The Daily News. MONDAY, MAY 3, 1920. TO-DAY'S ROYAL VISITOR.

Taranaki Daily News, 3 May 1920, Page 4

The Daily News. MONDAY, MAY 3, 1920. TO-DAY'S ROYAL VISITOR.

At a period like the pz-esent, when royal families and dynasties have fallen like edifices built of cards, British people throughout the world may well be pardoned for their pride in and loyalty to the Royal House which reigns over, but does not. govern, the great Empire on which the sun never sets—an Empire synonomous with the most complete freedom and the highest sense of justice the world has ever known. The British Constitution is even by ultra-Republicans, as a model of democratic principles, and the Royal Family have from one generation to another won their way into the hearts of the people by virtue of their idealising all that is best in national life, sharing the people's sorrows and joys, and inspiring them to nobility of character and aims, while setting a high example of courtesy, tolerance and breadth of view. The elder generation of to-day have indelibly impressed on their memory the intense devotion of the people to Queen Victoria, the first British Sovereign to wear the Imperial diadem. The way in which New Zealand is being stirred to the height of enthusiasm over the visit of the present Prince of Wales calls to mind the unparalleled wave of enthusiasm displayed in London on the arrival of Princess Alexandra to be married to the then Prince of "Wales, the late King Edward, and it must be with feelings of deep emotion that the "Queen Mother" has followed the triumphal progress of her grandson through Canada and America and now through New Zealand, where the welcome is bound to be as spontaneously enthusiastic as those accorded to the Prince elsewhere. There is no occasion for our Royal Visitor to be " "ndent on the loyalty and r ;e accorded to his pro- & s. He comes among "his own kith and kin" in the Dominion, bringing with him an enviable reputation and popularity that increases the further His Highness travels. Not only are his efforts at giving pleasure to others unique in their success, but his unfailing gift of saying and doing the right things at the right time testify to his culture and human sympathy. He is the embodiment of what the Empire stands for today in the eyes of the world, and as such has a magnetic attraction for democratic Greater Britain over which, in ordinary course, he will be some day (in the distant future, it is hoped) called upon to reign. Meanwhile he is becoming acquainted with the Empire, is helping to still further strengthen its bonds, is setting an example of thorough devotion to duty, is animating the people with high ideals, and is weaving added strands that cannot fail to draw closer to the Throne the hearts of the people whose loyalty is finding fitting expression throughout the Empire. It is the younger generation in Which the Prince is par-

tieularly interested, and there is no question that the children of to-day will ever remember the part they are taking in the welcome to our Royal visitor. All parts of the Dominion are stirred by this visit as never before. It is a gratifying sign of the solidarity of the overseas people and the Motherland. Moreover the loyalty exhibited is as genuine as it is deeprooted, and New Plymouth, together with the whole of Taranaki, will to-day certainly not be behind other centres in the heartiness of their demonstrations of pleasure. It is an event that stands out in a lifetime, and the Prince is worthy of all the honor that the people can show him.