THE PRINCE OF WALES IN INDIA.

Evening Star, Issue 4009, 31 December 1875, Page 1 (Supplement)

THE PRINCE OF WALES IN INDIA.

{From the Argus and other sources.) The dense crowd of natives who lined ihe streets of Bombay, and thionged every spot on the route fir miles long, from which on the landing of the Prince o> Wales a glimpse <jf H.R. H. could be obtained, the hush of expectation which fell upon them when he approached, the earnest attention and interest with which he was examined, and the instant break-up of the line when he passed, regardless ef the efforts of troops aud police, and of the fact that the great Princes of Western India were in the rear of the procession, in their efforts to obtain another view of their future Emperor—all this spoke for itself, and there can bo no longer a doubt that in Bombay at any rate the visit of the Prince of Wales has been a great and unequivocal success. During the week previous to the arrival of the Prince, Bombay had been in a ferment of excitement and irritation. The native princes were in a state of actual exasperation because they were informecPthat the formal visits which they were to pay to the Governor, the 'Viceroy, and the Prince respectively, could not be returned in the usual way. Great was their wrath and indignation, and it was only partly mollified by the ssue of a minute to the effect that the arrangement was only Iho result of necessity and pi essure of time. Then.lhere was an amu-iug row between the naval officer and ■•ho Viceroy. Admiral Macdonald, commanding the BTtish ships of war in the astern waters, did not receive that position of precedence to which he conceived that his rank entitled him, and. not only be, but the whole of the officers of the fleet, absented themselves from the Viceroy’s levtc. Not content with passive resistance, the gallant admiral fired a broadside into the foe by notifying that the Heet would not pay the usual royal salute to the Viceroy on his coming out to meet tha Prince on board the Berapis. The admiral quoted, as bia authority for the refusal, the article in the Qin en’s regulations that when the Prince of Wales’s standard is flying no salutes whatever are to be paid. '1 would, indeed, have been a serious blow to viceregal power and authority, aud the whole matter was referred Home by telegram. At any rate it was amicably settled somehow, and the Viceroy obtained his salute. But after all the irritation in the masculine mind is as nothing to that which has almost driven the ladies of Bombay to madness. The steamer Deccan, by which no less than 250 cases of drosses for the forthcoming festivities had been despatched, broke down at Gibraltar, and it was a question whether the Pekin, which was to bring on her cargo, w< u d arrive in time. Putting these things togel lur, we e.u readily understand that, the atmosphere of Bombay bas been highly charged with electricity during the °las’t three days. However, the Pekin arrived three days before the Prince, and this tended greatly to promote the domestic and general tranquility of the place.

THE LANLXNIJ

Although the Prince was not expected to laud ti|l lo’ur o’clock, native ckiela began to

arrive in the dockyard shortly after two, I By three o’clock the handsome shed wore a c gay appea ance witli rajahs on the scarlet o seats. Here, in front of the press seats, t sat the boy Gaekwar, dressed in & tight su-t 1 of black velvet, which showed off to great 'I a 1 vantage the magnificent breastplate for v one could scarcely call it a necklace—which I he wore. His turban was adorned with a t fladiing plume of diamonds in front, and on t one side of it drooped a large bunch of s pearls ending in a fringe of fine gold. The i scabbard of his little sword was ornamented c with jewels, and the belt he wore had more 1

of gold than leather la it. On bis breast he ' wore the famous diamond Star of the South, i the purchasing of which by Khuaderrao I is said to have almost ruined the Baroda < treasury. It was estimated that the Gaels- 1 war wore altogether jewels of the value of two millions sterling—a worthy decoration with which to meet the Prince of Wales ! Further up, next to the Gaekwar, stands the Maharaua of Oodeypore. 'Bo the right and leit of him stand ttajpoot chiefs, one of whom looks like a harlequin with his spangled coat, while the old kaj ah of Meywar, who did splendid service to helpless English women and children during the mutiny, grasps the hilt of the handsome

sword which the British Government gave him in acknowledgment of his generous service. On the opposite side of the pavilion,, and adjoining the benches allotted to the Corporation, stand the Hyderabad nobles—all tall, handsome men, dressed in long coats and sma 1 turbans Meer Ali was accompanied by a number of Sindian nobles wiio were dressed in long green cloaks, the color of the Prophet’s. Beyond the potentate of Rhyrpore sat the rc-splendant Bao of Kutch and a number of splendidly dre sed Kat ywar chiefs. The Rajah of Joonaghur, the Jam of Nowanuggur, and a number of other Ratty war chiefs with peculiar titles, sparkled ’ with tubus, diamonds, emeralds, and pearls. Further on, and at the end of this line o: chiefs, sat a singularly picturesque personage, the Parsee High Priest from Poona—a Zo oastrian dnssed in pure white from turban to toe, and adonird with a huge white beard which do wed to a considerable depth beneath

his cloth girdle. At five minutes to four o’clock Sir Philip Wodehouse returned from the Serap’g. * At four o’clock some bustle was observed in the vicinity of the be apis, and all the avail ble tele.copes and binoculars in the Pavilion were instant y levelled in t he direc i:.n of the roopship. Boats from the men of-war were seen forming up in two lines ; then the Prince and his at ff were observed descending the 1 ladder of the erapis and entering the Koyal ! barge. The barge moved into position bei i ween the 1 nes of boats, and price ded • rapidly towards the shore. At last the gre*t s eve t cime to pass. The royal barge drew away from the petty procession of boats, ami drew alongside the pier; a few seconds t more and his Royal Highness was shaking hands with Sir Charles Stavely and a num--5 ber of ooher gentlemen, who were introduced to him by the Viceroy ; the Prince of Wales i had at last touched Indian soil—the first heir i to the British Crown who has ever set foot ) upon his prospective Empire. The Fusiliers prtsentud arms; the band played ‘’God i Save the Queen.” A few seconds more, and - the Prince nas walked along the scarlet pathl way between Lord Worthbrook and Sir

rump n ouenouse, aua nas reacnto. uie commencement of the tiers of seats where the members of the Corporation are seated. Here H. K.H. drew up in front of the table whereon the casket was placed, and a tall Parsee figure, dressed in white, stepped before the Prince, salaamed deeply, and commenced to read an address of welcome The scene was a very picturesque one. The who e line of route, lire miles long, was bordered with a white, solid crowd, in their turbaus of every conceivable hue and fashion. Above, in the quaint and singularly-built houses, every window, every balcony, was a glow of color from the rich dresses of the native ladios. Above, arou::d, everywhere waved flags and colored lanterns. The triumphal archts, the transparencies, the flags everywhtre bore the word “ Welcome,” and the waving hands and handkerchiefs, the deep British cueer, aud the shriller but less

- regular cry of the natives—all expressed the a same sentiment. A Itogether it was a great r sight and a great success, aud the Prince at the end of his journey expressed himself as i surprised and gratifie d beyond measure. j- THE ILLUMINATIONS. ' The whole line of route, as before, five miles in length, was brilliantly illuminated, and ia many places the scene was lovely beyond description. I have seen Paris illue minated on the Emperor’s 6amt Day, Turin 6 at th e/ete of the Constitution, Veuico when 1 Victor ■.'.mmanuel entered after the Austrian e evacuation, Madrid when Pnm and Berrano V entered as liberators after the flight of B Isabella, Cairo at the opening of the Buez Canal, and London on the Prince of Wales’

9 Thanksgiving Day—but none of them could compare in beauty, in splendour, and in » picturesqueness with Bombay as the Prince • drove through it This, doubtless, was due to the softness of the oil lamps and Hindoo r lanterns, to the picturesque style of the 0 bouses, and to the great variety of the 1 style of the illuminations them elves, 3 There were three distinct styles of illumi- • nation, the one as used at the Government buildings, strictly architectural; f the other arbitrary, that is of lights arranged “ in frames of wood iu the form of arches, 3 stars, pyramids, &c., without* regard to the 3 architectural lines of the houses ; the third, 1 native, that is, merely a lavish display of 3 colored lamps, coloredSdanterus, chandeliers • and candelabras, with myriads of cut-glass 1 pendants, lamps of every sort and kind, • mingb-d with flags and banners. In addi--3 tion to these should be mentioned large gas 3 devices of the ordinary modern type. All / these four methods of illumination were 3 adopted with success. Of the first type 1 there were two most splendid examples— the Ooveruraent buildings and Elphins! one circle. 1 The new rang; of Government buildings here f are really consisting of a nura--3 her of splendid detached buildings, all differc ing in detail from each other, but all built » in a rich Moorish»Goihio style. The two 3 buildings selected f r illumination face each other, divided by a road of very great widib, i These were lighted from the ground to the 1 sky-line with small lanterns, those on the • lower story being colored, while those above 3 were white. The effect of these two build- > ings, with every limi, pointed window, arob, 3 colonnade, projection, roof, and pinnae e 3 thus bathed in soft light, was simply superb. Similarly Eiphiustone-circle, containing the • town-hall, the cathedral, the offices of the • gri at railway companies and other important ■ buildings, were illuminated a-chikctural.y, k every line and window being brought out, > while upon the wide steps of the town-hall scores of thousands of lamps were placed, 1 giving it the effect of a wall of fire. Across 1 the entrance to the circle was a gas arch • with the d vice, “ God bless the 1 Prince of Wales !” As a specimen ’ of the second style, Churcbgate street “ may ba described. He e, upon both 3 sides light wnodeu arches had been placed, 1 above which were lines of stars aud other ■ forms. These were all covered with small 1 oil lamps, and the effect was very brilliant, [ }>«'ng greatly increased by the fact that the I inhabitants had in all cases done something on their own parts to illuminate their houses. 3 ome had done no architecturally, others had 1 hung out noble chandeliers, with thousands of lustres aud lamps and lanterns of every *hape and color. The purely native stylo > g| illumination consists of, iu some instances, > lighting up fwhto of (he hohsta, ta

have just described, with numbers of handeli re, lamps, and lanterns; iu others f leaving the front of the house iu dark* ess, having hang ng across the street a few findoo lanterns among the festoons of flags 'hese lanterns are large, and are decorated rifU flAiifafiJ At* a *•«._

be«quea upon an opaque b a k ground, the effect being very good. The natives who thus leave the front of tbeir houses in semi-obscurity, th'OW open every window up to the top, and hang lighted chanduiiers from the cdliogs, showing the brightly painted interiors and ceilings, This is an effective and, to a European, a

novel style of illumination. To attempt to enumerate and describe the principal edifices, the Bombay club, the French birnc, the schools, the the triumphal arches, the eaplamßes, the temples, would be wholly imp ssible in the space of a single letter, and year readers must imagine for themselves a fairyland composed of such scenes as these I have faint'y outlined, and extending upwards of five miles. The br-auty and singularity of the .scene was largely e .hanced by the white-garbed crowd who thronged it With Hindoo, Mussulman, and Parsee alike, white is the favorite, indeed, except with a few castes or sects, the universal color of thtir robes. Color is shown only in the turbau, and here the variety of hue, of shape, and of make is astonishing. A singularity, too, of so vast

a crowd in movement was the absence of noise. The fall of the countless naked feet upon the dusty road was almost imperceptihle to the sens i of hearing, and except for the frequent laugh and the babble of joyous talk the silence would have been singular indeed. There were, with the exception of a few of the lowest class, no women whatever in the throng, but the windows of the Parses and Banian merchants* houses were bright with the yellow, blue, crimtoa, and green silk rob.B of thi native ladies. After the royal precession had

passed, too, thousands of closed, or nlmoat closed, carriages, crowded with native ladies and chi dren, made their way slowly through the streets. The crowd was wonderfully good-tempered and full of fun. They cheered and chaffed passing carriages and horsemen as heartily and noisily as an r nglish crowd would do, a d those cheered, whether European or native, entened fully into the fun, and bowed their acknowledgements of the ironical greetings From the windows of many of the houres sounds of wild native music came out on the air, and it is much to be regretted that the natives are in . a great measure giving up their own wild and plaintive airs, and have taken to murdering ** blory, hadeluia ’ “ v weet Alice,” “ We’ll run him in. ’ and other popular European airs. As the procession approached the crowd fell back

of themselves, ami kept capital lines, and as the Prince passed he was cheered more loudly and heartily than upon his entry. Then people had thought so muoii of gazing that they had almost forgotten t > shout, now, especially, in the Parsee quarter his welcome was as warm and as loud as it would have been iu an English town. Well as the line was kept, as the procession came up the people could not restrain themselves from pushing forward as the Prince passed, and handfuls of rose leaves were thrown into the carriage at several points of the route. So ended the first day of the Hoyal visit to India, a day of continuous excitement and work.