Touring Trouble

At Quebec's old stone Citadel, the Boston Post's Grace Davidson managed to push her way into a reception for Princess Elizabeth and ended up shaking hands with her. This was enough to give Reporter Davidson a Post "exclusive" on how "I was presented to the Princess Elizabeth today." But most of the other British, Canadian and U.S. reporters covering Elizabeth and Philip's tour last week had no such luck. Many of the reporters might just as well have stayed home, for all the stories they got.

The angry newsmen were herded about by police, fenced in by red-tape, kept from all but the dreariest routine reporting. For example, just before the official state dinner at Ottawa, a press officer met the assembled correspondents and held up three red tickets. That was all there would be for the dinner, one each for a Canadian, an American and a British reporter. The chosen correspondents would have to wear white ties, and would get no dinner. Shouted the angry reporters: "Send the tickets back." None went.

Photographers had it even harder. U.S. and Canadian publications that wanted exclusive shots were told they would have to pool their pictures. At outdoor events, photographers were handled roughly by police; LIFE'S Leonard McCombe was bashed in the mouth by a Mountie.

Some Canadian papers had trouble printing what they did get. The Toronto Telegram turned down two photos because the crowds were too small. The Sherbrooke (Quebec) Daily Record printed an Associated Press story that said "the Princess tried hard to enjoy [the banquet] but. . . fidgeted a lot and toyed restlessly with her silverware." Protests poured in from readers, and next day the Record hung its head in a Page One editorial, ruefully admitted that the story was "written by an American correspondent."

On the royal cruise along the Ottawa River, the press boat chugged a good 100 yards behind the royal barge, ran out of gas and finally had to be paddled to shore. By week's end, things were going more smoothly, thanks, in one case, to Philip. When he attended a Toronto Board of Trade luncheon, the Mounties barred the door to six newshens with tickets. The luncheon, they were told, was stag. The newshens' clucking reached Philip. Said he: "Have them admitted."

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