The Washington herald., 1922-06-25
By SIR PHILIP GIBBS.

LONDON, June 24.-For a time, as
mentioned last week. there is a
perceptible pause between the acts
of our international drama. The
great political players have retired
behind the scenes, the curtain has
been rung down. the great world
public Is glad of a respite from the
sensational melodrama In which too
many crises happen to shake the
nerves. This certainly is the mood
Of England. Few people take the
slightest interest in the proceedings
of The Hague Conference which
comes as an anticlimax to Genoa.
They are heartily glad there is still
another chance of peace in Ireland.
Fine weather. the hearty country
side, the fixed belief that they are
pulling away from the days buoys
up British with more optimism than
/ have known among them during
the past two years. They are get
ting holiday spirit and don't want
to be bothered with serious prob
lens. such as future war OF inter-
national finance.
Prince Brings Cheer.
The Homecoming of the Prince OF
Wales is one cause of cheerfulness
and satisfaction to all classes in
English life. To foreigners 1t may
seem absurd to say the return of the
boy prince should be a source of
happiness and peace of mind To
millions of humble men and women
in mean streets and small villages
who have never seen him. Yet /
think IT is true that just this well
come back to the prince who has
been travelling in the Far East has
uplifted the spirit of men going to
city offices and women putting their
children to bed, young girls tapping
over typewriters. all manner of men
and women of high and low degree.
One may scoff at that as exactly
the sentiment of the British people
for royalty. or jeer at it as the snoh
instinct of race. But l think there
is more in il than that. The Prince
of Wales by his name and title
stands certainly for the old tradi-
tions of splendor power and ro-
nance which belonged for centuries
to British folk and can't be for
gotten so long as they read the
plays of Shakespeare, the Chroni-
cles of Froissart and the hero OF
old tales of their history.
Faced Danger In East.
Those traditions seemed threat
ened lately. The prince himself on
that journey of his to India, and
to the East has had to face threats
dangerous to his life and menacing
to the empire. There were times
lately when ugly messages or at
least messages containing hints Of
sinister happenings, came from the
correspondents in. Indian cities so
that people at home were afraid OF
accidents" to that boy who went
unarmed except by the CHEEKY smile
through cities in revolt. Reading
between the lines there was not a
soul in England who did not realize
that rebellion on a great scale in
India was possible and that the loss
of India would be the beginning Of
the breaking up of the empire it,
self.
With Ireland demanding a repub-
lie. fighting murderously between
north and south: with England
drained in blood and treasure after
the enormous devastating warfare,
there was apprehension that the
old tradition of power which gath
cred round the name of the Prince
Of Wales in history might be pass
ing, like so many other things in
the aftermath of Armageddon.
Those thoughts, vague and uncon-
scious in the popular mind. account
a little for the sign of relief that
comes from the British people be-
cause he came back again without
hurt and left behind him good will
wherever he went in his jaunty
way.
Quality of BOyhOod.
But more than that is in the per-
sonal manner which calls out vast
crowds to greet him. He in a par
ticular way is our own boy. He
rpresents those very qualities of
boyhood which all the world loves.
He is the very type of all those
legions of English boys who went
out to war in France and Flanders.
as he went with them. If he were
better than they he would not be
liked half so well. II he were
nobler he would not be so much in
the home circle of peoples hearts.
II might be good for the British
empire If he were a brainy. stu
dious youth like Queen Victoria's
prince cOnsort. but nobody suspects
Wales of being passionately de-
voted to scholarship.
He might be of an exalted spir-
itual type, earnestly engaged in the
prayer that he may fulfill his high
destiny and lead his people to
new light. But one look at the
CHEEKY face in street or movies is
enough to dispel any idea like that.
He is not intensely spiritual. or In
any way exalted. He is always
ready to give place to a pretty
girl. he is keen at any kind of out
door game. He is enormously
bored with the ceremony and ritual
of royalty.
BIushes Like Girl.
He fidgets about on his feet when
he is called upon to make a speech;
he blushes like a school girl when
any solemn homage is paid to him:
he says hell In an undertone when
his boredom becomes intolerable
But he isn't in the very least bored
when there is something to laugh
at. something new to see, some
thing with spice or risk in IT,
He is a second lieutenant, "the
one-pip child" as we called his type
in the war. He has a touch of the
naval MILDLY about him which is a
very good touch. He Is breezy,
full of pluck, out for lark every
time. He is a human boy. And he
Is to every mother of men in Eng
land, every father of soldier sons,
Just one of those lads, though by
chance prince of them. who fought
fhrnnoh the Ella ndarr