On May 24th the route was taken for Sydney, and a stop was made near Combooya for a picnic in the bush, or "billy tea." Newcastle gave the Royal couple a rousing reception, and at Haukesbury the Ophir was boarded and the trip up the splendid harbour of Sydney commenced—escorted by warships and welcomed by the roar of cannon from ships and shore. As the Duke and Duchess landed amid cheering sailors, pealing bells and the shouts of a massed concourse of people stretching far back from the landing-place, they were received at a sort of graceful portal, decked with flags, flowers and semi-tropical foliage, by the Governor-General, the Federal and State Governors and Premiers, the Mayor and others. The procession then passed along a three-mile route to Government House with bands at intervals playing the ever-present National Anthem, with beautiful decorations and arches, and with cheering crowds, fluttering handkerchiefs and waving flags in every direction. In the evening there was the usual state dinner and more than usually striking illuminations. Of this reception the Sydney Morning Herald said the next day: "The acquisition of territory is a triumph of national achievement; but it is a small thing beside this re-creation of a new Britain in another hemisphere. The demonstration in Sydney yesterday embodied the message to this effect which our people desire to transmit by favour of the Duke and Duchess to the centre of Empire."

The ensuing event was a Royal review of nine thousand troops with the presence of one hundred and fifty thousand people as observers. Then came a brilliant Reception at Government House, and on the morning of May 29th a Levee attended by two thousand citizens and at which twenty-four addresses were received—including the various denominations, the Masons, and the Orangemen. That of the city was in a beautiful gold and jewelled casket. To these His Royal Highness replied in eloquent language, and then knighted the Mayor of Sydney, Dr. James Graham, as he had already done the Mayor of Melbourne. A state dinner followed with continued evening illuminations. The naval depot at Garden Island was visited in the morning, and in the afternoon a naval review witnessed. A second Reception followed at Government House, and on the succeeding day the commemoration-stone of a Queen Victoria Memorial addition to the Prince Alfred Hospital was laid by the Duke. In his speech he expressed a doubt "whether anymore fitting memorial to that great life could have been chosen, for sympathy with the suffering was an all-pervading element in the noble and beautiful character of her who was your first Patron and with whose name the Hospital will now be associated for all time." At the University of Sydney the Royal visitor was given an honorary degree amid the amusing chaff of a reception which was as hearty and enthusiastic as it was hilarious. A Citizen's Concert followed in the evening, and on the next day His Royal Highness conferred fourteen hundred medals upon volunteers who had returned from the war. In the afternoon there was a brilliant garden party at Government House. On Sunday a sermon was listened to at St. Andrew's Cathedral, preached by Archbishop Saumarez Smith, and Monday being the Duke's birthday was observed as a public holiday. In the afternoon a visit was paid to the Young People's Industrial Exhibition where five thousand school children sang a special Ode for the occasion. In the afternoon the Duke departed for a couple of days shooting, and the Duchess visited the neighbouring Blue Mountains.

On June 6th, after a very cordial "send-off" from the people, the Royal party boarded the Ophir and started for Auckland, New Zealand. Five days later they found that loyal city alive with enthusiasm, crowded with people and decorated to the extreme limit. They were welcomed by the Governor, Lord Ranfurly and the Premier, Mr. R. J. Seddon. The latter presented an address in a superb casket made of New Zealand wood and gold, silver, and enamel, in the shape of a Maori war canoe. The ceremony of presentation and the reply occurred on board ship. Immediately upon landing the Duchess touched the key of a telegraph instrument, and flags waved and guns roared a welcome in every city and town of New Zealand. The popular welcome in the streets was tumultuous and the arches particularly impressive, while one of the incidents of the Royal progress to Government House was a living Union Jack composed of two thousand children dressed to fit the design. In the afternoon eleven addresses were received, and during his reply the Duke said: "I look forward to making known to His Majesty how strong I have found the feeling of common brotherhood and readiness to share in the responsibilities of the Empire, and earnestly trust that the results of the journey maybe to stimulate the interest of the different countries in each other, and so draw even closer the bonds which now unite them."

ROYAL WELCOME IN NEW ZEALAND

A state dinner followed this event and an evening Reception. The succeeding day a Royal review of forty-three hundred troops occurred, with twelve thousand spectators, and was followed by a luncheon to four hundred veterans of the South African and Maori wars, at which the Duke of Cornwall and York made one of the several impromptu speeches delivered during his tour. Speaking of the combination of old veterans and young soldiers he said: "There is nothing like a chip of the old block"—to which some one responded with "You're one yourself"—"when one knows that the old block was hard, of good grain and sound to the core, and if, in the future, whenever and wherever the Mother-hand is stretched across the sea, it can reckon on a grasp such as New Zealand has given in the present." This speech evoked tremendous cheering. Later, the foundation-stone of the Queen Victoria School for Maori Girls was laid, and in the evening, after a state dinner at Government House, the Royal visitors attended a Reception given by the Mayor, and drove through splendidly illuminated streets. The next few days were spent amongst that most picturesque, gallant and chivalrous of native peoples—the Maoris. Expressions of the most intense and unaffected loyalty and contentment with British rule were universal. Most interesting sights were witnessed and Maori customs studied—including war and other dances, songs of welcome and of challenge to enemies, and mimic battles fought with native skill and zest.

Wellington was reached on Waterloo Day (June 18th) and the route to Government House was spanned by a dozen handsome arches—two of which had been erected by the enthusiastic Maoris. After the conferring of some knighthood honours the Royal visitors in the afternoon watched a procession of Friendly Societies and laid the foundation-stone of a new Town Hall. In the evening there were the usual state dinner, Reception and illuminations. On the following day three hundred medals were presented to South African veterans and seventeen deputations received. A state Reception was attended at the Parliament Buildings in the evening and the next day was devoted to visiting certain great industries and charitable institutions. On June 20th the foundation-stone of new Government Railway offices was laid amid torrents of rain and then the departure was made for Christchurch which was reached in a few hours amid the welcome of pealing bells, cheering people and roaring guns. Here the foundation-stone of a statue of Queen Victoria was laid in the presence of a great throng of people. The Sunday sermon of next day was preached by the Bishop of Christchurch and, on Monday, June 24th, a review of eleven thousand troops was held (including three thousand cadets) in the presence of sixty thousand spectators. A feature of the drive to the review ground was a welcome sung by eight thousand school children. A luncheon to the war veterans was also given here and militant New Zealand was well represented in the speeches.

Dunedin was reached by train on the following evening and in the Royal saloon the Hon. John Mackenzie—whose health had prevented him attending the formal ceremony at Wellington—was knighted by the Duke and personally invested with his Order. The city was found to be spanned everywhere with arches. Several functions were combined here and His Royal Highness received addresses in a special pavilion, presented medals and inspected the veterans. The Corporation address was in a box modelled after a Maori meeting-house and made of gold, silver and bronze. Another military luncheon followed and in the afternoon a children's demonstration was attended and the Pastoral and Horticultural Shows visited. At Lyttleton, on the following day, another foundation-stone of a Queen Victoria statue was laid and then the Royal couple left for Tasmania after the Duke had issued a farewell address speaking of the enthusiasm of his reception, the loyal and military spirit of the people, the splendid qualities of the Maoris and the exquisite beauty of New Zealand scenery.

The Hobart welcome was given on July 3rd and a most tasteful, loyal and enthusiastic one it was. There were a dozen triumphal arches and the civic address was presented in a beautiful pavilion specially erected. The usual state dinner and Reception followed. In the morning a Levee was held and thirty addresses received from the Churches and Friendly Societies, the Freemasons and the Orangemen, the Half-castes and the Chinese. During his reply the Duke referred to the Island's entry into the Commonwealth and said: "I trust that the hopes and aspirations which prompted her people to enter this great national union may be fully realized in the future prosperity of the Commonwealth and in the greatness, power and solidarity of the Empire." In the afternoon the foundation-stone of a statue to Tasmanian soldiers who had fallen in the war was laid by the Duke and an eloquent speech delivered in which reference was made to the event as being a testimony to "that living spirit of race, of pride in a common heritage and of a fixed resolve to join in maintaining that heritage; which sentiment, irresistible in its power, has inspired and united the peoples of this vast Empire." A log-chopping contest was then witnessed followed by an impromptu visit to inspect an arch in a poor and squalid part of the city. Another Reception was held in the evening accompanied by illuminations on sea and land. The succeeding day saw a review of two thousand troops, the presentation of war medals, a children's demonstration, a trades' procession, a Reception by the Mayor in the City Hall with the singing of a special Ode, and illuminations and a fire brigade procession in the evening. Sunday was spent quietly and then the Royal yacht sailed for Adelaide, the capital of South Australia.

IN SOUTH AND WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Here the Duke and Duchess were formally received on July 8th by the Lieutenant-Governor, Lord Tennyson, and his Ministers, and enthusiastically welcomed in crowded and tastefully decorated streets, bathed in a bright and genial sunshine. There were four arches—though L2000 of the grant had been expended on the poor instead of on temporary decorations. At the Town-Hall an address was received and at the the same time twelve hundred homing pigeons were liberated to carry news of the Royal arrival to all parts of the State. A state banquet followed in the evening and after the Levee on the next day a number of addresses were received. Meanwhile the Duchess visited the two local hospitals. Her Royal Highness also attended a football match in the afternoon and received a brilliant assemblage of people in the evening—the Duke being compelled to have a tooth extracted. On the succeeding day the Art Gallery was visited and a bust of the late Lord Tennyson unveiled and an honorary degree accepted from the Adelaide University by His Royal Highness, who also laid the corner-stone of a new building in connection with this institution. Later, a demonstration of six thousand children was attended and a Reception held in the evening. The next day was devoted to shooting and to seeing an exhibition of sheep-shearing, bullock-riding and buck-jumping, with a military Tattoo in the evening and the usual spectacle of brilliant illuminations. The last day, but one, in South Australia included in its programme the laying of a foundation-stone for a Maternity Home in memory of Queen Victoria, and the review of four thousand troops with a state concert at night. On Sunday, a recently-completed Nave in St. Peter's Cathedral was dedicated by the Bishops of Adelaide and Newcastle and a tablet to South African heroes unveiled by the Duke.

The voyage was then resumed for Freemantle and Perth, in Western Australia, but stress of weather on July 2nd caused the Ophir to put in at Albany, instead, and there the surprised and delighted people gave the Duke and Duchess a rousing welcome as they took the train for Perth. The State capital was reached two days later and, amid perfect weather, through great crowds and a dozen splendid arches, the Royal progress was made to the Town Hall where the inevitable address was received. In the evening there was the usual state dinner given by the Governor, Sir Arthur Lawley, and ensuing Reception. On the following day the programme included a Levee, the reception of addresses, the laying of the foundation-stone of the State's monument to its sons lying on the South African veldt, the presentation of war medals and a civic Reception and state concert. The last two days of the visit were devoted to attendance at a state service in St. John's Cathedral where the Duke unveiled a brass tablet in memory of South African heroes, laying the foundation-stone of a new building connected with the Museum, a visit to the Mint, an enthusiastic welcome given by a children's demonstration and a visit to the Zoological Gardens. Before sailing for South Africa on July 26th, the new Heir Apparent addressed a formal farewell to the people of Australia in the form of a letter to the Earl of Hopetoun. Reference was made at some length to the twenty-five thousand troops reviewed during the visit, to the educational systems of the States, to the loyalty exhibited to the King and the generous personal reception given by the people, to the hospitality of Governments and the good management and kindness of officials. Finally he said:

"We leave with many regrets, mitigated, however, by the hope that while we have gained new friendships and good will, something may also have been achieved towards strengthening and welding together the Empire, through the sympathy and interest which have been displayed in our journey both at home and in the Colonies. The Commonwealth and its people will ever have a warm place in our hearts. We shall always take the keenest interest in its welfare, and our earnest prayer will be for its continued advancement not only in material progress, but in all that tends to make life noble and happy."

The response of the press to this Message was pronounced and may be represented by the statement of the Melbourne Argus on June 29th, that from first to last "the Australasian visit was a success, in every way worthy of its statesmanlike conception and purpose." The Royal couple came from King and Empire, and their mission was personally performed with unique success. "Everywhere they were received with demonstrations of delighted loyalty. They were living symbols of British unity. From all they will take back a reciprocal message to King and Empire. There is not a single blemish upon the record of the visit. Not one imprudent word was spoken, not one slight left a stinging recollection."

Mauritius was reached on August 4th, and the brightly-decorated streets of the capital were crowded with Creoles, Mohammedans, Hindoos, and Chinese, while the French language was everywhere, and the English tongue seldom heard. Tropical flowers and foliage were brilliant and plentiful in the plans of decoration, and the streets were lined with a combination of Bengal Infantry, Royal Artillery and Engineers. At Government House the first investiture of knighthood in the Island's history was held and various addresses received. The foundation-stone of a statue of Queen Victoria was then laid, a procession of Hindoo and Chinese children witnessed and a drive taken through the town. The next four days were spent in strict privacy at the residence of Sir Charles Bruce, the Governor, with the exception of a state dinner and Reception on the first evening.

ROYAL RECEPTION IN SOUTH AFRICA

War-tossed South Africa was sighted on August 13th and the landing took place at Durban, where the welcome was enthusiastic. There were many arches and excellent decorations, eleven thousand singing children, crowded streets and shouting spectators who included Zulus, Kaffirs of all kinds, Indian coolies and the whole white population. In a Royal pavilion, specially constructed, addresses were presented and answered, and the train was taken to Pietermaritzburg after luncheon with the Mayor and a distinguished gathering. A deputation of ladies had, meanwhile, presented the Duchess with a table-gong made of pompom shells mounted on a rhinoceros horn. The railway to the capital of Natal was patrolled by mounted troops, and the drive through the illuminated city and densely-packed streets to Government House was done at night. On the following day the place was found to be handsomely decorated with many arches and the first function was the Royal inauguration of a new Town Hall. The cheering of the people was intense and continuous in the streets. Afterwards addresses were presented—that of the Corporation in a singularly beautiful casket of ivory and gold. In his eloquent speech the Duke referred to the events and sacrifices of the war. They had not been in vain. "Never in our history did the pulse of Empire beat more in unison; and the blood which has been shed on the veldt has sealed for ever our unity, based upon a common loyalty and a determination to share, each of us according to our strength, the common burden." An address was also presented from Johannesburg and specially replied to.

In the afternoon there was an extraordinary assemblage, composed of the dignitaries of political and social life and the pick of the great British army in South Africa—a quarter of a million fighting men. It was a gathering of eleven holders of the V.C., and forty-three holders of the honour next in degree for bravery in the field—the D.S.O. These famous medals were conferred by the Duke of Cornwall and York, and then a great deputation of Zulu Chiefs, clad in barbaric war paraphernalia, presented loyal congratulations. A reception was held in the evening and the city illuminated. The next day the voyage was resumed, and Simon's Bay reached on August 19th. After landing, through a guard of one thousand bluejackets, and receiving an address from the Mayor, the special train was taken to Cape Town. There the formal reception was given by the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, the President of the Legislative Council, the Archbishop, the Chief Justice, the Mayor, the President of the Africander Bond and other officials or public men. The reception in the streets was enthusiastic, and it has been said that more Union Jacks were displayed than at any other point on the tour. A Levee was held in the afternoon at the Parliament Buildings and two thousand citizens were presented, while addresses were received from many public bodies in Cape Colony, Orange River Colony, and Rhodesia.

A memorable event occurred on the succeeding day, when in the Government House grounds, His Royal Highness and the Duchess received over one hundred native chiefs who had come from all parts of South Africa, laden with unique and peculiar gifts, clad in extraordinary costumes and led by Lerothodi of the Basutos and Khama, the famous Chief of Bechuanaland. Short speeches were interchanged, and then the Duke and Duchess drove to Grootschur, to visit Mr. Cecil Rhodes. On the following day the Duke accepted an honorary degree from the University of Cape Town—of which he was already Chancellor—and in the afternoon received some six thousand school children, Colonial and Dutch, who sang an Ode of welcome and presented a gift of Basuto ponies for the Royal children in far-away London. There was also an evening reception and the same splendid illuminations which had graced the previous night. The last day of the visit included the laying of the foundation-stone of a Nurse's Home in memory of the late Queen, and of the corner-stone of the new St. George's Cathedral. Despatches were interchanged with Lord Kitchener, and a letter written by His Royal Highness to the Governor, Sir Walter Hely-Hutchinson, expressive of the deep gratitude of his wife and himself for their reception and the earnest hope that peace would soon be restored. An investiture of knighthood was also held, and on August 23rd the Royal couple were once more on the Ophir heading for distant Canada.

ARRIVAL AT HISTORIC QUEBEC

After a voyage in which every kind of ocean weather was experienced, or suffered, the mighty St. Lawrence was reached, and finally the City of Quebec, on the 15th of September. The arrival was the commencement of a continental tour which proved a fitting crown to the whole splendid Empire progress and a more than appropriate continuation of the King's visit of forty years before—in which he had touched only the smaller central Provinces of the great railway-girdled Dominion which now welcomed his son and his son's Consort. On Monday, September 17th, the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York, accompanied by the Earl of Minto, Governor-General, and Sir Wilfrid Laurier, the Prime Minister—who had gone down the river to meet them—set their feet upon Canadian soil. The Dominion Ministers were present to join in the welcome, and the procession then passed through the city, many thousands of people lining the streets, and three thousand French children at the St. Louis Gate singing "O Canada, Land of Our Ancestors." At the Parliament Buildings, the Hon. S. N. Parent, Mayor of Quebec and Premier of the Province, read a lengthy address which referred to this visit as a proud privilege, expressed the renewed devotion of the citizens to the Crown and person of their Sovereign, and spoke of French-Canadians as "a free, united and happy people, faithful and loyal, attached to their King and country, and rejoicing in their connection with the British Empire and those noble self-governing institutions which are the palladium of their liberties." In his reply the Duke referred to the success of the Canadian troops at Paardeberg, and spoke with sorrow of the death of President McKinley. "It is my proud mission to come amongst you as a token of that feeling of admiration and pride which the King and the Empire feel in the exploits of the Canadians who rushed to the defence of the Empire."

A Royal procession to the Citadel followed and in the afternoon the Duke and Duchess visited Laval University, where they were received by Archbishop Begin, the Rector, and five hundred clergymen of the Arch-diocese. In the address which was read by the Archbishop reference was made to the late Queen, to the accession of the present Sovereign, to the triumphal welcome on the banks of the mighty St. Lawrence which was being prepared for the nation's guests, and to the pleasure of the Church in sharing that welcome. "To the history of our Catholic Church belongs the honour of having forged between the English Throne and a French Canadian people solid bonds which neither adversity nor bribery can sever." Faith in the Church and loyalty to the Crown were the lessons they desired to inculcate. The University address was then read by the Rev. O. E. Mathieu, the Rector. His Royal Highness in replying and accepting the honorary degree of LL. D., paid a high tribute to Roman Catholicism in Canada. "I am glad to acknowledge the noble part which the Catholic Church in Canada has played throughout its history; the hallowed memories of its martyred missionaries are a priceless heritage; and in the great and beneficial work of education and in implanting and fostering a spirit of patriotism and loyalty, it has rendered signal service in Canada and the the Empire." In the evening, a state dinner was held at the Citadel.

During the ensuing morning the Royal review took place on the Plains of Abraham. It rained during the greater part of the proceedings and this, together with the cancellation of the proposed Reception, for which fifteen hundred invitations had been issued, threw a measure of gloom over the City. But neither the rain nor the sad death of the President of the United States could be helped and certainly the Duke never flinched from the discomforts of the former. There were some five thousand troops on the ground under command of Major-General O'Grady-Haly assisted by Lieutenant-Colonel the Hon. M. Aylmer as Adjutant-General. After the parade was over, His Royal Highness distributed the South African medals to the men and presented Lieut.-Colonel R. E. W. Turner, of the Queen's Own Canadian Hussars, with his V.C. and D.S.O. and a sword of honour from the City of Quebec. In the evening, as on the previous one, the city was brilliantly illuminated and the ships and river showed sudden blazes of light amid the blackness of surrounding night and through the flash of fireworks and gleam of electricity. The Royal couple gave a farewell dinner on the Ophir to a select number and in the morning started for Montreal. The journey was made in the splendid train built by the Canadian Pacific Railway Company for the special purposes of this tour and destined to carry the Royal visitors all over the Dominion. Their immediate train of cars was preceded, as elsewhere throughout the country, by one bearing the Governor-General and Lady Minto.

RECEPTION AT MONTREAL AND OTTAWA

Very few stops took place on the way to Montreal, where some change in the programme was to be made owing to the President's funeral. At Port Neuf, Three River's and Lanoraie, however, a few minutes' pause had been arranged. At the Montreal station the Royal couple were received by Mr. Raymond Prefontaine, M.P., Mayor of the city, in gorgeous official robes. With him were Archbishop Bruchesi, Vicar-General Racicot, Archbishop Bond, Lord Strathcona and Mount Royal, Mr. T. G. Shaughnessy, Senator Drummond, Rev. Dr. Barclay, Principal Peterson, Sir William Hingston, Sir W. C. Van Horne and Sir Wilfrid Laurier. The Civic address was read in French and the Duke replied in English. Other addresses were presented from the Numismatic and Antiquarian Society, the Daughters of the Empire and the Baron de Hirsch Institute. There was an immense crowd present and the proceedings concluded with the introduction of a number of Indian chiefs to His Royal Highness and the presentation of medals to the South African veterans.

The procession through the streets to Lord Strathcona's house, where the Royal visitors were to stay, was a rather swift drive and the throngs of people were not given very much time to see the Duke and Duchess. Elsewhere in Canada the rate was slower. Several beautiful arches decorated the route. The cheers of the Laval students and the enthusiasm of five thousand school children on Peel Street were the most marked incidents of this parade through gaily decorated streets. In the evening Lord Strathcona entertained at dinner in honour of his Royal guests and the whole city was a blaze of light from electric illuminations and the fireworks on Mount Royal. The Reception in the evening was cancelled owing to the President's funeral. A visit was paid to the mountain in the morning and then followed the formal functions of a busy day. At McGill University an address was read by its Chancellor, Lord Strathcona, and an honorary degree received. Then followed an address from the Medical Faculty, read by Dr. Craik, and including the presentation of a casket of Labradorite—a native Canadian product. The Duke also formally opened the new Medical building.

At Laval University the decorations were most elaborate and there was a great assemblage of local clergy. Archbishop Bruchesi extended a verbal, instead of written, welcome and informed the Duke that the clergy and Professors devoted themselves to training the youth of the University "in science and in arts, in loyalty to the throne, as well as in love of religion and country." An honorary degree was also given and accepted. Another place visited was the Royal Victoria Hospital which, like McGill University and its Medical Faculty, owed much to Lord Strathcona. At the Diocesan Institute an address was presented from the assembled Provincial Synod of Canada by the Lord Bishop of Toronto. In the afternoon the Duke and Duchess drove out to the Ville Marie Convent where they were received by the Archbishop of Montreal, the Lady Superior and Sir Wilfrid Laurier. An address was presented and, as at Laval, the Duke replied informally though here, for the first time, he said a few words in French. A torchlight procession of the people, general illumination of the city and more fire-works, followed in the evening. At nine o'clock on the succeeding morning the Royal couple started for Ottawa.

They remained in Ottawa from September 20th until September 24th. On the way to the capital a brief stop was made at Alexandria and an address received. The arrival at Ottawa and the Royal progress through the city was marked by brilliant decorations, cheering crowds and finer weather than had been the case either at Quebec or Montreal. The Civic address was read by Major W. D. Morris in a pavilion erected on the Parliament grounds and eighteen other addresses were received. The reply of His Royal Highness was sympathetic and eloquent in language. It was, he said, impossible for him not to think of the difference between forty years ago and the present time. "Ottawa was then but the capital of two Provinces, yoked together in uneasy union. To-day it is a capital of a great and prosperous Dominion, stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, the centre of the political life and administration of a contented and united people. The Federation of Canada stands permanent among the political events of the century just closed for its fruitful and beneficent results on the life of the people concerned." He hoped that mutual toleration and sympathy would continue and be extended to the Empire as a whole and that, more than ever, the people would remain "determined to hold fast and maintain the proud privileges of British citizenship."

On leaving for Government House the Duke and Duchess were greeted with "The Maple Leaf," sung by thousands of school children and were given a great cheer by the students of Ottawa College. In the afternoon a visit was paid to the Lacrosse match between the Cornwalls and Ottawas and at night a state dinner was held at Government House. The city was illuminated on this and subsequent evenings in a way to rival the famous effects of the Pan-American Exposition at Buffalo. On the following morning an investiture of knighthood was held at Government House followed by a drive through Hull. At noon the statue of Queen Victoria on the Parliament grounds was unveiled amid the usual surroundings of state and soldiers and crowds. South African medals were presented by the Duke and to Lieutenant E. J. Holland was given his V.C. as well as medal. His Royal Highness was then lunched by a number of prominent gentlemen at the Rideau Club and in the afternoon a garden party was held at Government House. In the evening there was a quiet dinner and drive through the city to see the illuminations.

On the following day, Sunday was quietly observed and Christ Church Cathedral attended in the morning by the Royal couple and the Governor-General and Lady Minto. Bishop Hamilton officiated and the sermon was preached by the Rev. Mr. Kittson. The morning of September 23 was notable for the entertainment given by the lumbermen of Ottawa. The Duke and Duchess travelled on a special electric car to their destination, went in canoes with voyageurs through the rapids, descended the famous lumberslides of the Chaudiere, witnessed a race of war canoes, saw tree cutting and logging, watched the strange dances of the woodsmen, ate a lumbermen's lunch in a shanty, heard the jolly songs of the voyageurs, and listened to a speech from a habitant foreman which made them and all Canada laugh heartily. In the evening a brilliant Reception was held in the Senate Chamber.

At noon on the following morning the Royal couple left for Winnipeg through crowded streets and cheering people. Before her departure the Duchess of Cornwall was given a handsome cape by the women of Ottawa. The presentation was made by Lady Laurier, on behalf of the contributors, at Government House. In Montreal a beautiful gift had also been made to her in the shape of a corsage ornament composed of a spray of maple leaves made of enamel and decorated with 366 diamonds and one large pearl. It was presented by Lady Strathcona and Mrs. George A. Drummond. The Royal journey across the continent commenced with the departure from Ottawa and, between the capital of the Dominion and the metropolis of the West, a number of places were passed at a few of which the Royal visitors paused for a brief time. At Carleton Place there was a cheering crowd and gaily decorated station and singing school children; at Almonte the town was en fete and cheering could be heard from even the roofs of the distant cotton mills; at Arnprior the whole population turned out and the decorations were extensive; at Renfrew and Pembroke the same thing occurred; at Petawawa and Chalk River crowds of country people had gathered; at Mattawa and North Bay the stations were gaily decorated and bands played their welcome.

Everywhere in the wilds of Algoma and along the rocky shores of Lake Superior little groups of settlers might be seen at the lonely stations watching for a sight of the Duke and Duchess. At Missanabie, a stop was made to see a Hudson's Bay post and stockade and at White River, the coldest place in Canada east of the Yukon, a picturesque party of Indians was seen. A stop was made at Schrieber, and the whole population turned out to see an address presented to the Duke and a bouquet to the Duchess. Late in the evening of the 25th Fort William was reached and the school children of the town sang "The Maple Leaf" from an illuminated stand at the station. At Port Arthur the Duke accepted a case of mineral specimens. Winnipeg was reached at noon of the next day after a quick journey through the "Lake of the Woods" district and a splendid welcome was accorded the Royal visitors. Flags flew everywhere and decorations abounded throughout the city. At the station about a hundred of Manitoba's leading men were gathered. The Governor-General and Lady Minto and Sir Wilfrid Laurier were also present to assist in the welcome, as their trains had preceded the Royal party to Winnipeg. The same order was observed in this connection throughout the Canadian tour.

IN WINNIPEG AND THE WEST

The Royal procession then passed along the wide main street of the city, through splendid arches of wheat, to the City Hall, where Mayor Arbuthnot presented the address to the Duke. Archbishop Machray then presented an address from the Church of England in Rupert's Land, expressive of welcome and attachment to the Throne and Empire. Archbishop Langevin, on behalf of the Catholics of Manitoba and the West, in his address dwelt upon the French pioneer labours in the Northwest, and declared the pride felt by the people of his Church in having defended England's noble standard, even at the expense of their blood. "We thank God for the amount of religious liberty we enjoy under the British flag." In his reply, the Duke of Cornwall and York spoke of the marvellous progress made by Winnipeg—"the busy centre of what has become the great granary of the Empire, the political centre of an active and enterprising population in the full enjoyment of the privileges and institutions of British citizenship." Then followed the presentation of South African medals and a luncheon at Government House attended by many leading citizens. In the afternoon the University of Manitoba was visited and an address read by Archbishop Machray, Chancellor of the University. A state dinner was given in the evening at Government House and about ten o'clock the Royal visitors passed through the crowded and illuminated streets of the city to the train, followed by a torchlight procession and the sound of many cheers.

At Regina, on September 27th, a loyal welcome was received. The procession to Government House was followed by the reception of twelve addresses from Territorial centres and the distribution of South African decorations. A luncheon was given by Lieutenant-Governor Forget, and at 3 P.M., the Royal visitors departed for Calgary. There, on the following morning, they witnessed a thoroughly typical Western scene and received a Western welcome. The streets were gaily decorated and many cheers followed the Duke and Duchess as they proceeded to Victoria Park, where a review of 240 Mounted Police was held, medals presented to the South African veterans and Major Belcher decorated with his C.M.G. At another point near the city the Duke then met a large party of Indians and received from them an address which recited their past privations and present progress and expressed the hope that when His Royal Highness should accede to the Throne it would be "to long reign over us, our children, and the other many peoples of the British Empire in peaceful security and abundant happiness."

Speeches were made by a number of the Chiefs and the Duke replied in most picturesque terms. "The Indian is a live man, his words are true words and he never breaks faith. And he knows that it is the same with the Great King, my father, and with those whom he sends to carry out his wishes. His promises last as long as the sun shall shine and the waters flow. And care will ever be taken that nothing shall come between the Great King and you, his faithful children." Indian children then sang the National Anthem, and, after witnessing an extraordinary spectacle of broncho busting and cow-boy riding, the journey was resumed to the Rockies towering up on the horizon. Sunday was spent in traversing the marvellous panorama of nature which spreads out through the Rockies and Selkirks, the mighty glaciers, rushing rivers, lightning changes of colour and varied splendours of scene. A stop was made at Banff and at Laggan and Field, the stations were tastefully decorated with evergreens and flags. Revelstoke was passed, the lower levels of the mountains traversed, the plains reached, and on the morning of September 30th the Royal train drew into Vancouver.

Mounted Police and blue-jackets from the fleet were there and as the procession left for the Court House, where addresses were to be received, the deep-mouthed guns of the fleet in the harbour, the ringing bells of the city churches and the cheers of the people sounded a combined welcome. Through several arches and gay decorations—the Japanese and Chinese arches being noteworthy—the parade proceeded, with the Premier of Canada in a carriage at its head. At the pavilion, in front of the Court House, the Royal visitors were received by Mayor Townley, an address was presented and a bouquet given to the Duchess as well as a handsome portfolio of British Columbia views from the Local Council of women. The Duke was very brief in his reply. The next thing on the programme was the opening of the new Drill-Hall and the presentation of South African medals. The Boy's Brigade was also inspected. After luncheon a visit was paid to the Hastings Saw-Mill, and a drive taken through the splendid trees and vistas of Stanley Park. At Brockton Point a drill of school children was held in sight of some seven thousand persons and a grand stand full of children looking on. Here the Duke presented a silken banner to the school which had won the prize for drilling and was given an enthusiastic reception. As the C. P. R. steamer, Empress of India, with the Royal party on board, passed in the evening across the Bay of Victoria the waters were illuminated with multitudes of lighted craft and the city was a vision of golden light with a background of surrounding blackness.

Accompanied by five warships, the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall arrived at Victoria on the morning of October 1st and were greeted by Lieut.-Governor Sir Henri Joly de Lotbiniere as they landed. The drive through the decorated streets to the Parliament Buildings was the scene of much cheering and at the destination Their Royal Highnesses were received by the officials of the Province and an immense surrounding crowd. Mayor Hayward presented the Civic address and various deputations followed him. In his reply the Duke made no allusion to the international relations mentioned in one of the addresses but declared that Canadian sacrifices in South Africa had "forged another link in the golden chain which binds together the brotherhood of the Empire." Medals were distributed and the school children inspected. A drive followed through the gay streets of the city out to Esquimalt, where a barge was taken to the Admiral's flagship and luncheon served, with Real-Admiral Bickford as the host.

In the afternoon the Agricultural Exhibition at Victoria was opened and in the evening the city and Parliament Buildings were brilliantly lighted up by electricity and fireworks. After a state dinner at the Lieutenant-Governor's residence a Reception was held at the Parliament Buildings. The following day was a very quiet one. Her Royal Highness called on Mrs. Dunsmuir, wife of the Prime Minister, to express sympathy over a terrible disaster which had occurred at the Extension Mines and, after luncheon, the Duke and Duchess visited the Royal Jubilee Hospital. During the day the latter was presented by the miners of Atlin with a bracelet of gold nuggets. Late in the afternoon farewells were made and the voyage back to Vancouver commenced. From Vancouver they departed in the morning, the Duchess going to Banff where she stayed for a couple of days and the Duke going on to Poplar Point, Manitoba, forty miles from Winnipeg, where he enjoyed a couple of days' shooting with Senator Kirchhoffer. Winnipeg was reached on October 8th. They were cordially welcomed again and a visit was paid to Oglivie's Mill—said to be the largest in the Empire—and the direct journey for Toronto was then commenced. From North Bay, through the Muskoka region and on to the capital of Ontario, there were cheering crowds at every station. Huntsville, Bracebridge, and Gravenhurst were marked in this respect. At Orillia, Barrie and Newmarket short stops were made and, amidst gay decorations, singing children and cheering throngs, the Duke and Duchess appeared on the platform, received a few presentations and in the case of Her Royal Highness accepted bouquets of flowers.

MEMORABLE RECEPTION AT TORONTO

The occurrences at Toronto during the Royal visit were of a character to make history. The morning of October 10th, when the Duke and Duchess arrived was gloomy and later on the rain poured with steady and depressive persistence. But it did not seem to affect the patience of the waiting crowds or dampen the enthusiasm of the reception. A special and beautiful station had been erected at the head of St. George Street and here, amid the patriotic songs of 6000 children, the Royal visitors were received by the Hon. G. W. Ross, Premier of Ontario and a number of his Ministers. The Vice-regal party and Sir Wilfrid Laurier had, as usual, arrived first. The procession followed through miles of decorated streets and throngs of cheering people until the City Hall was reached and a scene of colour and serried masses of people witnessed such as Toronto had never known. The streets were lined with ten thousand troops stretching from the station to the Hall and the Alexandra Gate, erected by the Daughters of the Empire, and the Foresters' Arch, erected by the Independent Order of Foresters, were notable features of the welcome. At the City Hall the Royal couple were received by Mayor O. A. Howland and welcomed by the singing of a large trained chorus of voices. An immense crowd was present and addresses were handed in by eleven deputations and replied to at some length.

During the afternoon a presentation was made to the Duchess by Miss Mowat, daughter of the Lieutenant-Governor, on behalf of the women of Toronto. It consisted of a writing set made of Klondike gold and Canadian amethysts and chrystal. The case was made of Canadian maple. A state dinner was given at Government House in the evening by Sir Oliver Mowat and the Royal couple afterwards attended a Concert at Massey Hall where Madame Calve and others sang. The streets were filled with enthusiastic crowds far into the night and the illuminations were something unequalled in the history of the city and unexcelled by any others during the Royal tour in Canada. Powerful search-lights from the top of the City Hall tower were an unique feature of the demonstration.

On the following morning—October 12th—the Royal review took place on the Exhibition grounds. It was unquestionably the most brilliant and effective military spectacle ever seen in Canada. Nearly eleven thousand men were mustered under command of Major-General O'Grady-Haly. Before the review commenced His Royal Highness presented the South African medals to a number of the soldiers and the V.C. to Major H. C. Z. Cockburn. To the latter also was given a sword of honour on behalf of the City Council. Colours were presented to the Royal Canadian Regiment of Infantry and the Royal Canadian Dragoons in the name of the King and as a mark of appreciation for their services in the war. The march past then took place. There were said to be twenty-five thousand people on the grounds and the streets and approaches were lined with many other thousands. In the afternoon the Duke and Duchess visited the Bishop Strachan School and the Duke planted a tree in Queen's Park and reviewed the Fire Brigade. Then came the state visit to Toronto University, the presentation of an address by the Chancellor, Sir William Meredith, and the bestowal of the honorary degree of LL. D.

In the evening a Reception was held in the Parliament Buildings when two thousand people shook hands, amid brilliant surroundings, with the Heir to the Throne and his wife. Prior to this a very large state dinner had been held in the halls of the same building with His Excellency the Governor-General as host. The city was again most brilliantly illuminated and filled with waiting throngs anxious to see and cheer the Royal visitors. Early in the following morning they left Toronto for a rapid trip through Western Ontario. As the Royal train rushed through the populous centres, or quiet villages of this rich section of the country, every railway station was crowded with cheering people anxious for a sight of their future Sovereign and his Consort. At Brampton a short stop was made, and a mass of beautiful roses, carried by eight children, was presented to the Duchess from the well-known rosaries of the town. At Guelph a platform had been erected near the station, and here two thousand school children sang patriotic songs. At Berlin there was another chorus and another exquisite bouquet of flowers for the Duchess. There was a great crowd of people at this point, and the children carried branches of maple leaves, as well as flags, which they waved while the singing was going on and the presentations were being made by Mayor Bowlby. The City of Stratford had a gaily decorated station, eight thousand cheering citizens and children singing "The Maple Leaf." An arch had been erected festooned with evergreens and flowers. The visit to London was a matter of more formality and length. The city was packed with people from outlying points, and the reception to the Royal couple as they drove through decorated streets to the Victoria Park was most enthusiastic. There an address was proffered by Mayor Rumball. After the Duke's reply colours were presented to the 7th Regiment and the departure took place through the same kind of cheering throngs which had previously lined the streets.

From London the route was taken up to Niagara. Every station was crowded with people, and in the vineyard and fruit region a brief stop was made at Grimsby. Finally, the Royal train ran into the historic village of Niagara-on-the-Lake, and there, at the Queen's Royal Hotel, the visitors found elaborate preparations for their comfort during the ensuing day of rest. Masses of flowers and fruit were displayed as further proof of the diverse productions of the Dominion. Sunday was, however, a busy day in some respects. In the morning the steamer was taken to Queenston, and from thence a special electric car conveyed the Royal couple along the banks of the mighty Niagara, past Brock's monument and the scene of the historic conflict upon Queenston Heights, and on to the famous whirlpool where half an hour of sight-seeing was spent. In Queen Victoria's Park there were crowds of people waiting to see the Duke and Duchess, but only a few minutes' glance at the Falls was taken. A visit to Loretto Convent followed with songs from the pupils and luncheon afterwards. Archbishop O'Connor of Toronto assisted in the reception. The rest of the day was spent in viewing and admiring the ever-changing glories of Niagara Falls, and the return took place in the evening. On the 14th of October Hamilton was visited and three hours spent in receiving one of the most enthusiastic welcomes of the whole tour. Thousands had gathered in the spacious grounds surrounding the station and in the streets, and the cheering was hearty and continuous. The usual address was presented by Mayor J. S. Hendrie at the City Hall. The Royal visitors then lunched at "Holmstead," the residence of Mr. William Hendrie, and afterwards the Duke presented new colours to the 13th Regiment. The departure took place amidst the cheers of thousands.

At St. Catharines there was a short stop and the whole city turned out, business was suspended and the colleges and schools attended in a body. There was a guard of honour at the station, cheers from eight thousand throats, a beautiful bouquet presented to the Duchess and a few citizens introduced by Mayor McIntyre. Brantford had its station handsomely decorated, and three thousand children massed on the platform to sing patriotic songs as the train rolled in. Another bouquet for the Duchess was presented and also a casket containing a silver long-distance telephone from Professor Bell, the father of its inventor, who was born in Brantford. Their Royal Highnesses here signed the Bible which was given in 1712 by Queen Anne to the Mohawk Church of the Six Nations and which already contained the autographs of the King and the Duke of Connaught. A very brief stop was made at Paris, where the school children were gathered and a large crowd cheered the Royal couple. At Woodstock the whole population turned out and the train entered the station amid the cheers of ten thousand people. Mayor Mearns presented some of the citizens and his little daughter handed a beautiful bouquet of roses to the Duchess. A thousand school children waved flags and sang the National Anthem.

FROM WESTERN TO EASTERN ONTARIO

From the West to the East travelled the Royal train during the night, and on the morning of October 15th reached Belleville, where some eight thousand people had assembled to welcome the Duke and Duchess. Presentations by Mayor Graham, a guard of honour, cheers and a bouquet for the Duchess, with singing school children, were the familiar features of the reception. An address from 250 deaf and dumb children was, however, an interesting exception. At Kingston the Royal couple drove through the crowded and decorated streets to a pavilion in front of the City Hall, where three thousand children sang, cheered and waved flags, while flowers were given to the Duchess and several addresses presented to the Duke. Following this ceremony the Royal procession passed on through the historic city to Queen's University where his Royal Highness was given an honorary LL.D. and presented with an address by the Chancellor, Sir Sandford Fleming. In replying to the latter the Duke expressed the regret of himself and the Duchess at the absence through illness of the Very Rev. Principal Grant. He then laid the corner-stone of a new building donated to the University by the citizens of Kingston. There was tremendous cheering from the students and gay decorations along the route which was then taken to the Royal Military College.

At the College the Royal visitors witnessed a march past and gymnastic display from the Cadets. A spontaneous and unexpected incident occurred in the private visit of Their Royal Highnesses to Principal Grant at the General Hospital. They talked with him a few minutes and then the Duke personally conferred upon him the C.M.G. which had been recently granted by the King. About one o'clock the Royal party reached the wharf where they embarked on the steamer Kingston, which had been most elaborately decorated and fitted up for the occasion, and started for a trip through the Thousand Islands of the St. Lawrence. At six o'clock the steamer arrived at Brockville, and the Duke and Duchess were greeted with a brilliant display of fireworks from the shore. At the landing-place they were met by Mayor Buell, Senator Fulford and other prominent citizens. A bouquet was given the Duchess and the procession from the wharf to the station passed through cheering people and the departure was made in a blaze of fireworks. At Cornwall, which was reached on the morning of October 16th, there were some four thousand people at the station, and Mayor Campbell presented the Duke and Duchess with a complete set of lacrosse sticks for the Royal children. They were enclosed in a gold-mounted case. The next stoppage was at Cardinal, where thousands had assembled from the same surrounding country and the school children sang national songs.

On the way from Ontario to the Provinces by the Atlantic a pause was made at Montreal on October 16th to visit the Victoria Jubilee Bridge—a reconstruction of the one into which His Majesty the King had driven the last rivet when visiting Canada in 1860. The Duke of Cornwall and York was now presented with a gold rivet by Mr. George B. Reeve, General Manager of the Grand Trunk Railway system, as a souvenir of that event and of his present visit. The Bridge, which was called one of the wonders of the world at the time of its construction, now had a double track and double roadway. During the afternoon half-an-hour was spent at Sherbrooke, where the station was gaily decorated. Mayor Worthington presented the address and during his reply the Royal speaker declared that "among the many pleasant experiences of our delightful visit to Canada one will remain most deeply graven in our memories—the solemn declaration of personal attachment to my dear father, the King, and of loyalty to the throne of our glorious Empire." A beautiful bear-skin was then presented to the Duchess by Mrs. Worthington on behalf of the ladies of Sherbrooke. Some South African veterans were decorated with the medal and a delegation from the Caughnawaga Indians received.

From Sherbrooke the Royal party then travelled straight through to St. John, New Brunswick, which they reached in the afternoon of October 17th. After they had arrived and the echoes of the roaring guns had died away the Royal procession was formed and passed through the usually crowded and decorated streets to the Exhibition Buildings where Mayor Daniel, in his official robes, welcomed the Duke and Duchess and presented an address from the City as did Mayor Crocket from Fredricton. Some nine other local addresses were also presented and replied to. His Royal Highness then presented colours to British Veterans from Massachusetts. There was to have been a review of troops in the afternoon but, owing to some mistake in the arrangements, a Royal presentation of South African medals, of colours to the 62nd Battalion, and of a sword of honour to Captain F. Caverhill Jones, comprised the proceedings. The return from the Exhibition grounds to Caverhill Hall, which had been specially fitted up by the Provincial Government for the visitors, was through crowds of more or less enthusiastic people. In the evening there were fireworks and electrical displays and a Reception at the Exhibition Building attended by a large representation of New Brunswick society. Late in the afternoon a deputation of ladies waited upon Her Royal Highness and presented her with a beautiful mink and ermine muff on behalf of the women of St. John. At noon on the following day the Duke and Duchess left the city amid much cheering and the farewells of a representative gathering at the station. On the way to Halifax the City of Moncton, N. B., celebrated the arrival of the Royal tourists with a half holiday, a decorated station and a mass of cheering people. Mayor Atkinson presented a number of prominent people and the Duchess received a couple of handsome bouquets. At Dorchester, as the train arrived it passed through a gaily decorated station, cheering crowds and local officials ranged along the platform. At Amherst, N. S., a short stop was made.

FROM NEW BRUNSWICK INTO NOVA SCOTIA

When Halifax was reached, on the morning of October 19th, the reception was beautiful and impressive as well as loyal. Thousands of soldiers with glittering bayonets lined the streets, together with hundreds of sailors armed with cutlasses and rifles, and many thousands of crowding and cheering citizens. As the Royal visitors arrived at the station they were welcomed with a roar of guns from the magnificent citadel heights and defences of Halifax and from the vessels of the most formidable fleet of war-ships which, it was said, had ever graced a Canadian port. They were received by the Vice-regal party, Vice-Admiral Sir Frederick Bedford and his staff, Colonel Biscoe and his staff, Lieutenant-Governor the Hon. A. G. Jones, of Nova Scotia, Lieutenant-Governor P. E. McIntyre of Prince Edward Island, the Hon. G. H. Murray and the members of his Government, Mayor Hamilton of Halifax, the Mayor of Charlottetown and various other officials and representative men. At the platform in front of the station various addresses were presented amid cheers from an immense gathering. The Duke, in replying, did so separately to the Prince Edward Island welcome and to that from Nova Scotia. To the former he expressed the "true regret" which they felt at not being able to visit that well-remembered Province, and to the latter he made a really eloquent response. "It is perhaps fitting that we should take leave of Canada in the Province that was the first over which the British flag waved, a Province so full of moving, checquered, historic memories, and that, embarking from your capital which stands unrivalled amongst the naval ports of the world, we should pass through waters that are celebrated in the annals of our glorious Navy." He also spoke of the "affectionate sympathy" with which they had been received throughout the Dominion.

Following this function the Royal couple passed through streets lined with troops and sailors and cheering crowds and at times presenting the appearance of a net-work of colour, a canopy of bunting. In the grounds of the Provincial Building His Royal Highness laid the foundation-stone of a monument erected by the Government and people of Nova Scotia in honour of the Provincial heroes who had fallen in South Africa. The procession then passed on to a handsome arch, guarded by a detachment of Royal Engineers, where the Duke inspected the members of the British Veterans' Society who were drawn up on parade. Conspicuous amongst them was a negro holder of the V.C. Thence the parade continued to the Dockyard where the Royal couple went on board the Ophir, which had come up from Quebec during the long inland tour. In the afternoon a great review and massing of many thousands of soldiers and sailors, infantry, cavalry and artillery, was held on the Halifax Common in the presence of a crowd of spectators—probably twenty-five thousand in number. The troops were under the supreme command of Colonel Biscoe, and the Royal Naval Brigade included four thousand sailors from twelve of Britain's most modern cruisers. It was a sight such as had never been witnessed in Canada before and the review eclipsed in effect the previous military spectacle at Toronto; while the environment of great fortifications and a harbour full of war-ships enhanced the character of the scene. Near the Royal pavilion was a stand containing six thousand school children who sang patriotic songs.

After the review the Duke presented colours to the 66th Princess Louise Fusiliers and was informed by the Lieutenant-Governor that H.R.H. the Duke of Kent had conferred a similar honour upon the Regiment in the early part of the preceeding century. His Royal Highness then handed the war medals to the South African veterans and presented a sword of honour to Major H. B. Stairs. In the evening a state dinner was given by the Lieut.-Governor at Government House when occasion was taken by the Duke to present the Hon. Dr. Borden with the medal won by the gallant son who had lost his life in South Africa. A Reception was held afterwards in the Provincial Buildings amid scenes of striking beauty and brightness. The city and fleet were brilliantly illuminated and the spectacle one of the most beautiful of the whole Canadian tour. The next day was Sunday and was spent very quietly on board the Ophir. At night the Duke dined with Vice-Admiral Bedford on board his flag-ship. On the following morning the Royal visitors left the shores of Canada in their yacht, accompanied by the fleet of battleships and with the cheers of many thousands of people, the roar of guns and the sound of bands playing on sea and shores, echoing out over the waters of the harbour.

THE ROYAL FAREWELL TO CANADA

Before leaving Halifax, and under date of October 19th, the Duke of Cornwall and York sent a communication to the Earl of Minto expressive of the regret felt by the Duchess and himself at bidding farewell to "a people who by their warm-heartedness and cordiality have made us feel at home amongst them from the first moment of our arrival on their shores." He referred to the loyal demeanour of the crowds, the general manifestations of rejoicing and the trouble and ingenuity displayed in the illuminations and street decorations. They were specially touched by the great efforts made in small and remote places to manifest feelings of kindness toward them. "I recognize all this as a proof of the strong personal loyalty to the throne as well as the deep-seated devotion of the people of Canada to that unity of the Empire of which the Crown is the symbol." Thanks were tendered to the Dominion Government, the Provincial authorities and municipal bodies and to various individuals for the care and trouble bestowed upon the varied arrangements. Of the Militia His Royal Highness spoke in high terms. The reviews at Quebec, Toronto and Halifax had enabled him to judge of the military capacity of the Dominion and of the "splendid material" at its disposal. Their hearts, he added, were full at leaving Canada and their regrets extreme at having to decline so many kind invitations from different centres. "But we have seen enough to carry away imperishable memories of affectionate and loyal hearts, frank and independent natures, prosperous and progressive communities, boundless productive territories, glorious scenery, stupendous works of nature, a people and a country proud of its membership in the Empire and in which the Empire finds one of its brightest offspring."

On the way home Newfoundland was visited and an enthusiastic reception given by the people of St. John's and the Government of the Island. The usual addresses, decorations and functions followed and then the Ophir steamed away over the last stretch of ocean in this long, strenuous and memorable Royal progress of over fifty thousand miles on sea and land. When in sight of English shores again the King and Queen and the Royal children, accompanied by the Channel squadron of thirteen warships, met the travellers and escorted them to Portsmouth. After eight months of separation the Royal family of three generations were again together. The popular welcome at Portsmouth was brilliant and enthusiastic as well it might be. As the Times put it on November 1st—the day of the arrival home—"The Duke and Duchess have made the greatest tour in history; they have accomplished an act of high statesmanship without statecraft but by simple arts which are better than any statecraft; they have been under many skies and seen many strange, lovely and impressive sights; they have been greeted and acclaimed by many peoples, races and languages." In his speech to the Civic deputation waiting upon him on the following day His Royal Highness stated that their journey had covered thirty-three thousand miles by sea and twelve thousand five hundred by land. "Everywhere we have been profoundly impressed by the kindness, affection and enthusiasm extended to us and the universal declarations of loyalty to the Throne; and by the conscious pride in membership of our great Empire which has constantly displayed itself."

A dinner was given by the King and Queen on board the yacht Victoria and Albert in honour of the Royal travellers' return and, in the course of a speech of welcome, His Majesty referred to the cordiality and loyal enthusiasm of their reception everywhere. "The accounts of their receptions, regularly transmitted to me by telegrams and letters and amply confirmed in my conversations to-day, have touched me deeply and I trust that the practical result will be to draw closer the strong ties of mutual affection which bind together the old Motherland with her numerous and thriving offspring". The special train was then taken to London and from Victoria station to Marlborough House the Royal couple drove through numerous crowds of cheering people and gaily decorated streets, with little Prince Edward beside them—for the first time making a public appearance and accepting the acclamations of the public with becoming gravity. It was a triumphal ending to a triumphant progress. A sort of climax to this termination was afforded, however, in the great banquet given by the Lord Mayor of London at the Guild Hall on December 5th, to him who had been created Prince of Wales on the 9th of November preceding by his father the King. There were only four toasts—the King, proposed by Sir Joseph Dimsdale, the Lord Mayor and chairman; Queen Alexandra and the Royal family, responded to by the new Prince of Wales; the Colonies, proposed by the Earl of Rosebery and responded to by Mr. Chamberlain; the Lord Mayor and Corporation proposed by the Marquess of Salisbury.

Besides the speakers and the members of the Royal suite during this famous tour there were present the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire, Mrs. Chamberlain, Lord James of Hereford, Mr. John Morley, Lord Knutsford, Lord and Lady Tweedmouth, Lord and Lady Lamington, Lord Brassey, Lord Avebury, Sir Frederick Young and many other interesting or important personages. The speech delivered by the Prince of Wales was one which startled England from its directness of statement and its eloquence of style and delivery. It was not merely a clear, or good description of the tour; it was the utterance of one who was both statesman and orator. His Royal Highness referred to the historic title which he now bore, to the voyage, unique in character and rich in experience, to the loyalty, affection and enthusiasm of the greetings everywhere, to the special characteristics of the visit in each country. He analysed Colonial loyalty as being accompanied by "unmistakable evidences of the consciousness of strength; of a true and living membership in the Empire; and of power and readiness to share the burden and responsibility of that membership". He spoke of the influence of Queen Victoria's life and memory, of the qualities of the sixty thousand troops whom he had reviewed, of the openings for better commercial interchange. "I venture to allude to the impressions which seemed generally to prevail among our brethren across the seas that the Old Country must wake up if she intends to maintain her old position of pre-eminence in her Colonial trade against foreign competitors". The need of more population in the Colonies was referred to and an urgent appeal made to encourage the sending out of suitable emigrants. "By this means we may still further strengthen, or at all events, pass on unimpaired, that pride of race, that unity of sentiment and purpose, that feeling of common loyalty and obligation which knit together and alone can maintain the integrity of our Empire".



CHAPTER XX.

The King and the South African War

No event in many years has created such keen interest amongst, and been so closely followed by, the Royal family of Great Britain as the war in South Africa. Apart from Queen Victoria's natural and life-long dislike of the horrors of war, there was the earnest sympathy which she felt in the last two years of her reign with thousands of her subjects who had suffered in the loss of husband, or brother, or father, or friend; and the womanly sorrow which she herself felt for the many promising young officers whom she had personally known or liked, or whose relations and friends had been upon terms of intimacy with members of the Royal circle. The matter was still more brought home to her, in a personal sense, by the death of her grandson, Prince Christian Victor, who, after months of hard campaigning and with the reputation of an able, modest and hard-working officer, succumbed in the autumn of 1900 to enteric fever, and was buried, at his own request, upon the South African veldt. But these personal considerations had never been so potent with the Queen as had her broader sympathies for her people, and there can be no doubt the gloomy days of Colenso and Spion Kop told severely upon the sensibilities of a Sovereign who was as proud of the nation's position and as keen to feel national humiliation, or sorrow, as was the humblest and most loyal of her subjects. And the fact that her duty to the people and the Empire lay in supporting her Ministers and pressing, if necessary, for a still more vigorous prosecution of the struggle, could not but have its effect upon the constitution of a Queen who felt her responsibilities very keenly and who was an aged woman as well as a great ruler.

Where she could help in keeping behind her Ministers a united people Queen Victoria did her utmost. Early in March, 1900, the Royal recognition of Irish valour in South Africa, shown in the order to the soldiers of the Empire to wear the Shamrock on St. Patrick's day, was as tactful and wise a step as statesmanship ever initiated. The ensuing postponement of Her Majesty's spring visit to sunny Italy and her prolonged stay in Dublin during the month of April were pronounced appeals to Irish loyalty. Her Christmas present of chocolate to the troops in the field, her ever-thoughtful telegrams, and occasional letters and speeches upon public occasions, were also of great value to the cause of national unity and action in differing degrees. Meantime, the Duke of Connaught had volunteered early in the period of trouble which eventually developed into war, but the Queen did not wish him to go to the front and, though he had offered to waive his rank and seniority in order to do so, his mother's wishes, of course, prevailed.

DUTIES OF THE HEIR APPARENT

The Prince of Wales was exceedingly active during this period in paying every possible compliment to departing troops, in welcoming home the veterans of the war, in conferring medals and in helping the many charities, hospital interests and military organizations which the situation evoked. As soon as the war broke out the Princess of Wales had commenced to organize a hospital ship for the care of the wounded at Cape Town and, on November 22d, 1899, Her Royal Highness visited the vessel prior to its departure. She was accompanied by the Prince with Princess Victoria, the Duchess of York and the Duke and Duchess of Fife. Badges and gifts were presented to the nursing sisters and the men of the Royal Army Medical Corps and St. John Ambulance Brigade and a brief speech delivered by the Prince. To this object, it may be added, the Princess had given L1000, and a Committee formed by her and composed of Lady Lansdowne, Lady Wolseley, Lady Wantage, Sir Donald Currie and others, had raised the large additional sum required. At Windsor, on December 15th, the Prince of Wales, accompanied by his wife, the Duke of Cambridge and Prince Christian, presented to the Grenadier Guards the medals they had won in the Soudan. On January 26th, 1900, he reviewed six hundred officers and men of the Imperial Yeomanry under command of Colonel, Lord Chesham. He thanked them for making him their Hon. Colonel, and then added: "You have all, like true men, volunteered for active service to do your duty to your Sovereign and your country. I feel sure that when you leave your homes and country you will feel that a great duty devolves on you—to maintain the honour of the British flag—and that you will ably assist the Regular forces of Her Majesty abroad and do credit to your country and your corps."

A little later, on February 9th, another contingent of Yeomanry, under Colonel Mitford, were inspected by the Prince ere they departed for South Africa. "Most heartily" he said to them, "do I hope that the services you intend to render your Sovereign and your country will bring credit upon yourselves. I feel sure that, under your commanders, you will know that one of the first principles is good discipline. Then, I hope you are good shots and good riders." In the afternoon, at Devonshire House, His Royal Highness received the one hundred and fifty nurses and men connected with the Imperial Yeomanry Hospital. When the Princess of Wales' Hospital Ship returned with its sorrowful burdens of wounded men the Prince and Princess were the first to visit it and do what was possible by kind thought and word and action to soothe the suffering of the soldiers. Netley Hospital they visited again and again, and more than one Canadian or Australian, or other Colonial soldier of the Queen, will always speak of the gracious personal kindness of the Royal couple.

When the Naval Brigade returned in triumph from its achievements at Ladysmith there was added to the seething, cheering, enthusiastic popular welcome the formal reception and inspection by the Heir Apparent, accompanied by the Princess and other members of the Royal family and the Lords of the Admiralty. After brief speeches from Mr. Goschen and His Royal Highness the former, as First Lord of the Admiralty, entertained the officers of the Brigade and the Prince of Wales at luncheon. On November 2nd, following, the Prince presided at a great banquet given in London to the officers and men of the Honourable Artillery Company and the City Imperial Volunteers. Colonel Mackinnon of the latter force sat on the right of the Royal chairman and the Lord Mayor on the left. In his speeches the Prince gave a brief history of the origin and the war achievements of the Artillery and the City Imperial Volunteers, congratulated many of the officers by name, spoke of the opportunity they had been given of taking part in "a great and important war and of maintaining the honour of the British flag," and referred in pathetic terms to the death of Prince Christian Victor—who had been through five campaigns and was under thirty-four years of age.

When the Composite Regiment of the Household Cavalry went to war in November 1899 they had been inspected by the Heir Apparent. Upon their return, December 3rd 1900, he paid them the same compliment, accompanied by various members of the Royal family and leading officers of the Army. He expressed pride at being Colonel-in-Chief of a corps which had so greatly distinguished itself—in the distant past as well as the near present. Following them came the Royal Canadian Regiment, commanded by Colonel W. D. Otter. To them the Prince made a neat and patriotic speech. "I am well aware of what you have gone through and the splendid way in which you have served in South Africa and I deeply regret and mourn with you the loss of so many brave men." Ever anxious, like the Queen and her own husband, to promote the well-being of the soldiers and sailors the Princess of Wales had acted since the beginning of the war as President of the Soldiers and Sailors' Families Association and, on December 31st, 1900, reported through the press that L500,000 had been directly subscribed to their purposes, L190,000 given through the Mansion House subscription, and L50,000 through a special Lord Mayor's Fund. The whole of this sum had now been expended in caring for the wives and families of those at the front and distributed through the voluntary services of eleven hundred ladies and gentlemen throughout the United Kingdom. At least L50,000 was still being expended monthly and Her Royal Highness made and personally signed an earnest appeal for the further funds required.

When Lord Roberts left to take command in South Africa, the Prince of Wales personally saw him off at the station—accompanied by the Duke of Connaught, who had been again praying the Military authorities to allow him to go to the front in the new crisis which had arisen and who had even obtained Lord Roberts' approval to his taking a place upon his Staff. But the War Office would only say that with so many general officers out of the country His Royal Highness could do better service by remaining with the Army at home.

There were many reasons for the Prince of Wales taking a keen interest in the war apart altogether from the natural and patriotic reason. A peculiarly large number of the sons of personal friends were at the front and many of them were fated to fall from time to time. The reputation of the officers engaged in the struggle was necessarily very dear to him. He knew them all and had many associations with their regiments and themselves. A blow to Sir George White, a disaster to Sir Redvers Buller, a danger to Col. Baden Powell, a threatened illness in the case of Lord Roberts, were all matters of personal concern to him as well as of national or patriotic interest. The central figure in the beginning of the war—the great personality of Mr. Cecil Rhodes—had long been a friend and had been received by the Prince upon a kindly social footing. Through the Duke of Fife's connection with the South African Chartered Company, the Prince must have been closely interested in all the earlier developments of the struggle and it could only have been by special permission that his son-in-law held a Director's place up to the actual outbreak of the war. Mr. Chamberlain and Lord Milner were both men who had been closely associated with his own Imperialistic projects and ideals and there can be little doubt—though it was never publicly expressed—that the Prince of Wales sympathised with the policy which has since made South African expansion and empire possible.

The Prince of Wales had seen Lord Roberts off upon his career of successful action; on January 3rd, 1901, accompanied by the Princess, the Duke and Duchess of York and the Duke of Connaught, he welcomed him home and on behalf of the Queen received him as a Royal guest at Buckingham Palace. A magnificent banquet followed, given by the Prince, in honour of the Field Marshal—who had just been created an Earl and a Knight of the Garter—and six months later as King of Great Britain, he was able to send a special message to Parliament recommending a grant to Earl Roberts of L100,000. Shortly after this reception came the much-mourned death of the Queen and the accession of His Royal Highness to the Throne. It was not long before the King was showing his appreciation of South African soldiers by inspecting or addressing them before their departure, or upon their return. On February 15th, accompanied by Queen Alexandra, the Duke and Duchess of Connaught, the Duke of Cambridge, Princess Louise, the Duchess of Argyll, the Duke of Argyll, Lord Roberts, Sir Redvers Buller, Lord Strathcona and Mr. Chamberlain, he inspected Lord Strathcona's Regiment of Horse and presented a King's colour to Colonel Steele. His Majesty's speech to the officers and men was tactful and gracious: "I welcome you here on our shores on your return from active service in South Africa. I know it would have been the urgent wish of my beloved mother, our revered Queen, to have welcomed you also. That was not to be; but be assured she deeply appreciated the services you rendered as I do. It has given me great satisfaction to inspect you to-day, to have presented you with your war-medals and also with the King's colour. I feel sure that in entrusting this colour to you, Colonel Steele, and to those under you, you will always defend it and will do your duty as you have done in the past year in South Africa and will do it on all future occasions. I am glad that Lord Strathcona is here to-day, as it is owing to him that this magnificent force has been equipped and sent out." The King then presented Colonel Steele, personally with the M.V.O. decoration.

PERSONAL INTEREST IN THE WAR

Following this and other similar events came the re-organization of the Army, in which the King no doubt took a great deal of interest though it would only be shown the form of advice or expressions of opinion. By Mr. St. John Brodrick's scheme, as outlined on March 9th, and ultimately accepted in the main, it was decided to have the military forces so organized that three Army corps could be sent abroad at any time; that the artillery and mounted troops should be increased and the medical and transport service reformed; that officers should be better trained, with less barrack-square drill and more musketry, scouting and individuality. It was proposed also to "decentralize administration, centralize responsibility;" to increase the Militia from 100,000 to 115,000, to increase the pay of the soldiers, to utilize the Yeomanry and to affiliate, if possible, the Colonial forces. The new arrangements would provide, it was hoped, a home force of 155,000 Regulars, 90,000 Reserves, 150,000 Militia, 35,000 Yeomanry and 250,000 Volunteers—a total of 680,000 men.

Meanwhile, peace negotiations had been progressing. On February 28th a long interview took place between Lord Kitchener and General Louis Botha who, according to the British general's despatch, "showed very good feeling and seemed anxious to bring about peace." The question of government, grading from a Crown Colony system up to full self-government, was discussed; the licensing of rifles for protection and hunting; the use of English and Dutch languages; the enfranchising of Kaffirs; the protection of Church and trust funds and the guarantee of legal debts and notes of the late Republics; the question of a war-tax on the farms and the time of return of prisoners of war; pecuniary assistance to the burghers, so as to enable them to start afresh; the question of amnesty and the proposal to disfranchise Cape rebels; were all freely discussed. After considerable interchange between Lord Kitchener and Mr. Brodrick and Lord Milner and Mr. Chamberlain, a definite statement of terms was offered General Botha and by letter, dated March 16th, declined. The details of this cabled correspondence and the proposed terms were, of course, submitted to the King and approved by His Majesty, and it is certain that had the war then ended the Coronation would have taken place at an earlier date than was afterwards fixed.