Some Coronation Incidents.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume XXXXVII, Issue 11744, 22 September 1902, Page 7

Some Coronation Incidents.

IKB KING LOST IN THE FATHER

GREAT DISPLAY OF JEWELLEItY

Some graphia accounts of the Coronation of King Edward Vli. were cabied to America by the correspondents oi -ciiiitrican papers. From an account by one correspondeirti cabled on the night of the Coronation we extract the following: —

A wild welcome was accorded to the two nurses of the TCi-ng' during his illness as they came up to the Abbey, just in front of the royal carriage and pair which brought the children of the Prince of Wales. The nurses wore the blue print dresses and white caps of their hospital. The King next drove by, with the Queen smiling by his side, and from every one of the great stands clustered around the Abbey there went up a roar of welcome, and then was then the magnificent sound of thousands of voices singing the National Anthem in the open air, and the guns crashed akd the bells rocked in every tower aa the Royal Standard was broken out into the breeze above the Abbey entrance and the Sovereign .passed within. From the commencement of the service in the Abbey the Archbishop had the greatest difficulty in reading or remembering the prayers. The book from which hia almost blind eyes endeavoured to read shook in hia hands', and when he came to place the crown upon King Edward's head hia huge frame, towering above tihe seated King, swayed so violently that the Bishop of Winchester had to support him, while the Bean of Westminster put a guarding hand under the crown. It was evident that the Archbishop of Canterbury could not see his King's, head, and, after groping around, he was just about to complete the most, important part of tihe ceremony, when it was discovered that he had the crown with the back to tihe front. Slowly he raised it, but too late to prevent the choir from prematurely bursting out with a loud "God save the King." Amid a tension that had grown to a pitch of painful nervousness, the Archbishop finally managed to place the crown correctly upon tihe King's head. A few minutes later cam© the climax of his feebleness. He was kneeling to do the first homage of all the subjects' of the King, when, suddenly, he almost fainted, and would have fallen upon his Sovereign's knees, had not King Edward tenderly grasped both the prelate's hands and lifted him to his feet. The Bishops of London, Winchester and Durham clasped their arms around the Archbishop of Canterbury, flic King kissed his- wrinkled Land, the Archbishop's head fell back, his feet moved slowly and mechanically, and thus he was more carried than led from the throne to King Edward's Chapel, where he was revived.

ONE TOUCH OF NATURE

The tremor which this ©rent caused had scarcely subsided "when another exquisitely hturan touch varied the proceedings, and the King was forgotten in the father. Instead of merely accepting the homage of the Prince of Wales, King Edward r»ut his arms around the Prince and kissed him. and then recalled him and wrung his hand with a manliness pf parental affection that brought tears to many eyes. To those who were Able to see c! early these two episodes, the magnificence of the bejewelled women, the splendour of the uniformed men, and even the historic grandeur of the Coronattion office itself, sank almost into secondary interest. No stage effect could have equalled the climax that ensued the moment* the crown was placed upon King Edward's head, the sudden illumination by hundreds of eteetrio lights making the. thousands of priceless jewels, including those in the crown itself, to sparkle with dazzling brilliancy. The instantaneous movement of the .peeresses, the placing of their coronets upon their heads, the choir's Idud "God Save the King," with its unharmonious yet genuine refrain from thousands of male and female throats, constituted such an outburst of pent-up thankfulness and rejoicing as even the historic walls of historic Westminster had not echoed before.

What struck the eye most in Westminster Abbey to-day was the marvellous display of jewels that certainly surpassed anything previously seen at a court function in England. The combination of these vuth the magnificent robes and the beauty of many of tjie wearer* jnade a memorable sight. Lady Chesterfield's coronet was one of the largest worn in the Abbey, no restriction seemingly having been made regarding its size. She hkd it especially made to suit her, and it was in striking contrast to many others worn by peeresses, who seemed to have made it a poihfc to wear the tiniest possible coronets —justi large enough to encircle the knot of hair worn on top of their heads, a la Josephine. It was perhaps, after all, the Americans who made the bravest show, and on this pcoasion, as on many others, they played a prominent part i© the day's ceremonies, and contributed by their beauty and the magnificence of their robes and jewels to what was truly a gorgeous scene. WHAT THE KING FELT.

To-nighs it was learned that King Edward was greatly unnerved by the condition of the Archbishop of Canterbury, and that his Majesty sat in constant dread of ft contretemps, though outwardly calm, as far as could be judged from the steadiness with which he held his sceptre erect during the ordeal. This brave show, however, did not deceive the Queen. Throughout the service, and especially as the Archbishop of Canterbury became more and more nervous, her Majesty palpably dreaded that the King would break down. With keen anxiety she .constantly turned towards her husband, watching him intently through the ceremony. Her graceful dignity and solicitude for Kinp Edward was one of the most charming1 features of the proceedings. Her Majesty's appearance won extravagant? encomiums, especially from the women, many of whom declared that Queen Alexandra did not look a day over 35.