The Life of King Edward VII
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