AN ENDLESS QUEUE.

Pahiatua Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 13166, 27 January 1936, Page 5

AN ENDLESS QUEUE.

250,000 PEOPLE FILE PAST.

UNPRECEDENTED SCENES AT WESTMINSTER.

United Press Assn.—By Electric Telegraph—Copyright. LONDON, January 26

When Westminster Hall closed shortly after midnight, the day’s admissions totalled 150,770, making with Friday’s total, over 250,000. Another queue immediately began to form for the re-opening and thousands are now traversing the hall. The morning is sunny.

LONDON, January 25. The funeral of King George will be of a distinctly naval character befitting his many years in the service, but the Army will supply nearly two divisions for duty in London. Representative detachments of eight infantry regiments of which the King was Colonel-in-Chief, also Royal artillery, engineers, tank corps and territorial battalions in which he held titular rank, will march in procession, although two line cavalry units of which he was head are at present abroad and will not he represented. Overseas military representatives include Dominion officers attached to staff and other colleges. Alany foreign armies are sending detachments. Fifty nations will be represented by either a King or Alinisters. The procession will pass through streets draped in purple and black. Neither the rain nor the bitter wind stopped the procession of mourners to Westminster Hall which was ever renewed although the fact that it extended for a mile might have discouraged thousands who faced the slow, shuffling* march involving two hours spent on the wet pavements. As offices and workshops closed, the six-abreast queue continually lengthened. All types of the Empire were represented. Sarihelad Indian women, negroes, omnibus drivers, tram drivers and conductors still in uniform, labourers with toil-stained clothes (hundreds bemedalled indicating that they were ex-servicemen), white-haired widows and mothers wearing the husbands’ or sons’ war medals mingled with fashionably-dressed women, typists and shop girls, the majority wearing black armlets in response to the King’s suggestion of national mourning until after the funeral assembly.

Myriads of pilgrims, not only Londoners but thousands arriving and descending from mud-splashed cars indicating long drives from the country, were in continuous march of subjects paying their last homage to their beloved King. Only once were they held up. It was when the King?, Queen Alary and other Royalties among whom was the Queen of Norway, who was thus for the) first time seeing the King’s coffin, arrived in the evening. AIAKTNG CAPITAL OUT OF THE KING’S FUNERAL. LONDON, January 26. Thousands of seats, to view the Royal funeral, are selling at from two to ten guineas. The demand exceeds that on Jubilee Day.

Sailors from H.AX.S. Excellent at Portsmouth are preparing the guncarriage for the Royal coffin, while throughout London workmen are erecting draping, stands and barriers for the funeral on Tuesday. The troops, including Welsh Guards at the Tower, the King’s Company of Grenadier Guards of an average in height of six feet three inches at Wellington barracks, and the marines at Portsmouth are rehearsing with measured tread and arms reversed for the procession in the most solemn spectacle the city has ever seen.

Over five thousand wreaths have been received and are hourly increasing. They spread their fragrance and beauty over the cloisters of St. George's chapel at Windsor, and range from an enormous chaplet of white lilies and tulips from Kemal Ataturk to a .tiny bunch from a little country girl. The Bishop of London, recalling how King George distributed prizes to the Sandringham children, said when his Majesty gavet them Bibles, he used to say: T was taught by mv mother to sav a prayer and read it lie Bible every day. I have done it and 1 hope you will do the same.” U LSTER S TRIBUTE. All parties in the Northern Ireland Senate and Commons paid tribute to King George. The members silentlv standing passed motions for loval addresses to Edward after which messages of condolence were sent €0 Queen Alary. The Nationalist, Mr Campbell, said King George was a constitutional monarch who did not swerve a hands' breadth from the constitutional path, never even when urged by high and mighty influences during the Home rule struggle to exceed its limits. He hacl nothing but generous thoughts and deeds for the Irish people, striving with all Ins might for reconciliation and healing between the British and Irish.

EDWARD VIIL PROCLAIMED. AN IMPRESSIVE C EREMONY. LONDON, January 25. Under the shadow of Windsor's ancient castle walls, below a halfmasted Union Jack on the summit of the massive round tower, which is lowered only when a sovereign dies, Edward VIII. was thrice proclaimed King with a ceremony dating back to Tudor times. The proclamation was made first at the statue of Queen Victoria, the sceptred arm of which extended as in blessing; then at the Henry VIII. gatewav, and at Windsor Bridge, on tli o boundary of Berkshire and Buckinghamshire. Heralds and the mace-bearer led the l 71 recession from Guildhall, including the V-a 1 Jet-robed Alayor, ceremonially-

garbed aldermen, and officials. The Coldstream Guards in full-dress uniforms with bearskins, crossbelts and overcoats, supplied the guard of honour, and the Life Guards the band music, their trumpeters in red, gold and silver sounding a double 1 a nf a re.

Precisely at noon all civilian heads were bared in reverence to the dead King; while the Alayor was reading the proclamation three cheers were given for the new King. The dean and canons in scarlet attended the gateway ceremony. The viceprovost and masters of Eton, with the school’s smartly-uniformed officers’ training corps, also the fire brigades and local youth organisations, participated at the riverside observance. The ancient cart from which the sheriff proclaimed the King at Bristol had been similarly employed in the proclamation of the last six sovereigns. DAY FOR THE CHILDREN. LONDON, January 25.

As'on the occasion of King Edward Vll.’s death, to-day was children’s day. Thousands accompanied by teachers and many from convent schools escorted by nuns formed a queue. The children were mustered as early as 8 a.m. in drizzling rain and by 8.30 the waiting line again extended almost to Lambeth bridge.

Officials say the crowd far exceeds yesterday’s, and estimate that 35,000 had passed the Catafalque by 11 a.m. As soon as the city offices closed at noon there was an appreciable increase in the queue. King Edward has gone to his private residence at Fort Belvedere, Sunningdale, to rest quietly during the week-end. The Sun-Herald says Fritz Kreisler, the violinist, has cancelled his Albert Hall concert on Sunday because of the King’s death. “Aly heart is sad. I cannot play my fiddue. What a man he was, so quiet, calm and dignified. He never interfered and never made a fuss. I shall never forget his kindly smile and lovable dignified manner.

“DEAD MARCH” OF LONDON’S CITIZENS. LONDON, January 25. The Queen sent a cruciform wreath of white chrysanthemums to replace the flowers on the* Royal coffin at Westminster Hall. The crowd included many music hall artists, including a man eight feet in height and a woman three feet high. They were in complete mourning.

Fiity thousand barrackers hushed their clamouring at Stamford Bridge when the raised baton of the bandmaster imposed silence. The occupants of the stands rose to attention as one man and the crowd stilled itself and stood Bareheaded while four trumpeters played the Last Post and the drums broke in with a long, heart-stirring roll as a prelude to the opening bars of King George’s favourite hymn, “Abide With Ale.*’ The crowd after a pause of realisation joined in the majestic harmony swelling in spirit to a mighty chorus from the football grounds throughout England where similar observances were honoured .

Intense stillness followed and then the drums rolled again their crescendo and the band and voices united in the National Anthem. Silence again supervened ancT then the* Cup Tie vociferation burst forth, the c-howcls cheered, coins were spun and the games begun.

SERVICE AT ST. PETER’S. VIC A R S REFERENCE TO LATE KING. On Sunday the services at St. Peter's Church had special reference to the death of King Gfeorge V. Preaching at Matins, the vicar (Rev. H. Wilson) claimed that thanksgiving should In* the prevailing note in our thoughts of the King—thankfulness for the man he was, whose life was founded on the faith and fear of God, a Christian, humble and gentle and kind to all, a good man; thankfulness for the well-filled life of glorious service, with the benefits it brought us ; and for the Queen and the sons and daughter they have given us, especially for the “young” King; and lastly, for the Christian close of King George’s life, clear and serene. The sense of so much goodness bestowed should steady our thoughts of the days that lie ahead and lead us to trust God for our new King and for the future of our •nation and -fh© world.