The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1937-01-26
hing witbcut q country &C.! :!.;:. G.

years ago, as crown prince. He
climbed on q granite abutment so
that he could look over the throng,
and waited.
Far of, at last, he heard the
sound Of music and cheering, The
noise came in intermittent bursts,
at first, and then swelled to a
steady tide Of sound, given rhythm
by the blood-stirring pulse of
drums. 1t came nearer, and an
electric current seemed to pass
through the waiting crowd. they
could make out now the tramp Of
marching feet, the blare Of trum-
pets and the shrill scream of the
flies, and a wave Of cheering came
sweeping in toward them as the
people hailed their king.
There it came, at last, down the
street on the far side Of the open
common. The regimentai band OF
a famous regiment Of regulars = a
regiment that had fought the
kings was for three centuries,
and had the names Of great bat
ties and obscure ones inscribed on
its banners-swung into view. After
1t came the regulars themselves,
trim and grimly elegant in blue and
white, their gathered ankles twink
ling, their rifles sloped with profess
sional exactitude, something elated
and confident shining forth from
the way they held their heads, the
way they swung their left arms.
A mist came into Paul's eyes
as he watched them. His amber
spectacles logged, and he impa-
tiently jerked them off and thrust
them into hts pocket. He had been
honorary colonel of this regiment.
They were his men; he knew all
of the officers and half of the men.
They were great men and a great
regiment; he looked on with a
lump in his throat as the steady
blue ranks swept past him, the
taunty caps bobbing over bronzed
faces.
Then, as the rS&1 mounted to a
crescendo, there came an open
touring car. Standing In the ton
neau was slight, straight figure
in a plain business suit, bare
headed, a white, earnest face look
ing out over the town Joseph,
King of Northumbra.
The car moved abreast. 1nstinc-
lively, Paul snatched of his hat
and held 1t over his heart. He
stood in an exposed position, and
his sudden movement must have
caught the royal eye; Joseph
turned his head and looked
squarely at him, and Paul saw a
start Of quick recognition. Then
the car moved on again, COM
pany Of local militia filled the
gap behind 1t - and the royal pa
geant had passed.
Paul climbed down. The crowd
was surging down the street, fol-
lowing the parade, to find a place
by the waterfront where the cere-
mony of breaking ground for the
new coal dock was to take place.
For want of anything better to do,
he followed.
This, he told himself, was a kings
only function to be ornamental
at public occasions like this; the
laying of cornerstones, the unveil-
ing Of statues, and the like. Well,
he would 60 along and see how Jo-
seph did 1t. II 1t was all a king
could do, 1t at least ought to be
done well. He would have a look at
1t.
He followed the crowd, and came
out presently In an open space on
the waterfront. The morning was
gray, but the sun was trying to
shine; and even as Paul entered
the open space, and found place
in the packed ranks, a sudden ray
of light pierced the clouds and lit
up the bunting-draped stand where
royalty had just taken its place.
The crowd took 1t as an omen and
roared approval. Then a band
struck up the national anthem,
heads were barred, and the whole
city became silent as its people lift
ed their voices IN song.
Paul saw the sight figure step
TO the front Of the platform and
begin to speak. The first words
were lost; then a shift Of the wind,
or a diminution in t he noises of
the crowd, let them through, and
he heard Joseph saying:
". and like to think that
what we are doing here is to be-
gin a new battle-not a battle
against external foes, but a new
fight in the age-old campaign
against the eternal enemies Of our
race; hunger, want, cold and
misery.
1.-THE English had great poet,
William Blake, and he wrote some
great lines which I think we can
borrow for our own nation. Let me