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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZurich Herald, 1927-12-29, Page 6PRINCE OF WALES HAS EVERY DAY SCHEDULED Rising Early, He Runs in Gardens of Buckingham Palace, Works Mornings and Fills His Many Engagements by Midnight—Will, Move Soon to Marlborough House London, -•'--Clad in a white sweater and shorts, with his little Cairn ter- rier hurrying to keep up with him, the Prince of Wales begins the day with an early morning run twice around the gardens of Buckingham Palace, the largest enclosed space convenient to him in London. He was not always as physically fit as he is to -day, but like very other British officer physical fitness has become his creed.. He be= gan with the physique of the ordinary 'Tom, Dick and'rlarry, and his present physique he has had to build up .for, himself. • By the time he has limbered up, the Prince returns to York House in St. James's Palace for a bath and breakfast, and by 10, o'clock he is ready to tackle the day's work. In a feed weeks, however, lie will no longer be returning to York House, which has been his London home since 1919. but to Marlborough House, which has been standing "with its eyes shut" since Queen Alexandra died. Half hidden in the trees behind its surrounding wall, Marlborough House was the London home of Bing Ed- ward VII. when he was Prince of Wales and also of that Prince who, now reigns as King George V. It has • `net yet been occupied by the present PLnce because it belonged to his gvandmother while she lived. It will be a long time before London will be able to think of it es no longer the home of Alexandra. but before many weeks have passed the red -coated sell- - trios will be back in their• bones and another Prince of Wales will be at home in it. Of the more than 200 rooms of Marlborough House, three have been prepared for his personal use on the first floor up. opens conventions, publicbuildings, new roads. 11e presides at the an- nual meetings of institutions of which he is chief, He visits institutions of which he is patron. Ile attends levees ie St. James's Palace and sometimes spends an hour in the distinglished strangers' gallery in the House of Commons. He goes to Dover to receive a visit- ing royalty or President, gathering up his sword and hopping aboard as the visitor comes alongside, standing at attention while the band plays the visitor's national anthem, accompany- ing the visitor while the guard of honor is being inspected on the quay. He makes speeches, freuentgly two or three in a day, on some occasions as many as a dozen in a clay, and it is worth noting that he is the first modern English royalty who has dared to depart from the ceremonial - note and to attempt the actual en- tertainment of his audience: In the nature of things it is remarkable that his humor is sometimes really humor- ous. The Prince also dines. Seated with the Mayor to right of him and the Mayoress to left of him, compelled to make the conversation himself if there is going to be any conversation at all, confronted with the prospect of listening to a set program of cere- monial speeches and of making a ceremonial speech himself, he dines in public so often that it is more re- markable to report that occasionally he is permitted' to dine in private with no speeches, no ringing welkin and no column in papers the next morning. - A year ago, when the auctioneers invited him to their annual dinner, the Prince startled the country by suddenly announcing that he was `Yeti up" and that he proposed in fu- ture to limit himself to dinners which. were of national importance, and to this rule he tries to adhere. His at- tendance is a certificate that the city corporation, city ..company, learned society, charity or what not which secures him is above suspicion, and this certificate granted • to projects whic hare above and outside contro- versy is the •peculiar prerogative of royalty in England. This usage touches upon a subject which can be no more than suggested here, but it is necessary to suggest it if the na- ture of the Prince's work, is to be grasped. ,. Queen Victoria was so remote a le- gend in her later years that there was a time when EdwardVll; might con- ceivably have been Britain's is,~st King. But by bringing the monarchy down from Queen Victoria's remote- ness through bestowing his patronage on projects as were above controver- sy for the good of his people, Edward VII. found new usefulness ' for the monarchy in a democracy which had stripped it of the right to rule. What Edward VTI. began George V. has de- veloped to a point which" h'as made him a widely and thoroughly beldved monarch. It is in the same . tradition of royal service that the Prince of Wales has been reared. Early Morning Runs. His early morning run explains the vigor with which he gets through his day'.. work. His work begins the iustani he finishes breakfast and, al- though It is more exhausting on hie trip» than it is in London, only a sound physique could stand up day 'ate: clay under the strain of his duties. By the time he has finished, breakfast his voluminous mail has been distributed to his staff and that part of it which has to be taken to him is -ready for him, along with re- ports from his estates, drafts of speeches, and occasionally a Govern- ment dispatch box, all of which go direct to him. From the moment he sits down at the crowded desk in his business room he keeps his control- ler, Admiral Sir Lionel Halsey, and his principal private • secretary, Sir Godfrey Thomas, as busy as beavers. Although it is impossible to do more than generalize, usually the Prince snencls his mornings at his desk and hie afternoons and evenings at his engagements: It is not uncommon for him to get through a day's work tvilh his controller and secretary by 1 o'clock, eq tackle a series of engage- ments beginning with a luncheon and ending with a tea, to tee off for a round of g.olf and to turn up as fresh as a daisy at a dinner engagement that permits him to get home and to bed after midnight. If and when he marries he will no doubt modify his pace, for no man can continue such a pace forever. At present, however, he averages perhaps six hours a night in bed and during the remaining eigh- teen hours leads a life of perpetual motion, racing up to Melton Mowbray for an afternoon's hunting or out to J turiinghom for a few chukkers of polo at times which tee an older man would suggest a lounge chair and,a long drink; The Great Tradition. His estates are run for him, his speeches are written for him, his en- gagements are made for him weeks In advance: Not only is it incorrect for him to show the slightest public Interest in the party politics of the country, but he is compelled to avoids the merest appearance of doing so. His sole duty is to personify a great tradition, which is hedged tightly • about with the roses and thorns of etiquette. In theory it is a purely • ceremonial duty, making or him a sort of lightning -Change artist who leaps into and out of a glittering succession of uniforms, a kind of human kaleido- scope whose future subjects never tire of discovering fresh evidence that he le not a machine worked with wires but is really human. Since he came out of the navy, the army and Oxford, there have been only a handful of places in which he is- permitted to be hitnself—in his own items, in his clubs, at Hurlingham and at Melton iowbray, Elsewhere he 'moves anion§ his fellow-country- nien as inconspicuously as a giraffe isolated by a gulf across which Mayors in<-thir chains of office address him, as "your rile highness" and re- mind him amid the 'potted palms and the waving flags that he is the son of s Itis father. i- or is he anybody's \rice - resident elected far a mere four leare of such a life. The gulf which naw ,divides hint from his countrymen Win deepen and widen until the day when it takes 101 guns to stake his country's obeisance tudible across it and he himself becomes a Majesty for the rest bf his natural lite. Within the narrow limits fntpoeed Mt hint by democracy, 'the Prince's .public engagements take it wide va- t+iety of ford He unveils monti- *neuts, Ile Jaye cornerstones. He Our Royal Far~'imet' zzsrw f Yry WHEN "E.P." 1S AT HOME Formal attire and ceremony are cast to the winds' when the Prince of Wales. gets a chance to mount one of his horses at. hit! Canadian ranch. Thin b•itherto unpublishedpicture was taken during the Prince's, visit last summer. 1 him that most ST RADIO SOUNDS those who are near h Y S[JCs�iE of his income from .his Kennington WILL. GO ON FOREVER property goes back into it in the shape of improvements,er a nt y it quently paid surprise visits to Ken- ears Hence Hearing the is public knowledge that he hasfre- British Experts Picture Men nington. There are few of his ten- Voices of Those ants there who have not: at some time • LongDead or other' been startled to find the landlord at the door in the shape of London.—The voices of famous men an equerry with the abrupt announce- who have spoken over the radio are me nt "the Prince The Prltroe at Work. So m ech for the public aspect of his day's work. What of his day's work in York House at present and before long :in Marlborough House?,, In theory the Prince should give his orders to the controller, who should pass them on to the competent officer or servant, but in practice• he main- tains about the same omonnt of state as does any other English gentleman with a large establishment. If he is giving a dinner he is quite ` likely to send for his chef to tell him in person what he wants on the menu. If he has bought a new car the country is not likely to be thrown into a crisis It he goes out to the garage to look at it. Such state as he does keep is the result of the sheer value' of work which pours onto him. His mail . is world-wide in its scope and is on every conceivable subject. It is always answered or acknowl edged promptly, usually on` the day' it is received, aiid anybody whohas ever had occasion to deal with any member of his staff knows the mili- tary precision which characterizes it. In addition to that part of his ordin- ary mail which has to -be taken to hint, the ;prince has the drafts of his speeches to correct, and in the case o fa 'big speech, as any public speak- er knows, the mere 'correction of a written draft is not a small job, 'Quite apart° from other considerations it would be a physical impossibility for him to write all his speeches himself. It would take too much time and too wide a knowledge, for each is written to suit its occasion and reugiree at least some acquaintance with the time and place concerned. All ar- rangements for his engagements have also to go to him, for they treugegntly have to be fitted into an already crowded day. They always, involve Weeks of advance preparation on the part of his Hosts, and once made they have to be kept and kept literally to the minute, of Wales." still wandering in the ether_ and if He has often been dgacribed as a' wireless development continues at the "democratic" Prince. "Democratic present rate they may be picked up a as thus used, is perhaps a little hundred years hence, according to en - vague: His tenants he regards as'the gineering experts of the Marconi Co.. best type of British officer regards Experimental wireless messages his men, and when his turn comes to practice .the most difficult of all the arts, the art of modern kingship," his relation to his subjects will continue to be that of an officer to his men. Such a relationship pre -supposes a thorough knowledge of his men and, with the exception of his father, his knowledge of the country and the em= pire is probably as wide as any man's. It is derived from leaders themselves both at home and overseas.' When the court circular announces that this or that diplomat or politician has been received by the Prince of Wales, it is of .course never stated what the talk was about, but one does not have to be deeply versed in the Prince's temperament to feel that he tore into his visitor in search of in- formation nformation with " the same restless vigor as he tears into a chukker of polo. t:• Who eats all the English. walnuts? The California erop this year alone is estimated as worth $16,000,000. This would indicate that walnuts on the half shell are nudging the oyster for a unique distinction. Spring this one ou your future "in- laws"—"What's - the difference be- tween a father and a mother? .t 'ns- wer:-A father Is one who is afraid that every young fellow who calls at the house is trying to marry hisle "Does your son run a business?. daughter. A motheris one who 3s eta, he makes a buslneay of run afraid that he is not. ling a car." His London Estate. Private business matters also go to hint. if one of his tenants in Corn- wall wants a new teat on hie barn, his letter is quite likely to have the Prince's comment added to it betel' it is passed on. to the Duchy otiietals, Ills only reondon ,Property happenll to lie in the sturnei of Kenniurrtotl, and sent out by the new beam station at the hawk and the buzzard generally Dorchester are picked up at Rocky keep within five miles of water. Their feeding habits are such -that they have to drink and wash their bills. The traveller who sees these 'meat -eating birds circling high may be pretty well assured that they are foraging in a circle out from a water -hole orhave been disturbd by something upon the ground. It is wise to make in a direct line toward • them, - with an eye to a trail underfoot, especially in a cattle coun- try; but there will be a coyote or other animal trail and ,this will even- tually lead to water. All trails to water will come together just as the roots of a tree converge at the central \ bole; and although the first trail may be slender and remote from the indi- cated spot, if followed in that direc- tion it will join a larger trail and water will be found at the end. Desert °VWater and Desert Birds sunburned down upon him, the heat; As :a part of creation the desert le wares from the sand and.moo were; not dented to span; but for travel up- torturespme, and he know that he' on it water and experience are abso- meat And water 'soon or he would go; lutely necessary. They go hand in crazy,;: hand, Where, then,. was the nearest watery •,Bidden water can almost always ba, The desert sparrows pitted and twits found by study of the habits of the tared, but they signified little, they did not delude lt►tm. Look, howevert' desert animals. The annuals have Instinct; bestowed upon theca by Na- There was an eagle, winging through, tura for' their proteotion.' We humans the hot blue. He laid his course tor have ilia reasoning mind. The mind the eagle, and after a time he noted can do much when directed by some an animal trail, slim and faint. The l clew or when upon familiar ground, eagle .was circling; presently It die». but eonfr`ont it loth the strange and appeeared behind a"hill ahead, the dominant, and then we mast ad- He made for the hill. A tempting' mit that instinct is there its superior. mirage, Picturing an azure lake, would That is the. case upon the desert: beckon him to the right, but hi re - Instinct teaches the animals not to solutely denied it and toiled on in a take chances. For instance,' if an straight line. As he climbed, the hill: animal his driven off a trail it positive- the rttirage vanished.. From the top; ly will' come back to, the trail sooner of the hill he saw a cottonwood tred,! on before by a long, long two miles. orwater,reIr birdst are frightened from The eagle seemedeto be circling above where water is scarce, you will note them returning,' one after an it in wide swoops. other, to the spot, to sing only When Water! He knew better than to try,,,, settled and contented again.' - to run, amid that fearful blinding heat. , But could he make the goal? ' The desert traveler ' 'should learn- . the ways of the' birds.- Certain native At the foot of the hill the,animal trails birds will not venture out from water, increased. Then lie lost'. them. for others will range various distances his eyes were dry and dimmed, sear from^ it. Birds of plumage, and song ed by the sun; his lips were swollen birds with a few''exceptions, do not and his tongue- was like parchment. go farther than a . half -mile from Re dragged" himself more slowly; I water. These birds seem unable to heard the little voice of a song -bird, find new water, for it has been proved and by that sensed that there was that if their wonted water . supply water within a mile. dries up, they perish. Could he hold oht He put his mind+ When -upon a desert flat pr in the to work, and determined that he arid mountains a bird is heard sing- woul dreach the water. Oh, for a mo. ing, then, as a rule, water is at hand. went of shade, to relieve him from It may be down in.a deserted• mining that cruel sun. Through merely an shaft, it may be a spring, and it may instant a •.wisp of 'cloud tempeeed the be a pool deposited among the rocks heat, and encouraged him. His lege by the rain. - were weakening, he, scarcely could If this water is where the larger see, but he managed to stagger' to a - animals can get at it then• trails will tall mesquite shrub, in whose narrow, lead to it; but -if it is .in the rocks, thin shadow he lay gasiying. high up beyond the peach by hoof' and Listen! •' The lilt of happy'song- paw then the only signs for guidance birds in the cottonwood told him that will be the streaks of bird droppings, water was near, perhaps within two showing that the birds are constant hundred yards. The songs guided visitors to the place. Otherwise the him,' until he tell wallowing in a• ehal water might be missed entirely; but low pool; ; drank sparingly..' waited, Orals. again, and thanked. the gods of 'there itis, cold and abundant, ne held theexert fol" their gift of the desert' in the 'crevices of the sandstone and birds. granite.- Tom_ The desert sparrow, however, ranges twenty miles from water when in KING MICKEY MAD quest of food. consequently hepcan- Rises, to His Royal Rights not be depended .upon But the eagle, William A. Robinson Point LI., e sixteenth of a second later. ' What becomes of those messages, is asked. They are never lost, radio en- gineers say .and -stay go on forever, growing- fainter and fainter as time passes. The Marconi Co. has actually trap- ped messdiges after they have passed a third time around the earth. It is not impossible, they say, that fifty years hence the voices of men long dead may be stilil wandering about and be picked up by sensitive instruments. Ci• 'r1E RAN A CSAR • . Should a cottonwood tree be sight- ed, the heart may be gladdened; for the tree cannot live 'without mois- ture for its root's, and is an indication that water is somewhere near, either beneath the surface or upon the sur- face.. - Let us take the actual case of a tra- veler who has learned the desert signs: Ile has halted' in the midst' of the torrid sandy, and rocky plain to suck the last drop' from his canteen. The scanty draught was warni, but it. was wet—tantalizingly wet, The midday "ADAMSON'S ADVENTURES"—By O. Jacobson. ,„*.IrkitjA'S s:b71474***71 I;e4 t s A Good TIM* They !ere Empty. When He Is Not Permit- ted to Join Boys in Play'. "Madame, I am the King!" was the admonition given Princess Helen by her six-year-old son, King Michael of Rumania, when sheetold him to. "be good" and not to'go "to play with those boys." i The mother and the . boy King had gone riding in' the royal' coach in the streets of Bucharest, according to the Bucharest newspaper ' Dimineata of Nov. 22, and Michaelnoticed a group of youngsters - plating. He wanted to join them, and PRucess Helen told bim to stay where he was. Michael's consciousness of his position assert. ed itself, and he reminded his mother to whom.she was talking. Probably fearing , a possible .strain in relations between Rumanian moth' mond, boys, the newspaper does not toll' whether the King had his way. Tile newspaper relates: that the for- mality with which Michael is now • treated" makes him at"tlmes very un• happy. His old friends, employees about the palace, instead of •playing with him as they used to, tip their hats and curtsey, and the boy King does .- not enjoy himself as much as he did before the crown became his. Incidentally, Michael is very fond of the crown and has more than once asked that it be added' to his large store of toys. . He'd like to carry it around with him and convince the. skeptical that he is indeed the sove- reign. It took hours of expostulation with him to reconcile 10m to wearing anything else on his head than the crown. The King Is not at all tractable when bedtime comes. He had recent- ly disturbed a c'onterence of the re- gency by coming into the palace hall late at night Whet? every one thought he was asleep and demanding that he be perved some sweets. Tho re- gency interceded in his behalf, and he had his way, but soon was Tushed back to bed. "Hubby's plugging • to the past. enables 'Whir to plug in the pray- ant. r Let us always remember that no- tniiig befalls its that is not of the nag turn of tnl'selves.