Wishart & Wild Boars

At Cannes on the palmy Riviera last week duty called Edward of Wales to inspect the British destroyer H. M. S. Wishart, commanded by his cousin Lord Louis Mountbatten. Some years ago Alfonso XIII, then King of Spain, thought the Prince was deliberately insulting him when H. R. H. turned up at a review of the Spanish fleet in civilian grey flannels and a floppy soft hat (TIME, May 16, 1927). Last week loyal British residents of Cannes and officers of the Wishart understood that nothing was amiss when Royal Edward arrived for the inspection wearing rope-soled sandals, grey linen trousers, a brick red shirt, and with sporty, Baltimore-born Mrs. Wallis Warfield Simpson at his side.

The only trouble was that H. R. H. must salute the quarterdeck of the Wishart on stepping aboard, could, by British Admiralty tradition, do so only with his hat on. Frantically someone produced a white linen one which the Prince brushed impatiently aside. Coaxed Mrs. Simpson: "Davie, dear! Please wear it."

"I'm damned if I will," said H. R. H. loudly, striding aboard the Wishart, saluting hatless while newscameras clicked.

Next day the royal party journeyed by way of Geneva to Budapest amid whose Gypsy dance clubs Mrs. Simpson, in a dinner coat of spun glass, first became notable as his partner (TIME, March 11). Last week the Hungarian Secret Service recalled that during his visit last year only the most strenuous efforts kept out of newsorgans the fact that H. R. H. amused himself some evenings by standing in his bedroom in the Hotel Dunapalota and breaking the electric light bulbs in a room opposite with well-aimed shots from his pistol.

With this in mind, Budapest authorities cautioned all Hungarian newsorgans in advance last week, forbade Hungarian photographers to trail H. R. H. in night haunts and issued a general admonition: ''If one sees the Prince dining in a restaurant, keep your head lowered. Do not stare." These precautions having been taken, Budapest reporters who covered H. R. H. & friends this week limited themselves to stating that he shot wild boars with the Regent of Hungary, Admiral Nicholas Horthy de Nagybanya.

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