THE PRINCE'S TOUR

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 196, 14 May 1920, Page 8

THE PRINCE'S TOUR

P ACROSS'THE SOUTH ISLAND CHRISTCHURCH REACHED LAST - . f NIGHT ENTHUSIASTIC GATHERINGS • :By. .Tcjeeraph—Press Association. Hokitika, May 13. ' The Hoyal visit was concluded this ;..morning, when the Prince inspected ; -cheering .crowds of children adults. His. reception' waß most hearty: throughout. People came in from* all parts of ■ the district, perfect weather prevailed, and .theTwholo function was' most successful. A magnificent ovation was accorded nt thjajnjlwiiy station as the Royal train steamed'away. ' Greymcuth, May 13. ! . The weather , was gloriously fine for-the visit of the 1 Prince of Wales. The town ? - was thronged with visitors. The route : to' Victoria "Park was tastefully decorat- ; cd- with splendid arches erected by the i ; local . bodies, and an avenue of ferns and • :palniß. 'Over .three thousand school cluldren were present at the. park, and there ; was: a big muster of returned soldiers ' and veterans of other wars. The Prince P. presented medals to soldiers and planted a memorial oak. The proceedings t were marked by great enthusiasm. The Princo afterwards left for Christohurch. across thFsouthern alps t Christchurch,' May 13. The Royal party's journey across the 'Alps by. way of Arthur's'Pass''from Wetland' into Canterbury was made in !•- ideal weather, though a brisk easterly | breezo and snow, on the topmost heights i ! made the air keen and bracing. At various if small settlements, the people, though, few i; in'numbers, were very enthusiastic. At : jOtira and . Arthur's Pass, the two raui, heads between which coaches carried the ' visitors over tho top of-, the. pass, school \ children made, quite brave little shows. ; ■ The Prince was driven over by a veteran, r --Mr. A; Hall, proprietor of the coach. - lino, who in 18C9 drove .the Duke of ' Edinburgh from Melbourne to Bendigo, and to-day used the whip given Him by • tho Duke : on that occasion. Everyone : walked three miles of the steepest part ■of. the, road. The rugged mountain scen- ! ery,' with' ever-recurring bluffs, igullies, i and', cascades falling down /steep cliffs, ■Vfds pre&tly admired. At Arthur s Pass I the Royal train .was waiting and after • '■■the Prince had talked to the end or the ; tunnel, which he entered, and had lnispected ,the.-"workshops, a start' was made [ on the 'rnri down to Christchurch,- which - was reached a little after 7 o clock. , WELCOMED ITCHRISTCnURCH . CHEERING CROWDS THRONG THE .STREETS. By Telegraph—Presi Association. Christchurch, May 13. "Hats oil to Christchurch for itswel-, come to the Prince of Wales to-night" :*jmusi_be the'verdict of anyone who has j " seen-. 1 the Royal visit celebrations in tho : New Zealand centres .touched at up to ;; the present. _2ie nisrht was fine, though clouds threatened to release .their pent- • :Up , moisture at any moment. This was . surprising to the travellers who had en--1 joyed such glorious weather all tho time ! since.they landed in the South Island : at Picton on/Monday morning, and toi day had been, perhaps, the beat of all. , Bonfires at hamlets and homesteads all , along the line lit up.the scene momentarily after darkness fell, and at Rol- ; leston, fourteen miles away, lights on the Port '-Hills besides Christchurch bet gan to appear. By the time the city | statlori- was! reached it seemed as' if : flames of a vast area of bush on fire were ascending skyward. The railwiv ;; .sfetioh_ was tastefully decorated. When ..... the Prince stepped on to' theVplatform tho Mayor.'. (Dr. Thacker, M.P.) was ii ■ formally presented, also members of the |: " City.'. •; Corporation. The ' Territorial : guard of honour was inspected, and : then the Royal party entered a long j. '■ motor-cars and began to drive i ,t(r_ the" Christchiiroh Club, where the ! . Prince resides during his stay here. ■Passing i through the gates in the barricado fronting the station, the eye en-' . countered a seemingly endless throng of people in Moorhouse Avenue and Man i ;ohester ; : .Street, which was spanned hi ' short intervals by.' strings of coloured :. electric lights, giving the appearance of ;..'.a .long. ~ttin.ijLel with 'a fancifully illutoinated roofi. .The procession made ..ts • Tray, slowly through the cheering crowds, :ffis< ; llighness constantly acknowledging i: tho* acclamations and frequently stand- : ing up in the car to, let the people see ! him better. ( When a turn was made ;> into High . Street past the Clock Tower, o_ gorgeous sight burst upon the ! view/.,/.Two castellated archways mi imitation of white marble, beautifullv i lighted up by electric bulbs of soft ; .hues,; spanned the pathway of the Prince ; through"'Cathedral Square. The Bank of • New Zealand, Post Office, Government . .•Buildings^'newspaper, and other buildiigs surrounding or near the Square were i all decked with flags and various patri- '. 'otic "Resigns." Tho .crowds grew thicker as the Square was approached, till finali. ly the Royal car was held up and the ■ peoplev.'eWged. arooind it in a riotously .-enthusiastic mass. After making a par- : tial circuit :of the Square as'quickly as j the dense - body of the people would per- : mit, the':Prince's car turned into Wor- , ceater: Street,- and at last reached the •; entrance to; the Christchurch Club. Here the r patriotic enthusiasm of the crowds reached the pinnacle of its fervour. Even r when ;His.,Royal Highness had entered the club people remained in front, cheer-i'--'ing and, waving flags until the Prince eamo' to an upstairs window, and once "■ mora acknowledged the plaudits of the ; people. |v..'V During the whole progress from the jf" station the Cathedral bells chimed out a ! jWelcome, which, added to tho glad huzzas ;• ■ ofc-the„multitude in. ithe streets below, f made the Prince's coritlngio the capital : of Canterbury a veritable triumph. | ' Christchurch had' accorded her future [ King a fitting welcome, and nt the same t time, done herself great credit. [ MESSAGE TO. ROTNED SOLDIERS • PRINCE ANXIOUS TO SEE THEM. ; , '". By Telegrapli—Prees Association. | V Christchurch, May 13. j The following official statement, issued ji by Colonel Grigg, secretary to the Prince ; ■ of Wales, explains itself: "The Prince : ; of Wales wishes to thank the returnefl L "soldiers in. all dities and towns which : he has visited for coming to meet him [ in such largd* numbers.. He appreciates p~-...this greatly, particularly as_ many have • come long distances from the country, : and he looks forward to seeing those who belong to cities and districts, which still,remain to be visited. He .is- par. 'ticularly anxious to see returned 6oldiers . at the public receptions and parades arranged lor him by local authorities, : because' .cirjumstances have necessitated his declining invitations to functions ; given by returned soldiers alone.' He has ■ made this decision with great re- ; gret, because he would like nothing bet- ; ter-than to go wherever possible to returned men's gatherings and clubs. ; Time, however, will obviously not per-' mit of his going to all, and__ he - feels ; that it would not be playing the game i to accept some and to turn others down, i He is sure that his 'old comrades-in-arnm , ,will appreciate this, and that those ' whose districts he has still to visit will : . make up for it by giving him an oppor- ; tunity of seeing 'as many as possible of j them, again at official receptions or paj rhflies which have been arranged for him." '