How Standard reporter broke king's death to princess

Queen Elizabeth receives flowers from a young boy during her visit to African Maternity Home in Pumwani, Nairobi in February 1952 [Courtesy]

There were no telephones, no text messages or Twitter, fax machines or computers. The governor was on a train to Mombasa. The King had died and Buckingham desperately needed to reach its princess, now the queen. At the time, February 6, 1952, the heir apparent was literally in the bush atop a Mugumo tree, surrounded by buffaloes.