ROYAL WEDDING

Otago Witness, Issue 3546, 7 March 1922, Page 16

ROYAL WEDDING

NEWS BV CABLE.

THE SUN SHINES BRIGHTLY. SERVICE AT THE ABBEY. SIMPLICITY THE KEYNOTE. LONDON FITTINGLY WELCOMES THE BRIDE. LONDON, February 28. The Abbey, with all its wealth of historic ceremonials, was probably never the setting for one more beautiful in its sim- | plicity and in which public interest was so generally centred as the wedding of the King’s only daughter. It is centuries since a King’s daughter was married in the Abbey. It was a thoroughly family affair, in which were assembled representatives of every class from the highest to the humblest. There were delegates from every unit of the British Commonwealth of Nations, and, unlike previous great ceremonials, there was a notable absence of foreign royalties, though foreign nations paid their respects through their Diplomatic Corps. Remarkable enthusiasm has been evinced throughout the country since the Princess was affianced, mainly accounted for bv the fact that she was greatly loved and was to remain at home among her own folk, instead of gracing some foreign court. Her amiability, together with her generous, unsparing efforts in every social movement to help the lowly among the people, found its reflection in the immense crowd attracted from all parts of the great city to accord her honour. Well before the appointed hour, those invited to the Abbey began to arrive, and Peers, Commoners, Labourites, Social Reformers, and heads of the various religious bodies took up their allotted positions. Australia was represented by Sir Joseph Cook and his wife, the Agentfi-General and their wives; New Zealand by Sir James and Lady Allen. They occupied prominent positions, while some 18 seats were found for other well-known Australian visitors. Every part of the grey old Abbey was filled with guests. The resplendent costumes of the ladies, the brilliant uniforms of the naval and military officers, and gorgeous robes of the peers, with the kaleidoscopic colours streaming from the rich stained windows formed an ,

animated scene. Outside the Abbey the scene was no i lees thrilling. Thousands ot' spectators ; found accommodation on a huge stand | within the Abbey precincts and around ■ Westminster Hospital, while from another I great stand along Whitehall to Trafalgar j Square’a splendid view was obtained. As ; the Royal procession moved down this j broad thoroughfare, outlined in colour on | either hand by the troops in their gay ! uniforms, the space behind the troops was densely packed with sightseers. As the ! procession swung through the Admiralty ; Arch into Whitehall, volleys of cheering j greeted the Princess, and a great ovation j was accorded her as the carriages entered , Parliament Square. The latter was finely : decorated in a colour scheme of blue, j white, and silver. Tall columns carried blue banners bearing the monograms of Princess Mary and Viscount Lascelles, ' while Venetian masts around the square , were surmounted bv gilt coronets, and ; bannerettes of the national colours fluttered ' in the breeze. From mast to mast swung 1 floral garlands, intermingled with golden lilies; while medallions, with the heads of the bride and bridegroom in, relief, were affixed to each alternate mast. In the general rejoicing the victims of the war were not overlooked. Such wounded men as are still in hospitals in London were provided with special accommodation to view the procession. There were two processions from the Palace, separated by a ihort interval. The Queen, with a captains' escort from the First Life Guards, formed the first, which left the Palace at 11.3 a.m. A minute earlier Queen Alexandra left Marlborough House with a captains’ escort of the First Life Guards, preceding Queen Mary to the Abbey. The King, with Princess Mary, left the Palace at 11.16 a.m., accompanied by a field officers' escort. This formed the second orocession. St. James’s Park and the Mall accommodated a great concourse of onlookers, while Carlton House terrace afforded a choice vantage pout. The route was lined with battalions of the Grenadier, Coldstream. Scots, and Welsh Guards, and representative detachments of the London Territorial divisions, adding a striking colour note. At one point in the joyous process'on there was an oasis of silence. Britain’s monument to the Glorious Head, its base piled round with wreaths of immortelles, brought to mind that iov and sorrow were fellow-travellers on life’s journey. s KB VICE AT THE ABBEY. LONDON, February 28. While those in the Abbey awaited the coming of the bride, Mr Sidney Nicholson, the Abbey organist, played a selection of music chosen to represent early English music and later British compositions. They included Purcell’s “Trumpet Voluntary,” Handel’s four movements from the “Water Music,” Parry's Bridal March. Elgar's Imperial March, Walford Davies’s Solemn Melody, and other items, Guilmant's March Nuptials, and Samt-Seans's '■Benediction.” The Abbey choir was strengthened by the choir of the Chapel Royal. Cheering outside the Abbey announced the arrival of the Royalties. The murmur of conversation in the Abbey died away to silence as the Princess, on her father’s arm, approached the altar, accompanied by her bridesmaids —Princess Maud, Lady Rachel Cavendish, Lady Mary Tkynne, Lady Victoria Cambridge, Lady Doris Gordon-Lennox, Lady Elizabeth BowesLvon, Lady Diana Bridgeman, and Lady Mary Cambridge. Each bridesmaid car-

ried a bouquet of sweet peas caught with a silver ribbon streamer. Viscount Lascelles, with Sir Victor Mackenzie, awaited the Princess’s arrival at the altar. The groupings around the altar formed a picture unrivalled in splendour. The Archbishops of Canterbury and York, the Dean of Westminster, the Bishops of London and Oxford, and other clergy, in their magnificent vestments, formed an effective setting to the diaphanous draperies of the bridal party. The Dean of Westminster received the King and bride at the west door. The dean and his canons, with the choir, then preceded the bridal procession up the nave, singing “Lead Us, Heavenly lather, Lead Us,” which was selected as the opening hymn by the bride herself. After Psalm Ixvii. had been chanted, the Archbishop of Canterbury conducted the marriage service, at the conclusion of which the hymn “Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven” was sung to Goss's music. THE ARCHBISHOP’S ADDRESS. Tile Archbishop delivered his address as follows: It is a stirring thing for any man and woman, whoever they be, to find themselves for a brief space the very focus or centre of the interest and prayers of literally millions of people throughout i the world. You so stand this morning. Around us just now in every land, j and not least in our own, confused ! anxieties are throbbing, urgent needs ■ depress men's minds, but we have met ! for once in quietness and confidence. I This sanctuary is holy ground. It has for long centuries been dedicated to | the consecrating of new responsibilities. 1 Your vows are very sacred things, at- | tested by us all and radiant with hope, j. Vet, great as the occasiun is, what we j are gathered for is a simple—l might ! almost say. a homely—thing, an act j familiar in story and in every household i in this land. It is to unite a man and j maiden in wedlock unbreakable while i life lasts. It is to wish them both ! God speed upon life’s pathway, to reI mind them of the mutual society, help. I and comfort that one ought to have of | the other, both in prosperity and adversity. And because it is so familiar and | so simple, the opportunities it offers are ' plain and large.

It seems probable that no daughter of a reigning King ever, until to-day, was married in Westminster Abbey. Certainly no marriage ever took place here under conditions quite like yours. Wartime partly created them. Each of you in the grim war years found new opportunities and used them. When the figure of manhood was being sternly tested day by day in shell-swept trench and on bare hillside, yours, my brother did much more than stand the test. Such testing and such equipment- can make good its outcome in the quieter after years. No call of that kind, no necessity on that scale, nlease God, will come again in your lifetime; but to those worthy of it peace brings privileges in a central -place. Our central homes can bestow on English life an inestimable boon if the which beats upon such home reveal there what is honourable and pure, what is lovely and of good report. The gain is farreaching, arid it spreads. There lies opportunity for both of you. You are going to use it.

To you, mv child, the war days of your childhood brought occasion of glatf service. The experience, however simple, of a hospital ward can give its abiding stimulus to one who cares. In that effort, as also m your leadership of a disciplined English girlhood, you gained thought and knowledge which will now contribute to securing the strength, orderliness, and sunshine of the great English home. Together you will set yourselves thereto. The happiness of home life, even when blessed, like yours, with high traditions, is not a matter of course. ±t has its roots in a mutual love which is not tender only, but thoughtful in resources, a love unselfish in devotion, but brave and unreserved in its honesty of mutual counsel. So may you together go from strength to strength. The power so to do must come from on high. We are here this morning as Christians. Our fealty is pledged to the l’ving Lord. The centre, the inspiration, the Master in the home is Jesus Christ our Lord. It is in His name that, with gladness of heart and buoyancy of hope, we to-day. on behalf of the whole Empire and its people, bid you God speed. After file blessing had been pronounced and as the bride and bridegroom proceeded to Edward the Confessor’s Chape! to sign the register, the anthem “Beloved, Let Us Love One Another,” specially com posed for the occasion by Air Sidney Nicj holson (the Abbey organist), was sung, i Then, as the bridal party left the chapel, all the Royalties, with the Earl and Countess of Harewood, joined the procession in the nave, forming a brilliant pageant. As the procession wended its way ; down the nave, the organ played the | “Bridal March” from Gounod’s ''Borneo ; and Juliet.” followed bv .Mendelssohn’s “Wedding March” as the party quitted ; the Abbey. ! Great cheering arose when the bridal ’ carriage drove away, the couple bowing their acknowledgments. Perhaps only one | thing was wanting to complete the Princess’s happiness, and that was the fact i that her eldest brother, to whom she is | devotedly attached, was unable to participate in the ceremony. j The return journey to the Palace fol--1 lowed the same route as that from the | Palace, except that the Princess’s carriage I turned out of the Mall at Marlborough 1 House into fit. James’s street: thence by Piccadilly and down Constitution Hill. This gave a longer route for the specta-

tors, and also enabled their Majesties and other Royalties to return to the Palace by a shorter route in time to receive the married couple. MEMORABLE SCENES. LONDON, February 28. The fortunate ones among the outside crowd were those who, m the early morning hours, took possession of the base of the Victoria Memorial. Less fortunate were those packed on both sides of the Mall. The stalwart Guardsmen, whose uniforms and black bearskins added splendour to the occasion, stood in such close formation along the route that the onlookers had little chance of seeing the procession. It was remarkable how many women had, with forethought and knowledge gained from the war, improvised periscopes on their parasols to enable them to see over those in front. Such a ruse, however, was not very satisfying. Those who defied the police regulations and came provided with campstools fared better, while best off of all were the small boys who climbed trees along the route until they resembled a human rookery. Londoners, however, notwithstanding all the disadvantages of overcrowding, gave the Princess a fitting welcome. Enthusiastic as was the reception of the Queen, with whom were the Duke of York, Princes Henrv and George, that which awaited the bride will live in her memory. Her appearance was the signal for a roar which ran through the dense throng from the Palace to the Admiralty Arch with amazing rapidity. The Princess acknowledged this ioyous and deafening feu-de-joie of cheers smilingly all the way. At the moment ol the bride’s arrival at the Abbey, the crowd was so dense that the police had the greatest difficulty in maintaining -their cordon. Dozens of women and children fainted ’ and were carried to island refuges, where h medical aid had been -tationed. At the conclusion of the ceremony, the spectators from the Abbey and Whitehall began to converge on the Palace, while the throng was so irreat at Hyde Park Corner that the ambulances were busy, j over 20 persons being treated for faint- . ing or exhaustion.

All the clubs in Piccadilly were gaily decorated, and their windows filled with cheering people. As the married pair drove down Constitution Hill, thev rece'ved a tremendous acclamation from the vast crowd. From the balcony of the Palace, Viscount Lascelles and the Princess bowed to the crowd. Alary beckoned to her father and mother and Queen Alexandra, who joined her amid tumultuous i heeling. KEYNOTE OF REJOICING. LONDON, February 28.

Probably there were few in that unparalleled concourse, vast even among London’s unexampled crowds, who examined the Imperial significance of the wedding. Yet, beyond doubt, in all that mass of jammed humanity, the single trend of thought was “Our English is marrying an Englishman” : that was the keynote of the whole day's rejoicings, and was prompted bv Princess Alary’s own words when acknowledging a gift: <“I am remaining in my own native land.” There is an Empire-wide moral in that unstudied expression of human thankfulness. It spells Briton's Empire for the British, not for foreign alliances through Royal marriages; and. in possibly subconscious realisation of this fact lav the chief factor of the extraordinary and unbounded popular demonstrations. Women largely predominated in the crowds, which accounted for the remarkable colour scheme. Large numbers fainted as a result of the crushing, and misadventures kept the ambulances busy. Viscount La cedes spoke his vows in a firm voice, which was clearly audible across the Abbey. Princess Mary’s voice was also audible and unshaken, but the words were indistinaui hable, as she had her back to the audience. CLOUDS VANISH MAGICALLY. LONDON, February 28. The proverbial fickleness of the English climate showed in the right direction. The sun shone brilliantly throughout the ceremonial. During the small hours of the morning the outlook was cheerless, and frequent rain squalls drenched London. A cold westerly was blowing. At 7 o’clock the rain clouds vanished, magically, leaving blue sky and sunlight. About 10 some ominous -clouds gathered, but dispersed under a strong wind. From the Palace the Alall presented a wonderful vista. Hundreds of thousands of people were packed m the vicinity of the Palace, anxious to catch the first glimpse of the bride, but only a small portion obtained a satisfactory view. The King and Queen sent a message of thanks in reply to the Empire’s affectionate good wishes for the marriage. Viscount Lascelles wore the uniform of the Grenadier Guards, with the ribbons and stars of his orders. As the Princess, on her return journey, passed the Cenotaph, the carriage stopped and she handed a Grenadier Guardsman a beautiful Moral tribute which she specially reserved for the fallen soldiers. The Guardsman saluted and placed the flowers at the foot of the memorial. The whole scene was unexpected, and many of those who witnessed it were moved to tears. The bride and bridegroom next left the Palace at 4 o’clock m an open State landau drawn by four white horses with outriders in scarlet liveries and attended by an escort of the First Life Guards, on the way to Paddington Station, whence thev left for Shifnal, wherp the first portion of the honeymoon will be spent. The route to Paddington was densely crowded, and the young couple received one long ovation. BEFORE THE CEREAIONY. MULTITUDE GATHER EARLY. LONDON, February 27. Vast crowds are visiting the scenes ot tomorrow's ceremonials, watching the

eleventh-hour preparations. They besieged the Palace precincts in the hope of seeing Princess Mary. After a long wait, Princess Mary and Viscount Laseelles emerged in a motor-car. The crowd broke the ranks and surrounded the car, which was brought to a standstill, amid a sea of waving hats, handkerchiefs, and muffs. Mounted police eventually cleared the way, allowing the car to proceed. The couple had a foretaste of popular enthusiasm when they motored the length of Pall Mall, bowing and smiling through an avenue of gratified spectators. Thousands are perambulating the entire route, watching the finishing touches being put on decorations, and the erection of stands. A majority of the shop windows along the route have been lifted out to provide an uninterrupted view. Though no scheme of decorations has been adopted, the flags and festoons already make a gay specAgain at night crowds viewed the illuminations being tested. Trains from all parts of England start to-night, bringing provincial people to the city. Rain fell in the afternoon. An official prediction states that the weather will probably be. unsettled to-morrow. Complete arrangements for filming Tuesday’s wedding are being made. One firm paid £3,000 for seat's for operator's at every point of the route. They are filming 1000 ft-. and will immediately develop and distribute the- films for exhibition the same night. February 28. Amongst the guests invited to the Abbey is Robert Benstead, formerly of the Grenadiers. When Viscount Laseelles was wounded, Benstead rescued him, dressed his wounds, and conveyed him to a place of safety. Showers and drizzle fell throughout the night, sadly verifying the official forecast, but this did not prevent the crowds from wending their way to Westminster. The people began to assemble between 1 and 2 o’clock at Charing Cross and Trafalgar Square, but principally in the vicinity of the Abbey, where hawkers of flowers and wedding favours did considerable business. It was obvious that many of the early comers were from the theatres and that they were determined to spend the night in the wet and discomfort rather than risk the uncertainties of transport facilities later. The crowds steadily in creastW towards dawn, the people stream ing eagerly from all directions to ad van

tageous positions. Many arrived during the night by motor-cars, in which they slept until the police cleared the roads. The entire vicinity of the Abbey was brilliantly lit, resembling mid-day. Brief changes for the better in the weather occasionally flattered the hope of an improvement, but the frequent showers and a heavy, overcast sky were too ominous. The newspapers devote many columns of appreciation to Princess Mary and Viscount Laseelles, paying a tribute to the former’s simplicity and sincerity, and to the latter’s fine character as a man and a soldier. The Morning Post happily summarises the popular sentiment as follows:—“There are troubles about us, anxieties and much fearful looking forward to ills we know not. Yet we drop all these to-day. The times must be a deal harder than they are that the Princess should wed a man of her choice and England not rejoice.’’ A PECULIAR POINT. LONDON, February 27. The Daily Mail calls attention to a peculiar point of Court etiquette. Many choice presents from private individuals have been returned, with a note thanking the donors. Gifts from public bodies and associations are permissible, but not from individuals who have no connection whatever with the Court or who are not friends of the Royal Family. Many people apparently were unaware of the rule, and wealthy men and women showered gifts of great 'price upon Princess Mary. FRANCE PAYS HOMAGE. PARLY, Tebruary 28. The newspapers devote articles 'to the Royal wedding. Marshal Foch issues through the Matin a manifesto saying: “All France will participate in new "homage to the illustrious house whereof Edward the Peacemaker was France’s most faithful friend, King George is the unshakable ally, and the Prince of Wales conquered in Picardy her sincere affection.’’ Marshal Foch recalls with deep emotion “the time when we stood shoulder to shoulder and heart to heart. We shall do well at this moment, when Britain celebrates the marriage, of her King's daughter, to recall that Britain and Eranee sealed with the mood of their sons a union which they will never transform into a scrap of paper,”

AUSTRALIA’S CONGRATULATIONS. SYDNEY, March 1. Shipping and many buildings in the city are beflagged in honour of the Princess Mary’s marriage. Some of the churches rang wedding peals. The Governor-Gene-ral sent Australia’s congratulations, also the Premiers’. The King replied expressing his hearty thanks. NEW ZEALANDERS INVITED. LONDON, February 27. The New Zealanders invited to the Abbey in connection with the marriage of Princess Mary are Mr and Mrs Arthur Myers, Colonel and Airs Studholme, Dr and Mrs Irving, Sir John Salmond, Mesdames M'Ewan, Rolleston, Montgomery, Bernard Myers, and Riddiford, Misses Allen and Burt. * KING’S TENANT FARMERS § INVITED. LONDON, February 27. The King and Queen gave a final prewedding party. The guests included the tenant farmers on the King’s estate and on the Laseelles family estates. The weather forecast is for occasional brief interludes of sunshine and some showers. There is a great pilgrimage from the provinces. All the YVest End hotels are full/ A later message^reports that rain and drizzle are falling. r The crowd is assembling in great numbers in the vicinity of the Abbey. KEEN INTEREST IN AMERICA. WASHINGTON, February 27. The American Press all over the country is devoting columns to Princess Mary’s wedding, which is regarded with the deepest interest. SCENES IN THE YVEST END. THE KING THANKS THE NATION. LONDON, I ebruary 28. There were uproarious scenes in the YVest End during the evening, the participants being chiefly girls and young men. By 9 o’clock the neighbourhood of Buckingham Palace was a seething mass of people, waiting in the hope that the King and Queen would appear on the balcony. Parliament Square, Whitehall, and Trafalgar Square were equally crowded. The police were utterly unprepared, and traffic was held up. Though every owner of a motor-car seemed to be out with a party to see the illuminations and the general fun, little money was spent. A number of big busi ness houses, shipping and insurance offices were illuminated, but the displays were mostly improvised at short notice. Searchlights played over the Palace, recalling sights familiar during the war, though the lights now mingled in a fantastic symphony of colour upon the clouded sky, instead of being directed for a grim purpose, as in Zeppelin times. The crowds were in excellent humour. Many were armed with toy trumpets, rattles, and other noise-making instruments. It seemed a pity the authorities had not thought of organising a fireworks display in Hyde Park, which would have kept hundreds of thousands amused and out of mischief. All the theatres and music halls were packed, and patriotic songs were sung with fervour. The picture palaces were .unable to seat one-tenth of those desirous of seeing the moving picture of the wedding, which proved a most successful representation. The bonny bride and her brave bridegroom were everywhere greeted with enthusiasm. After 11 p.m., when the theatres closed, the festivities continued at Albert Hall, where a Royal wedding charity ball was held, and at leading hotels and restaurants there were mascot suppers and jazz dances, while fancy dress carnivals were arranged at the night clubs and continued till the early hours. Similar scenes were enacted in ;J1 the larger towns in Britain and in Ulster. There was a picturesque celebration at Balmoral, where the Royal tenants, headed by pipers, marched from the Castle to the top of Craig Rowan and lighted a bonfire. The clansmen formed a circle, and pledged the health of the bride and bridegroom. The warships in Portsmouth were gay with bunting by day and illuminated at night. The battle-cruiser Tiger and the vessels of the Nore command at Sheerness were also brilliantly illuminated. Meanwhile the bridal couple were happily out of the hurly-burly and reached the peace of Honeymoonland by 7 o’clock. As the train crossed England, crowds assembled at all stations, level crossings, and bridges, waving handkerchiefs, cheering, and shouting good wishes. The train slowed down at Birmingham and YY’olverhampton to enable the people on the densely-crowded platforms to see the bridal" couple. Their reception was most won d e r f u 1 throu gli on t. It is noteworthy that Princess Mary and Viscount Laseelles have gone on their honeymoon with a single maid and cl valet. The King to-night sent messages to the nation, saying: “The Queen and I cannot, allow the day to pass which has been to us so happy and memorable without making it known how deeply we have been touched bv the warm and affectionate good wishes of my subjects in all parts of the Empire. Our beloved son-in-law and daughter could not begin their new life under auspices brighter than those afforded by the kindliness and enthusiasm of my people throughout the realm. YY’e appreciate their good-will all the more vividly because we know well that many at this moment are living in the shadow of the greatest hardship and anxiety. From the depths of our hearts -,ve thank, you all for making yourselves partners in our great joy.” A TOUGHING INCIDENT. LONDON, March 1. The Daily Mail records a touching incident at the signing of the Royal marriage

register. As the little party passed through the door from the altar, Viscount Laseelles turned and Kissed the bride. Princess Mary turned towards the Queen with the one word, “Mother,” and kissed her fondly. The Queen said : “God bless you, Mary.” The King then kissed his daughter and shook hands with Viscount Laseelles. THE PRAYER BOOK REVISED. LONDON, March 1. The Daily Mail states that modifications were made for the Royal wedding in the stark sixteenth century language of the mafriage ceremony, which met modern criticism, and the alteration will be embodied in the revised Prayer Book which is now under consideration. The first alteration is in the preface, beginning, “Dearly beloved, we are gathered,” from the words “To satisfy” down to the word “understanding” being omitted. The two following paragraphs will be changed. In the new form they will read: “First, It was ordained for the increase of mankind according to the will of God, and that children might be brought up in the fear and nurture of the Gird and to the praise of His holy name. “Secondly, It was ordained that the natural instincts and affection implanted by God should be hallowed and controlled, that those who are not called of God to remain unmarried should live chastely in matrimony, and thus in the holiness and pureness of living mankind should dwell together in families.” The remainder of the service is unaltered. The Princess promised to “obey.” [Before the alteration in the preface the paragraph from which several words have been deleted, read as follows : —“To satisfy man’s carnal lusts and appetites, like brute beasts that have no understanding.”] GOOD YVISHES FROM NEYV ZEALAND. WELLINGTON, February 27. The Governor-General (Lord Jelliooe) sent the following message to her Royal Highness Princess Mary on the occasion of her marriage : On behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand, with whom I associate myself, I beg to tender to your Royal Highness on this auspicious day, with deep respect, sincere and heartfelt good wishes for your future happiness. (Signed) Jellicoe.

WEDDING GIFTS FROM NEW ZEALAND. THE MARYS’ FUND. WELLINGTON, February 23. Three wedding gifts for Princess Mary, contributed to by the Marys of the dominion, in which there has been association with the Marys of the Empire, the second by the V.A.D/s and the Red Cross workers, and the third by the women of New Zealand The first two were in the hands if her Excellency Viscountess Jellicoe. A cablegram was despatched bv the Internal Affairs Department on her Excellency’s behalf, instructing the High Commissioner to pay to the Hon. Mrs MoirJey’s Marys’ Empire Fund £57 15s, and of Lady Ampthill’s V.A.D. and Red Cross Workers’ Fund £B9 12s. Yesterday the following cable was received from the High Com missioner:—“The Marys’ Empire Fund is now over £BOOO. A gift is being made of a rope of pearls, the Princess devoting 1 Jie greater portion of the amount collected to found a training home, bearing her name, in connection with the Girls’ Guides movement. The V.A.D. and Red Cross Workers’ gift is a diamond emerald tiara, and the number of subscribers is over 50,000.” With regard to the gift from the women of New Zealand, limited to shilling subscriptions, a cable has been despatched to the Secretary of Slate for the Colonies asking that information should be conveyed to her Royal Highness that it is desired that the present should be of New Zealand workmanship, and would be sent forward as early as possible. NEYV ZEALAND’S PRESENT. WELLINGTON, March 3. The Governor-General has received the following cablegram from, the Secretary of State for the Colonies: —“Her Highness much appreciates the wisti of the women of New Zealand (o present her with a wedding gift, of distinctive New Zealand make, which she will be pleased to accept. Her Royal Highness asks that her best thanks may be conveyed to the donors.”