The Kalispell bee. [volume] (Kalispell, Mont.) 1900-192?, 1902-01-18
BRILLIANT SPECTACLE.
King and Queen of England Ride in
State to Parliament.

London, Jan. liking Edward
opened parliament yesterday with
ceremonial in all essential respects
similar to that of February last. The
procession to the house of lords was
of the same character as that wit
messed on the occasion of the opening
of the first parliament of King Ed
wards reign, while within the upper
house were seen the same state pa
geantry, the same historic dress and
the same revival of ancient forms.
The scene in the gilded chamber
was very brilliant. State officers, am
bassadors and ministers in handsome
uniforms and peers and peresses in
varicolored robes filled every nook.
The king, beneath his robes, wore
field marshal's uniform. The
queens dress was of black velvet,
surmounted by robe trimmed with
ermine. The peeresses wore ostrich
feathers in their hair and were richly
clad in evening robes of the most
varied colors, white satin, however,
predominating. The display of jewels
was unusually dazzling.
The crowds which lined the route
from Buckingham palace to Westmln-
ster to view the procession, were not
nearly so large as on the occasion OF
the last opening of parliament.
Guardsmen, assisted by hundreds of
police, kept the spectators back, but
they had little to do. Only a few at
tempts at decorations were visible.
For once royalty was late, and
when the king and queen drove out
from the court yard in front of Buck
ingham palace they were 20 minutes
behind time, and King Edward was
still struggling with an unruly glove.
Their majesties were greeted en-
Enthusiastically AS they sat in the
great state coach. whose gilded pima
Gle brushed the boughs of the trees
in the green park, King Edward -.
Queen Alexan ira looked for all the
world like painting of Henry
VIII, and one of his better looking
spouses. They bowed, somewhat
wildly from their huge gold and glass
frame which shook and reeled On =.
ancient springs like ship In
storm. The king and queen both
looked extraordinarily well, but her
majesty appeared to be in especially
good health.
What with the two central figures
so easily seen and SO gorgeously clad,
and the brilliant escort of life guards,
whose bands kept constantly playing,
the public were rewarded for their
siderable interest. In so far as unre-
strained public enthusiasm was con-
cerned, it was nothing to what oc-
Cured earlier in the day, when the
guards reinforcements left their bar
racks en- route to South Africa
The guardsmen tramped through
the dark streets from Etropolis at 6
o'clock in the morning, accompanied
by an uproarious mob of civilian
friends, singing songs to the accom-
paniement of the band. The songs
and music, however, did not drown
the crying women, who chung to the
necks and arms of almost every man
of the contingent.
After robing. King Edward and
Queen Alexandra entered the house
of peers and occupied their thrones,
beneath a canopy, with the Prince
and Princess of Wales on either side
of them The other members of the
royal family were seated on chairs
at the foot of the steps leading to
the throne. The gentleman usher of
the black rod, General Sir Michael
Biddulph, having summoned the
speaker and the members of the
house of commons, his majesty read
the speech from the throne.
The only departure from the ex-
tremely decorous character of the
opening of parliament occurred when
the king referred to the humanity of
the British troops in South Africa.
This led to an unprecedented scene
in the house of lords. Peers and