BROAD RED CARPET

Royalty in England itself. No one could travel in the Indian
provinces without hearing caustic stories—not least from modest-
minded Governors who had to participate in and help pay for
these unwanted splendours—of the personal staff of a dozen or
more and the trainload of military and domestic staff with which
even recent Viceroys habitually toured.

In official circles in India, sartorial prescription far outlasted
similar practices in England. Until shortly before the outbreak of
World War II tail coats had to be worn, not only by those attend-
ing meetings of the Governor-General's Executive Council,, but
also by Members and Secretaries having their regular official
interviews with His Excellency. There was great scandal among
the traditionalists in India when Pandit Jawarharlal Nehru de-
clared in a public speech in 1942 that the war would not be won
by those who changed into dinner jackets for dinner every even-
»ing, but there was a nasty bite of truth in his aphorism.

All this is water over the dam, which we may rue but cannot
recall. It has, however, its lessons for other parts of the Empire.
The Empire of Queen Victoria may have flourished on the Broad
Red Carpet and all that it stands for; but the British Common-
wealth of Nations of King George VI cannot substitute prestige
for popularity, nor braid and bunting for insight into the hearts
and minds of the people.