NFSCD #6-Prince Pauper

Hi Riffers,

New month and another, ‘Now For Something Completely Different’ number six. Times were tough at Balmoral.

Sydney-Miss Sarah Gould (68) of Milton, on the Southern Coast, was upset last September when she read in a newspaper that Prince Charles only got 1/6 a week in pocket money. So Miss Gould went shopping. She bought a mouth organ for 8/7, and posted it to Buckingham Palace, addressed to Prince Charles. At the weekend the Milton postman bought her a reply by a lady-in-waiting to the Queen. “Dear Miss Gould,” it said “I am commanded by the Queen to thank you very much for your letter, and for so kindly sending the mouth organ to the Duke of Cornwall. Her Majesty has much pleasure in accepting this present on her son’s behalf and bids me express to you her sincere thanks.” (Broken Hill ‘Barrier Miner’, 24 March 1953)

Here’s another royalty related article from Melbourne’s ‘The Age’ earlier that year.

I sometimes wonder why the fascination? Not with the instrument, but with the royals. They do have an amazing publicity machine.

(The Age, 17 January 1953)

Ch SD

PS: ‘Hogan’s Heroes‘ published in a few days time. Picked up another amazing chromatic harp from Launceston, Tasmania. One of the first Chromatics anywhere in the world-presently dated 1901. Has a slide mechanism you’ve never seen before.