2 MAY 1931, Page 1

News of the Week The Return of the Prince of

Wales TilE Prince of Wales and Prince George are very wel- 71- come home after their long tour in the West Indies and South America. With the additional method of trans- port by air the Prince must by now have surpassed as a traveller his august Father, whom Lord Curzon once addressed as the most travelled monarch since the Emperor Hadrian. The value of these journeys is immense. We like to think of the encouragement of British residents in remote places like La Paz when they exchanged greetings with the Prince : and the visits to the Crown Colonies were not wasted. The nominal purpose of the tour, the opening of the British Exhibition at Buenos Aires, was a success that has led to more success. It charmed South Americans and also spurred_ British manufacturers to seek foreign markets with more zeal and imagination. Already we hear of new designs in motor cars suitable for foreign; markets. k is too late to be confident that British typal are best and foreigners can take them or leave them. It puts a strain on Monarchy when the Heir to the Throne is called by way of a compliment " our best bagman" or "best advertiser." Can it be done without loss of dignity and vulgarization ? But we have no right to complain when the Prince follows the tradition of his family in shirking no trouble, however exhausting, to serve his country in any way suggested to him.