THE QUEEN'S DIAMOND JUBILEE.

Thames Star, Volume XXIX, Issue 8735, 11 August 1897, Page 3

THE QUEEN'S DIAMOND JUBILEE.

NEW ZEALAND CONTINGENT. THE MAORIS OVATED. OUR PREMIER AND MRS SEDDON. CHEERED BY THE MULTITUDE. (BY Mrs H. J. GREFNRLADE.) TABT lII—THE RETURN FROM ST. PAUL'S,

(Continued from last issue.) The Daily Mail also thus beautifully refers* to the servico at the Cathedral :-r " Tho Queen's carriage passed the .barrier; it entered tho • churchyard; it" wheel™! left and then right; it drew up at the very steps of the Cathedral; we all leaped up; cheers broke, into screams, and enthusiasm swelled to delirium ; the sun, ■watery till now, slvono out suddenly clear and dry, aud there —and there— And there was a little, plain, flushed old lady. All in black, a silver streak under the black bonnet, a simple white sunshade, sitting quite still, with the corners of her mouth drawn tight, «» if she were trying not to cry. But that old lady was the Queen, and you knew it You didn't want to look at the glittering uniforms now, nor yet at the bright gowns and the young faces in the carriages, nor yet at the stately princes—though by now all these were ranged in a half circle round her. You couldn't look at anybody but the Queen..; So. Y»ry quiet, so very grave,, so_T.»ry jjunetual, so unmistakably and erwry inch a lady and a Queea. Almost pathetic, if you will, that small black figure in the middle of these shining cavaliers, this great army, this roaring multitude; but also very glorious, When the other kings of the world drive abroad, the escoit rides close in at the. wheels of the carriage; the Queen drove through her people quite plain and open, with just one soldier at the kerbstone between her aud them. Why 'not ? They are quite free; they havo no cause to feav her; they have much cause to love her. Was it not all for her —the gala trappings of the streets, the men and horses and gune, the living walls of British men and women ? For the Queen summed up all that had gone before, all the soldiers and sailors, the big-limbed colonial, the strange men from un-heard-of islands oversea. We know now what that which had come before all stoodf jfo*;fwj» knew as we had I never known bwfore what the Queen stands for. The Empire had come together to revere and bless the mother of the Empire. The mother of the Empire had come to do homage to tho one Being more majestic than she." After leaving St. Paul's the procession proceeded through Cheapside and then to the Mansion House, Trhere the Lady Mayoress (Mrs/Faudel Phillips) presented Her Majesty with a floral trophy and kissed the Queen's extended hand. Upon resuming the march the route was along King William street, London Bridge, Borough High street, Borough road, St. George's Circus, Bridge road, Westminster ." Bridge 1, Bridge street, Parliament street, Whitehall, The Horse Guards, and then reached the Mall, where the Colonial Stand was situated. The procession was not expected to pass our stand until about two o'clock, so great was our surprise when Capt. O. Ames (the giant of the army) hove in sight. He was greeted with loud and long cheers as he rode along, closely followed by four of his troopers and the Naval Battery of H.M.S. Excellentj: heralding the approach of the Royal pageant. Behind the Staff Officer came a splendid troop of the 2nd Life Guards, the mounted band of the Royal Artillery, brave in its golden uniforms, appropriately leading the procession of the golden glory of Her Majesty. , I Thett came another Artillery and three bands of the Ist and 2nd : Dragoon Guaros and the Ist Life..; Guards. These were followed by j squadrons of tho same regiments, riding four abreast, their steel cuirasses ! and swords gleaming brightly, their I gloves and breeches spotless and j white,and their accoutrements assraart • and soldierlike as any martinet could j desire. Band after band and corps after corpn filed past, the colas of their uniforms blending harmoniously throughout. Behind 'this vast body of mounted men rode the equerries and Aides-dc-Camp to the Queen, Gentlemen-in-Waiting, and other attendants. Then came a 'iinife^q* carriages; contamSg some Royal "guests, followed by a most imposing line of Foreign Princes, all mounted on magnificent horses. Tnese gentlemen were handsomely attired, and lcoked most picturesque in their bizarre costumei. Some more infantry moved past, and then the Eoyal line of carriages began to appear. Fourteen carriages, each drawn by four horses, came along containing minor branches of the Royal Family and relations of the Queen- In. *tue fifteenth, however, was the Duchess of Albany, the Duchess of Connaught, the Duchess of Saxe-Ooburg and Gotha, and the Priucess Beatrice. The sixteenth brought H,R H. the Duke of SaxeCdburg (Duke of Edinburgh) Princess Louise, Princess of Naples, and the Empress Frederick of Germany. As these rolled by the bands struck up the National Anthem, and one huge heart-sent cheer rent the air, and the I eight cream horses, richly caparisoned, j appeared drawing the State carriage, in which was seated, happy and smiling, Her Majesty Queen Victoria. She bowed very graciously, and seemed very pleased to see the enthusiasm displayed by the visitors from her colonies. She looked remarkably well, and was dressed in a Boft dress of-black, intermingled with the most delicate silver grey; : her bonnet was of black also, with just a relief of the eanie shade of gieyas '".'■ that warn on her dress. The Princess tjf Wales looked charming in a dvess of peach-colored silk and toque to maiah; and the Princess Christian occupied the eaine carriage as the Queen, The carriage, with its beautiful cream steeds ai|d i>ostilums, passed elowly, but all too quickly, away, amidst the tiemeadous outburst of loyalty from the colonists of Greater Britain. Some fifteen minutes .ater, atter a train of gentlemen-in-waiting. Royal grooms, and Life Guards had passed, Lord Wofcdey appeared ou the soeue closely followed by the Colonial troops and Lord Boberts, who received a * great ovation, io great that one might Save believed that it was a commander returning in triumph from his campaign, rather thau a hero resting on his laurels. The first contingent of the troops which guard that Greater Britain over the seas was the Canadian Mounted Dragoon*, Huss-ars, and police, and their red ceate and bright belt* struck a triui»P4*»t note in the procession. Inunwjatfly behind this splendid ewort, in a carnage drawn by four Iwnww, wae the Hop.

Sit ; Wilfred Laurier, Premier; fi Canada, wh<* had a great rtcejiuoii, which h« graceiullj acknowledge*! by bowing again: and •gun to the cueeriug multitude y. Thoa came the Now South WAlt* Mounted troops, in their ulitijiie dresses of kharki with scarlet faeiiifrs elouch ha,tfl, nnd brown belti alid boots. Following close on their horses' heels came a carriage and four containing the Fremior of New Bouth Wales and the Premier of Victoria. Then swayed, along the Victoria Mounted Bifles, in a similar uniform to that worn by the New South Wates troopeis. ; Then the patriotic souls of the New

Zoalanders sought rent in a : long ohoor as the Now Zealand Mounted Rifles and a detachment of grand looking Maoris came in Slight, carefully guarding the carriage which contained their Premier, the Right Hon. R. J.. Soddon, P. 0., arid the Premier of Queensland. They repeatedly bared their heads in acknowledgment of the hearty welcome accorded them as they rolled slowly '. away. Mrs Seddon, most tastefully' dressed and wearing a dainty bonnet, accompanied her husband. '■",.,' v... ; The Queenslini Mounted Rifles otid the Cape Of Goett'Ho^etj.qops; in greeny uniforms succeeded, the New Zealand contingent as escorts to the Premier, of the Capeand the,. Premier of South Australia. r vrhen came, the South Australianl>|ounted Rifles,, and in t^». ( succeeding carriage were the Premier of Newfoundland and the Premier of Tasmania. . The Natal Mounted troops next filed past, followed by, the Premier of that colony and the Premier of Western Australia. . Then, riding close to-1 gether, came the Cyprus Mounted In* fantry, the Trinidad Yeomanry, and the Zaptiehs, who, in their* blue uniforms with red sashes and top boots and scarlet trappings for their beautiful little ponies, made a conspicuous show against the stronger animals which surrounded them. The Rhodesiau Horse and Victoria Band followed, succeeded by the Royal Malta Artillery, the Jamaica Artillery, Sierra Leone Artillery, Bermuda Artillery, St. Lucia Artillery, Hong Kong Artillery, Singapore Artillery, West Indian Fortress, and the Royal Malta Submarine Mining Engineers. Very much commented upon were the armed Sikh Police, who were succeeded by a. corps of the Scottish Rifles, whose band merrily pealed out " The Campbells are Coming." The soft grey kilted uniforms proved a distinct relief for the eye, which had become almost bewildered by the blaze of colour which had passed before it. -Then, stepping sprightly to the music; came more of Greater Britain's eons. The Canadian Field Artillery was immediately followed. by the New South Wales Field Artillery, the New South Wales Garrison Artillery and Engineered Western Australirm Artillery, Trinidad, Ceylon, and Jamaica Artilleries, followed by the band of the London Irish Rifles. Then came the Ist and 2nd West India Regiment, in their picturesque, ztuwe costumes, and the Hong Kong regiment. • Behind these came the No I Company of British North America, the Royal Malta Militia and the West Australian Volunteers, Following these came corps representing. British South America and the West Indies. Then the British Asiatic colonies were represented .'by : the Sikhs, Malay Aimed Police, North Borneo Police, and the Hong Koug Police in their quaint white helmets with the Royal arms painted in color on top. Representatives of the British African Colonies came next and finished the procession. Looking after the retreating column of these men, the picture was a striking one, the red uniforms mingling with the blue and black, while the various colours of kharki at once relieved and intensified the strong tones of colours. So the Colonial procession passed I amidst prolonged cheering, for did it 1 not represent that Greater Britain up- ' on which the sun never. I Throughout the city it was one. huge, rejoicing, loyal, aud brilliant j carnival, and no wonder was it that 1 Her Majesty was more than once moved to tears as she realized how all the hearts of her people swelled with j love and esteem for her, and schooled as she is in controlling her emotions • phe could not conceal the effect this i loyal demonstration had upou her. As • she passed into the Palace the bands struck up that familiar air, and tunefully expressed the thought that thrilled the heart of every member of the great and international throng that witnessed Her Majesty's return, "God Save the Queen."