ETHIOPIA: Again the Lion
Monday, Nov. 21, 1949
Guests of Ethiopia on a festal day almost two decades ago still
remember what happened as they prepared to dress: the entire water
supply of the capital city of Addis Ababa had been shut off without
warning. Distinguished visitors, protesting the loss of their
baths, were told in hushed tones that His Majesty the King of
Kings, Conquering Lion of Judah, Elect of God and Light of the
World, and his Queen of Queens needed the water themselves for a
ceremonial bath prior to their coronation. Next day, after the bath
and an all-night vigil on his knees before the altar of the Coptic
Church of St. George, pale, thin Haile Selassie was crowned with
the three-pound circlet of rubies, sapphires and diamonds. Five
tawny lions chained to the Emperor's throne snarled their approval
while nervous representatives from most of the world's great
nations eyed them uneasily.
In the years that followed, the world got to know the Lion of
Judah better. Its harried conscience was stirred briefly when the
dignified, bearded figure stood bravely but hopelessly before the
Council of the League of Nations, begging protection as Benito
Mussolini's airmen bombed his practically unarmed people. Many
thrones have tumbled since that day in 1936, some great empires
fell and some new conquerors arose to disquiet the West's
conscience. But Haile Selassie by World War II's end was back on
his gilded throne, and once more all but forgotten. Last week in
the royal palace at Addis Ababa, looking like figures from an
ancient tapestry, the King of Kings and his Queen sat once again on
their twin thrones to receive the homage of Ethiopia's people. It
was the igth anniversary of their coronation. All day long Addis
Ababa's bars and parks echoed to laughter and raucous dance music.
The King himself laid cornerstones for a new university, a city
hall and a Y.M.C.A., and made a speech to Parliament. "If, by the
Grace of God, oil should be found," said the King of Kings, "it
would be a great source of wealth to Ethiopia." But there were
broader concerns. "As a member of the United Nations," said the
monarch who had found nothing but a stony, shamefaced rebuff in the
old League, "Ethiopia has a duty to achieve and maintain world
peace and security."
