The Dominion. MONDAY, APRIL 5, 1920. ROYAL VISITS TO THE DOMINIONS

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 162, 5 April 1920, Page 4

The Dominion. MONDAY, APRIL 5, 1920. ROYAL VISITS TO THE DOMINIONS

The arrival of the Prince of Wales in New Zealand a few weeks hence will mark the third visit of Royalty to our shores. May, 1869, saw the arrival, of- the Duke of Edinburgh <at Auckland, where the welcome ceremonies, in which the Maoris were in evidence, were such' as the occasion deserved. The Duke's visit had been delayed, owing to his attempted assassination in Sydney, and everywhere'expressions of sympathy and thanksgiving for his recovery were addressed to him. The cloud of the Maori War was still hanging over_ our, land, and the stagnant condition of commerce, especially in our North Island, gave, a sombre tone to the festivities in some places, but the visit as a whole answered more than our good purpose, and it may have helped to bring to an end a war .which under wise leadership might have ended in 18G4, but which sputtered on to 1871. To the great mass of -New Zealanders the- visit of the ,Duke of Edinburgh is a thing of the dim past, but this is not the case with the second Royal visit—the visit of our present King and Queen as the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall in .Tunc, 1901. The visit.seems almost a thing of yesterday in the memory of many. The South African War cloud, was still hanging over our Empire, But the worst was over, and.the day of coming peace was an assured thing, and this helped to make the joy of the welcome nf our Royal visitors the brighter.. This visit marks an cnoch in the historv of our race in the Southern Pacific. The Australian States had federated, and the Duke' and Duchess shared',in the celebrations. The visit was extended to New Zealand,' not only that Royalty should see and get to know us and our land, but also to thank us for' our services and sacrifices for the 'Empire in the African War. The Royal visit helped to strengthen the bond of respect and affection that binds the loyal citizens to the British throne. Nineteen years have passed since our last Royal visitors left our shores, and now we are on the'eve of another such visit. We have come out of the world war victors, but the peril before us is that we may lose the peace. A strong and stable /form of Government is the shield of the citizen, and tho Prince of Wales is an open" and visible symbol of such a'Government.

The visits of tho Prince of Wales to oversea will be of high value to himself in his future career. A distinguished ( English essayist has written about the peril of patriotic ignorance on the part of Kings "and others, and he remarks, that the patriotic ignorance of George 111 led to the great schism of Britain—the revolt of the American colonics. There is nothing like travel for broadening the mind, and there is nothing like personal contact of' princes and people for creating mutual appreciation and a clear understanding of relations. Travel had a large place in .the education of the grandfather of our Roval visitor. In his early years he visited America and_' Palestine. Later on he visited India, and all through his life he was an habitual visitor at a number of places in Europe. It was because he' was Edward the Traveller that.he acquired that knowledge of men and nations that made him Edward the Peacemaker. He saw to it that the liberal education of travel would be tho experience of his sons, and so our present King as a youth and his deceased brother were sent on a three years' cruise in the ■Bacchante. It was to Edward the Traveller that we are indebted for the Royal visits of 1901; and our rjvesont King's visit to India, after his Coronation, was the fruit of his father's example and' to.ichin.ff. King George is resolved that his son and heiT shall enjoj) the liberal odncation of travel he enjoyed, and it. is to him that we are mainly indebted for-the visit of the Prince— a visit that carries with it the b"st wishes of the people of the Old Land.