CHAPTER XXIII
SOVEREIGN OF ENGLAND AND INDIA
Immediately after our arrival Queen Kapiolani sent messages of congratulations to Her Majesty Victoria, Queen of Great Britain and Empress of India; and arrangements were made for us to present our felicitations in person at Buckingham Palace on Monday at one o’clock in the afternoon, At twelve precisely of that day, Queen Victoria and her suite entered London, coming from Scotland where she had been residing for some time. The streets were thronged with people anxious to catch a glimpse of their beloved sovereign. Strange it seemed to me at the time to learn that many who had grown from youth to age in London during a whole lifetime had never seen their queen, Accompanied by her favorite daughter Beatrice and her husband, Prince Henry of Battenberg, the queen was driven to Buckingham Palace, preceded by a detachment of her celebrated Life Guards, outriders from the same regiment being detailed for each side of Her Majesty’s carriage.
When the hour approached for us to go and meet her, an officer came from the palace; and Queen Kapiolani and I, attended by Colonel Iuakea and Mr. Synge, took our departure for the hall of the reception. We
