Scores of people waited in the early afternoon heat before the hearse bearing former Prime Minister Owen Seymour Arthur’s casket passed en route from St Peter’s Parish Church in Speightstown to Mount Pleasant Memorial Gardens, in Pleasant Hall, St Peter.
Pictures of Arthur as well as floral arrangements were displayed along the route.
Soldiers of the Barbados Defence Force marching in quick time created an impressive spectacle as they moved in perfect formation.
As the cortège passed Benn Hill, where Arthur’s birth home is located, the procession stopped for a short time.
Some who spoke of Arthur did so in a celebratory, almost reverential tone as they recounted all he had done to improve their lives and the lives of ordinary citizens.
One woman summed up widespread sentiments.
“A gentleman, I cannot say less. Places that ain’t had road, he gave us road. So that is what I could say about Mr Arthur. You could ask him anything,” she said.
The former Prime Minister, who was accorded a state funeral, was interred at Mount Pleasant Memorial Gardens, a short distance from where he received his early education at All Saints Primary School. (KG)
