THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. SATURDAY, MARCH 5, 1927. THE ROYAL VISIT.

Wairarapa Age, 5 March 1927, Page 4

THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. SATURDAY, MARCH 5, 1927. THE ROYAL VISIT.

Only fine weather is needed, to make the visit .of the Duke and Duchess of York to Masterton to-day a very pleasant and memorable occasion. Good work has been done in decorating the Park entrance, the place of assembly, and the streets of approach, and arrangements of all kinds appear to be well in hand. A great assemblage of the publife is assured, for large numbers of people are coming to Masterton from all parts of the Wairarapa. No doubt it will be demonstrated to-day that Masterton and the Wairarapa are loyally eager to make their full contribution to the tide of welcome with which the Royal visitors have been greeted everywhere in their progress through the Dominion. The experience .of to-day may be expected t(/ confirm an opinion already widely held that it is desirable that members of the Royal Family should come more frequently into contact with the people of the Dominions than has yet been found practicable. The only unsatisfactory feature of the present tour is that it is made hurriedly, and in such circumstances as to impose a considerable strain upon the Duke and Duchess of York. It is possible to sympathise with the “cold anger and indignation” which were felt, and pointedly expressed, in Feilding when it was thought that the Royal train would not be stopping at that town, but as a matter of the most elementary consideration, some limits evidently must be set to the number of official

receptions tendered to the Royal visitors within a given time. Decidedly better arrangements have been made in this respect for the present tour than when the Prince of Wales visited the Dominion in 1920, but there is still room for improvement. "What is really needed is that •members of the Royal Family should visit the Dominions at snorter intervals and at greater leisure. Not long ago, a proposal that Royal GovernorsGeneral should be appointed to the Dominions gave rise to a certain amount of discussion in England, but ultimately was dropped for the time at least as impracticable. There is no obvious reason, however, why members of the Royal House should not at reasonably frequent intervals spend months, instead of weeks, in even the most distant Dominions. In view of the undoubted value and significance of the Monarchy as an Imperial bond, such possibilities well deserve practical consideration.

Whatever the future may hold, the people of New Zealand joyfully welcome the present opportunity of extending a loyal welcome to the Duke and Duchess of York, Striking a/.l impressive evidence of that fact no doubt will be offered in Masterton today.