A SURPRISE VISIT.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume 7, Issue 199, 1 May 1915, Page 2

A SURPRISE VISIT.

THE KING AND THE SOLDIER. An amusing incident occurred on the occasion of the journey of his Maesty the King the other nook. His Majesty, having breakfasted before eight o’clock in the morning in the Royal saloon as it lay in a railway siding, left the saloon, and, accompanied by a naval officer, strolled along the railway line and came to a sandbag fort. The sentry challenged the two naval officers' —his Majesty was in nav - al uniform —and they passed round the blockhouse. -Outside, in the cold wind and drizzling rain, a soldier in shirt and trousers was bending with the solicitude of an old campaigner over the contents of a frying-pan at a glowing brazier, The happy Tommy scarcely glanced up as lie became conscious of the presence of strangers, and spared only sufficient attention from the contents of the frying pan to realise that they wore two naval officers. Apparently the cooking pr cess had reached a critical stage. “Well, and how are you liking the work here?’’ The question was put bv the King. “We’re stackin’ it all right, sir.” was the reply. “We ainn’t grousing a little bit, we ain’t.” “Food all right?” was his Majesty’s next question. “I should smile!” was the answer. A-d the pan was swung from the blaze and brought over for inspection. Just look at that, sir; there ain’t better steaks in this ’ere ’amlot this day, nor better cooked, neither.” “It looks all right. It is very satisfactory,” commented the King. The visitors moved away. A few paces distant they encountered a sergeant. The Tommy, chancing to glance up, saw the sergeant at the salute, and caught the words “Your Majesty.” The pan with “the finest steaks in this ’ere ’amlet ” fell to the ground with a clatter, as the enthusiastic cook realised that lie had been talking to the King. And for hours afterwards (says a correspondent of the Scotsman) there was a soldier in a sandbag fort racking his memory to discover how many unauthorised adjectives he might have been using in the course of the conversation, “me not knowin’. like, who I was speakin’ to!”