Today, the day upon which his birthday is officially celebrated, King George VI will cross the boundaries of the United States, the first British monarch to have done so. That unprecedented event, coming at the end of what has been a triumphal tour of the Canadian Dominion, may very well serve to cement the good understanding which fortunately now prevails between the British Empire and the United States, and if His Majesty and his Consort succeed in endearing themselves to the people he is visiting, it will be because of the charm of the couple, and their embodiment of those virtues which are so dear to right-thinking people. His Majesty possesses those.
.... King-becoming graces, As justice, verity, temperance, stableness, Bounty, perseverance, mercy, lowliness, Devotion, patience, courage, fortitude while of the Queen, it can safely be said that she has -all the royal makings of a Queen; holy oil, Edward Confessor's crown, The rod, and bird of peace, and all such emblems Laid nobly on* her.
1f the people of the United States were of the same mind as they were in 1769, when Junius wrote "they equally detest the pageantry of a king and the supercilious hypocrisy of a bishop," then His Majesty would be running some risk of incurring unpopularity in visiting them as a monarch. But it is clear that it is in the humanity of these two, called upon to surrender their lives to the welfare of their people, that their greatest appeal is to be found to the hearts of that nation of which today they will for a short while be the honoured guests. He goes to them indeed as a king, but as a very human person withal, and a simplicity of manner which should reach the hearts of a people with whom simplicity is still an important ideal.
For the rest with due pageantry which the British love,—and so do the Americans, if the attendance at the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace means anything at all,—this day will be celebrated in all those lands which bear allegiance to His Majesty. For twenty-four hours, all over that Empire on which the sun never sets, there will be ceremonial necessary to the observance of this important day, and practically at every moment there will somewhere or other be said those words of good wishes and loyalty which His Majesty has inspired in the hearts of his people. It is no easy matter to be a king; it involves a life of self-sacrifice, devotion to ideals and resolution to carry out the heavy burdens which are inevitably the lot of a man who is called upon to accept so high an office, for as Carlyle has so rightly remarked "Every noble crown is and on Earth will forever be, a crown of thorns." This year since this anniversary was last observed has been an anxious one; crises have come and gone, with threats of others to follow. They have been met with that fortitude and calmness which His Majesty in his own person knows so well how to inspire, by that discipline which he himself obeys, for when a king ascends his throne he becomes "slave in his father's stead." Indeed when the amount of territory which Their Majesties have already covered in their present tour, the enormous number of official functions they have had to attend, the wholesale demands which have been made upon their time, and the graciousness with which they have borne their burdens are considered it is sometimes nothing short of marvellous that they have been able to stand the strain. Today as they enter the United States they are embarking upon a new phase of their mission. They go to a people who owe them no allegiance save that which can be extended to men of good will no matter what their race or rank may be. Their every act and word will be watched and heard with keen, but sympathetic interest, and if as a result of their stay there they manage to endear themselves to their hosts in the same manner in which they have captivated the affection of their own subjects there will not be many Britons who will be surprised.
It will come as a result of those qualities of kingship which Ben Jenson so accurately summed up in the following Princes that would their people should do well Must at themselves begin, as at the head; For men by their example pattern out Their imitations, and regard of laws; A virtuous court a world to virtue draws.
The King and Queen have about them all those virtues which, while some men may scoff at them, are nevertheless held in reverence and esteem. In their lives, in their family they embody the ideals of millions of people in the Empire, in the United States, nay 1n the whole world where those things which are of good repute are treasured and maintained. This man who thus celebrates his third birthday upon the throne took up a task which was rendered all the more difficult by the splendid example which had been set him by his revered and beloved father and mother. It was not a light task to endeavour to follow in foot-Steps such as theirs, and it speaks well for His Majesty's early training, and sterling character, that in the short time he has been a monarch, he has met every expectation. It is impossible to believe that any other man could have done better. The appraise ing gaze of the people who saw him drawn unexpectedly into the fierce light in which he has now to live out his life has changed to one of satisfaction in the knowledge that the Empire has at its head a man whose nobility of character must remain for it an ever potent inspiration. In Shanghai today there will be many functions to celebrate the King's birthday, and many a loyal toast wil be drunk with the wish that he may be spared many years during which to reign over the peoples who love and respect him. The British community of Shanghai, fully realizing all it has gone through and may yet have to face, is solid in the recognition of the qualities of the man to whom they look as the head of the state to which they belong. They are proud of being British subjects, and if it is at all possible, prender still of being able to give allegiance to such a man.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.