OUR SOLDIER PRINCE.

Wanganui Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 160641, 3 May 1920, Page 6

OUR SOLDIER PRINCE.

HIS TVAK RECOBD.

jfOEK ON THEEH FRONTS. 4mon‘«mt the various names which have, been applied to the Prince of Wales, there is probably none which he appreciates more himself than that of the Prince.” By his own impatience at remaining at home, and determination to go on service at the earliest possible moment after tie outberak pf war, by his record as a staff officer Jn France, hv his demeanour during big visits to Egypt and the Italian fronts, and by his relations with the troops of tie Empire wherever he has come in contact with them, he has shown that he is a soldier at heart. The bare outlines of the military record of the Prince during the war are li» follows: After a period of training •with the Grenadier Guards he went to the front in November, 1914, when he true attached to the staff of Sir John Served with zeal and ability, hnd was bearer of the historic despatch .£rom Sir John French respecting the battle of Neuve Chapelle. Arrived in Egypt in March, 1916, on appointment ns staff-captain on the staff of the gen'aral officer commanding the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force. Became D.A.Q.M.G. in May. Visited Italian .front during Austria’s attack in November, 1917. Appointed major in February, 191 S. Eeceived with much enthusiasm in Eome in May, 1918. Bode with the Guards on their entry into London 'fev review by the King, March, 1919. While that is the brief record of the appointments held by the iPrince, and the duties performed by !him, the details leave been filled in by *very many anecdotes illustrative of Ms determination to be treated in a manner 5n no way different from any other junior officer oiL-the staff. His impatience at the restrictions with which he was at .first surrounded, and the special safeguards with which it was proposed to invest him. together with, his resolute (breaking away from them, have been described often.

Of his areer as a soldier, the followjmg has '"c-eri -written:—‘’’His war re(Eord proves that he is' imbued with high courage and a strong sense of duty. (Many pleasant incidents are related by Returned soldiers of his kindly disposition, his sympathy and consideration, jzis good comradeship with brothers-in-arms, irrespective of rank. . . . With (Soldierly instinct ha declined to let him|oelf he safely and comfortably assigned fa position at headquarters, and insisted itm field service, so that he might share in the arduous duties, the risks, and the Responsibilities of his brother officers. Without being foolhardy he showed a philosophic indifference to danger."

What the Prince himself thinks of the Jtrar experiences is best told in his own {words. When being presented with the 'Freedom of the City of London he referred to some remark which bad been made to Ms war service, adding, “The part I played was, I fear, a very insignificant one, hut from one point of •view I shall never regret my periods of feemce overseas. In those four years 1 mixed with men. In those four years 1 found my manhood. When I think of the "future, and the heavy responsibilities which may fall to my lot, I feel that the experience gained since 1914 will stand me in good stead.” Frequent references have been made fey the Prince in speeches to his close association with overseas troops during the war. ( He paid a visit to the New Zealand Division almost at the end of its career as unit of the Expeditionary Force in Europe, while it formed a portion of the army of occupation on the Rhine. The official correspondent with the Division gives the following account of that visit:—The Prince of Wales has paid the New Zealand Force the compliment of a visit while it is still in the field, and before it returns to its own land. He came on to the Division in an open car and attended only by a young army captain who usually accompanies him, on these journcyings. The unostentatious manner in wMch he travels appeals to the army as a whole, and especially to the troops from oversea. The Germans soon became aware that the Prince was in their midst, but there were not many who recognised him as he walked through the streets of Cologne or entered shops to make some ordinary purchases. With Ms youthful appearance and two rows of ribbons, he was taken, as he often was in French towns, for an airman. During his stay with us the Prince has spared neither time nor (rouble to see as manv officers and men of the Division as possible. Yesterday he had a great day with the 'Diggers,' mixing and chatting with them in the billets where they were quartered, at a shooting match, and at a football match.