1959-03-06 — Page 11

SUPPLEMENT OF THE CHINA MAIL FRIDAY, MARCH 6, 1959.

Page

Philip's Astonishing Triumph

I

N just a fortnight Prince Philip's visit to India snowballed from a cautious, officially- described "scientific" visit to a tremendous, triumphal tour with garlande, garlands all the way. For it served in a remarkable way to help millions of Indians to remember, revive, and express a feeling for Britain far deeper than is often appreciated in Britain.

7,000,000 Indians have seen instead of handing them to an him. Not because, when he A.D.C.

to be posred. they happened waiting for buses, held up in a trame Jam, or simply sloshing througli paddy fields along his route.

But because they have said in one or other of India's many tongues: "The husband of the Queen Is coining let's wait and wave to him."

I don't know who was most surprised by the reception given visli

to this rai British royal since the Prince of Wales here in 1921.

was

that

But the conclusion is anyone who thought India's self-chosen status as a republic,

Then he realised that it te went even further hb eauld give immense pleasure. He garlanded welcomers with the his own garlunds from his own neck. This was a tremendous success.

At the week-end in Madras, colourful like mil warm and southern glaces, he was stopped to be gorlanded 40 times in single drive.

*

Once he stopped his car to garland a tiny, abashed beauty of seven. All the rest, tossed back among the crowd and ripped to single blooms, will be pressed and cherished for years.

In Madras and Bangalore,

or brutal reverance from them where he flew to Cal

itia, the typical trimphol irches lo the south were all decked

with painted plaster statues of the Hindu gods presid- ing over the gilded bannered wording that said: "Long live the Queen. Long live the Re- public."

British Crown almost 11 year ayo could erase 200 years of auffering respect, endeavour, and growth together of the

To the average Indian who Indian and the 'English people, put up those arches, the Queen, the Head of the Commonwealth nas badly out of touch with

and the Republic all go together both of then,

-even along with Sive and Vishnu and the rest.

Reason for the welcome: It wes that Prince. Philip come as the husband of Elizabeth 1 of England, Head of the Com- monwealth,

Crowds

IN Delhi I made the experiment of asking a cross-section of the crowd lining what used to be India's Mall, and is now call ed Raj Path, whom they were walling to see.

Acclaim

To those who, like myself, have been trailing along with the Prince, the reception has not been any less algnificant. Just as a reporter of indin is welcome to the Prince, I have been given privleges which have sometimes been difficult to avald without giving offerice. I have never needed to produce the wad of passes or permits I have had in my pocket,

by SYDNEY SMITH

who, at the time, was in CALCUTTA

I didn't get any funny No credit to myself-just answers. From women; the untouchables

the

in claim

sweeper, the festivál of warm c- that followB the those who fol-

1

their saffron and yellow cotton sarls with bare feet and silver- Prince and bangled ankles their Sunday low him.

people the best, in effect-to with numbered tickets, I got fair annver."The Queen's hus- band"

THE

Garlands

TH coyness

among

Take this example and take it as something for all English men. In Madras because it was learned that I once was a pilet in the Royal Air Force, I re- ceived a call from the Indian Air Force station commander, Group Captain Karlie Sarkar,

the pilot and officer who fought gal-

Prince's staff about this lantly with Britain, during the Your being i test for for a Toyota tour by the Queen herself has now worn of.

At first, they hedged on this question. Now the only qualifies tion is this: "It cannot be before

He asked me to the regular Sunday party at his mess- usually a rather formal affair. 1 apologised, because I had only a white open- short-sleeved necked bunk jacket and no time

the winter of '00-61 for reasons to change.

of organisation-but how are we I went to the wiess. The greamp, going to try to control the captain and all his officer wore crowds? On the basis of

theby order open-nocked short- Prince's reception, it will be sleeved bush Jackets exactly

like mine. I was in order.. unmanageable.”

Apart from that prob On a far greater scale, lem, which can surely be though never warmer nor overcome, the Queen's visit more, sincere, that is what to India is assured.

Prince Philip has met

The officiel basis for the and inspired, throughout Philip visit-ambiguous and India-the old

companion- discreet-hows up the omazing lack of understanding at home ship and now the friend- of Britain's credit anong some ship of people who belong of our shorpest old Congress to the Commonwealth and enemies, ́now our way good call the Queen Its Head

frienda.

The Prince came to India on the technical excuse of boing. past president of the British delegate Association and chief

to the Indian Selence Congress. *

Just to make this atick, he was accompanied round · India by his technical afficiat host, Profekor. Thacker, India's top scientific and cultural Icoder.

So whichever way it went. and in case`the response was noi noticeable, there was always a sufo Cowest lo explain it.

This nervous, cautious,, quail- ned satus of the Prince's vinte has been knocked for a loop by thie dveropa Indian, who has rushed to hail" not the man. of aricoce at the Queen's husband,

The Frince was at first bedly briefed on elementary Indian counties. He was irritated by garlanda, and heaved thers oft „liku i-anyte embarrassed... 'naval omger. When he smutired - tiow anach they meant hề -toned theen babicamana tha “provede

-London Express Strulce.

LEFT LONDON AIRPORT ON JAN. 20

RETURN APRIL 30

4 weeks tour

of India and Pakistan

DELHI

RANGOON

HONGKONG

SINGAPORE

SARAWAK

GILBERT IS.

ELLICE ISLANDS

BRUNEI N. BORNEO

SOLOMON IS

CHRISTMAS I.

The Tour Of India In Pictures

It was a tremendous, triumphal tour with garlands, garlands all the way

..and.

the picture above Illustrates how Indians of all ages reacted to the Queen's huaband,

·ABOVE:" The Duke of Edinburgh admiring a richly, caparisoned elephant while being taken round the City Palace, Jaipur, by the Maharaja of Taipur, who is acen beside him in the picture

LEFT: The Governor of

• Madras," Skri: „Vishnuram Medi, gave a dinner an honour of the Dukolat Raj Bhavan in Madras which was followed by a Bharat Nalt von daure, recitat "by Shrimati Koyela Laxman And her klarer Kumori Radha Photo shows the #uka"meeting the dancers

ofter the

BY AIR

BAHAMAS

BERMUDA

PANAMA CANAL

BY BRITANNIA ...

|PRANKS AND BOYCOTTS

HIGHLIGHT

HIS VISIT TO SINGAPORE

T

Singapore. by David T. K. Wong

HE most enthusias-

tic welcome ever given to any visit- ing dignitary was ac corded the Duke of Edinburgh by the people.

this sun-drenched colony during his three- day visit here.

of

Crowds of up to 200,000 gathered to chemc him wherever he went and they broke security cordons time and again merely to get a closer look at him,

Such warm reception, prob. ably the waitrest he has received so far during his current tour, was surprising in view at this Irland's pronouneed leftist öm- pathies which tend to make i look upon royalty proletarian disdain

It was the Duke's Brať visit here. An earlier visit he was to have made in 1856 bed to be cancelled because of an out- break of rioting.

of

Threatened boycolle fonctions honouring the Duke either failed to materialiss or kad little effect.

ALL TURN UP

."

Before the Duke's arrival, a number of Legislative Assembly- boycott an men threatened to functions because their names not included, to the lat

were

for presentation to the Duke..

But all eventually turned up.

{

The Duke meets controversial Mayor Ong Eng Guen, of Singapore,

City Council turned up in full force when the Duke paid his scheduled visit to the City Council.

PS

J

mistiming and unco-ordinated movements,

There was some booing as the vast crowds watching from afar Indeed, Mayor Üns, who did not know a prank was being had in the past attacked the played. All they could see was wearing of neckties "Colonial" habit, even

Kalde his convictions and wore one himself ma royalty.

Two of the

PAP of Malaya.

a small group moving hopelessly, set put of time in front,

The Duke and other dignitaries conomion to were laughing heartily at the

entica of the undergraduates, most amusing and at the end of the rally, the

The only boycott that was aspects of the Duke's visit con- Duke turned the tables on the carried out was that announced aisted of pranks staged by the pranksters by saying over the by the wii-People's Action undergraduates of the Univassity microphone:

"I am sure the aridinle, Three Party

(PAP)

The University had extended boardge gentlemen from the Assemblymen falled to turn up for either the State Banquet an invitation to the Duke to University of Malaya will bene- given by the Chief Minister, Melik ja -oámpur, Alte bespuseft. great legt-from-the delli ---- Lim Yow Hock, or the Garden of the Duke's crowded schedule, they have performed this after- Party at Government House. the invitation had to be de noon," To that the crowda rez-`

In a policy statement in the clined.

ponded with loud applouse, PAP organPetir, under the Consequently, As the Duke, title of "Or Cabbages and and his entourage passed the Kings," the party had said: University of Malaga on his way "The Duke te to the colonlat to the Kranji War Cemetery on symbol the afternoon of his dest day peoples of the empire)

of the overlordship of the Bri- here, they were met by a

tish Ral.

"One aspect of our fight for Merdeka iar a fight against this British overlordship.

cavalcade of cara, completo with motorcycle outriders, escorting a fival "Duke "

The rival "Duke," who was "When we attain Merdeka standing in an open ear, was a dashing. braided We will welcome members of the wearing British royal family da symbola uniform, dark glasses and of the bonds that hold together Japanese sumurai swordt. 'free' and independent members

of the Commonweal

flowever, the boycott was hot complate for the PAP Mayor, Mr. Ong Eng Guah together with elbers, PAF, menbers of the

GATECRASHED

BAD TASTE.

However, on the third day, when the Duke-formally opened Singapore's new

number of Polytechnic.

stunts

ex-

students perpetrated which were both cessive and in bad tanu. ***

They padlocked the main gates just as the guests were arriving and the police had 20 saw through the lock to allow them in. They aiạo thưêw- sand- crackers all over the lobby and rated a false Are, alarm whichi Posters proclaimed him as sent two fire engines tearing "the Duke of Chancart, after into the Folytechnic Just as the the Dunearn Road. Hestel where Duko was arriving.

undergraduates the setting off of a long striag But the worst ajunt of all was some of the were hound.

The two muitor polumns of crackers just as the national kept abryant of one another bathom was being played, when the Governor. Bir Far Idus rullon“ daring whiola the Duke,

Goode, the Chief time the Duke appeared much William

exchanged: Minister, Mr Lin Yow Hock, other, 'dignitaries werH

growlings with his rival, and

Lange in the afternoon, when standing at attention. thé: Dulq, was returning; trom the War Cemetery, the rival "Duke? was there again, now

Tut all in all, it was a highly

oceantud visit, and many hoped that the visit would be a pre-

standing on a dals and accom ludo to ons by the Queen.

Other highlights' of the three- panied with a band playing day stay included:

* Be the Thalko drova part, tha HIGHLIGHTS

› rivši "Luke” saluted, and Prince PRESENTATION of a 48-feet Philip took up in his Rollie Jong Hongkong-made tapestry stayos to acknowledge, the to the Thike by the Exposition Committee of the Chiness FaThe following day about 80 Chamber of Commerce on the

Undergraduates from: Names: fist nightc fatt Hal - Enother one of University, USAMEINIZEAZ T-Coutro rastdential, colleger, Cantonese dinner complete with aliark's, on and romus auckling 1900 hora and playon the second; night. The

and 1024 Kikas for the first: une bử thè

INGGUAN DE UNSCHEDULED... Inta

nichi viets to the food, stalla, in?