to Cincinnati (Ohio), . and on to Pittsburg (Pennsylvania). At Harrisnurg, Governor Packer welcomed him m the following off-hand manner '.— Lord Renfrew,— lt affords me infinite pleasure to/ welcome your Lordship to the capital of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, one of the old 13 colonies that originally acknowledged allegiance to the Crown of Great Britain; and, notwithstanding that allegiance has tern severed, your Lordship will perceive, at a glance at that long line of colonial . and State Governors— (pointing to the portraits hung m the executive chambers)'— that we still have a very, very great veneration and re-' gara for our ancient rulers. That line of portraits is almost a perfect type of our American families. We cannot follow our ancestry more thsn a few generations, back, -^without tracing the line to a British red-coat. Od ' October 3 the Prince left Harrisburg for Baltimore, Maryland, and Washington. It would be impossible to describe varied honors ' and ceremonials showered upon the prince miring Ms stay m" the capital. The reception and diplomatic dinner given -m his honor at the White House by the President and the. United States Cabinet was the most ■ splendid of ;,its kind ever given m Amer-S ica. The next day the Price, with his suite and a distinguished company, visited Washington's tomb <at Mount 'Vernon ■ The Government steamer Harriet Lane conveyed the party- thither. Washington's mansion, the place where he wrote, the room m which he slept, the bed m which he expired, and other relics of the Father of the upuntry were examined, and then the party proceeded to the tomb, rcering through the iron-grated door : at the sarcophagus, which contain- i ed the mortal remains of the first President, the Maine Band played a dirge to lend impressiveness to the scene. Afterwards, at tlie request of the Mount Vernoa Association, the Prince planted a tree near the tomb, and took with him a- companion seedling to plant m Windsor Forest. ■ ' Leaving Washington, the Prince visited Richmond (Virginia), the scene soon to be of a bloody fanatical struggle between the Northern and Southern soldiery. Baltimore, Philadelphia, West Point New York, and Boston were visited s iii turn, hundreds of people following the party everywhere they went. At the Academy of Music, New York, on October 12, there was given, m honor of the Prince, the greatest ball ever known m America. The supper room, 144 ft. x 28ft., was specially erected for the occasion? Reviews, receptions, balls, festivals and entertainments followed' his entry everywhere. At Boston, the then sole survivor of Bunker's Hill, Ralph Farnham, was presented to the Prince Bunker's Hill battle was fought m 177G or 84 years before, so that Farnham must have been possessed of an extraordinary, memory t« have recollected anything about it. Farnham remarked, chucklmgly, that hearing so much praise being said 'Of the Prince, he was certain

the people were turning Royalists, i After several other prominent cities had been visited, the party arrived at Portland (Maine), where a British squadron was m waiting to receive them, and the Prince embarked on board "the Hero, man-o'-war, bound for Britain.