Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1891-12-20

PEEP AT THE HoLloAY-GooDs ON DIS
PLAY IN THE STORES.
Riehmond Merchants have Enormous
storks OF Fancy Articles-Doils OF
Various Kinds-ManV Novelties.

| Rtchmond Merchants have Enormous
storks of Fancy Articies-DoiIs OF
Various Kinds-Many Novelties.
|
The Richmond merchants have enough
holiday goods in their stocks this season,
% all appearances, TO supply every
man, woman, and child in the State
of Virginia with half q dozen
Christmas presents apiece and have
thousands Of articles left over. It is pro-
foundly interesting to walk up Broad
street, from Ninth to Adams, and view
the exquisltely dressed windows. The
stores have on full holiday attire. and the
abundance Of beautiful goods is simply
| bewllderinc 10 the prospective purchaser.
The only proposition by which one can
| be by any means satisfied in the matter OF
| selecting q Cnristmas-glft IS 10 drop IN at
the first store and buy the first thing you
see; tEen GO straight home without look
! ing at anything else.
BEwTLDTG1NG SCENES.
| The individual who conten pla e5 giving
| few presents on the approaching holiday
starts MP Broad street at Ninth and the
| further he or she goes she grander and more
| bew iderinc the windows look and upon r
| turning be experiences the same thing. |
| He then comes down to Main, and such an |
| array OF beautiful jewelry, stationery and |
| ChTistmas goods as EreetS his eye be |
| thinks he has never seen.
BUc the members Of the steTne- sex do |
not have tnat great aud intermlnsble de- |
sire that the gentler ones are Instllled with |
I to see everything IN town before rur- |
| chasing Christmas sJurGiir, and 1t only !
| requires about fifteen minutes and as many !
| dollars tor them to secure what they |
/ lu ma
| elect.
ZIG Presents AND LITTLE MONEY.
! There are those fellows who have to |
make the same amount of money answer
| tor nearly Gs many girls. but he IS only TO
| be pitied. Just exactly what 20 get tor a |
! dollar that looks costly ana handsome Is |
one OF the uusoiyed problems OF this sea-
| son.
Now. tho dizzy" little blonde fits in
and out all tho iewelry stores ia town. |
| looking for a suitable gift tor Cholly.'
| Then she COOS to tho dry-gOods establish
ment. and after critically examining all Tie
muchOlr csayat and handkerchief eases
| finally selects one OF The latter for " Harry.
| hen she racks her BRAIN, scratches her
| fury hair, and wonders what she must gee
| for Mr. Il. Oh, well she finally decides 1t
would never do for her TO do all her shop
| ping in one day and pus of this last pur-
| chase until two days before Christmas. Ot
course everything wIil have been picked
over then, hut that can't be helped.
COUNTRY COUSINS IL TOWN.
Tor the past several days theiicity has
| been pretty we'll flled with country peo-
| pie. and every outgoing train has lett here
! heavily burdoueI with Christmas tricks.
| A most ludcrous scene could nave been
| witnessed at the depot of the Chesapeake
| and Ohio railway an evening or SO
| An gfl q
county had Just been down and laid
in her holiday supply and was return
! ing home. The Wa.tlng-rOOm was hardly
largo enough TO contain her bundles,
! which seemed 20 embrace everything from
hOnby-hOrse TO a tin horn. 10 was by
great effort on her own part, G5 wei as ON
| the part OF the conductor and the brake
| man. that she was comfortably transport
ed with her goods and chat;els to the ear.
| When properly adjusted 10 a comfortable
| seat with her parcels IN two seats aud four
| racks. she assumed Mhat-Wlll-W Willie
| say-when- he-wakes up Christmas morn
| ingln smile and was soon obliyious to
everything save that all-absoroing
thought.
MERCHANTS ARE HOPEFUL.
The merchants. as rule, are anticipating
| brilliant results from the holiday business
this year, and there IS no question that
they have laid in larger stocks of Christ
mas goods than usual, so II old santa Claus
cannot find here just exactly what he
wants for kltty's stocking there Is no use
TO 20 any further, for II can't be found.
Already the stores have done an enor-
nous business. but the ineXhaustiOle sup
ply has hardly been touched. IL was esti-
| mated by a prominent dealer yesterday
that there were over one hundred thou
sand doll-babies in Richmond Mt this
time. 1t may be added that this
number embraces babies of both sexes
boy bab e.. gIrl babies, blonde babies, bru
| nette babies, red-headed babies. babes
/ without any heads, heads without any ba-
bies, "nigger" babies, klck-up babies, and
oil other specimens and types of the imam
| tile family. Some of these are dressed aud
! some are not, and they range in SIZE from
I half an inch to three and a half feet IN
| height.
EACH YEAR BRINGS MORE NOVELTIES.
It is wonderful how May hundreds OF
! novelties, before unheard OF, each year
brings out. the styles produced by the
| tancy-goods factories seem never to be the
same two successive seasons. The designs
! Of holiday articles on display here this
! Christmas are in most instances very
| catchy and most tempting, and the untor-
! tunate who has more money than he really
! intends to spend usually winds up on
| Chrstmas-eye with his pockets depleted.
Only few years back 1t was quite the
proper thing to give your girl an enormous
! vari-colored card, manipulated and tanclly
| fin shed. Now, these styles of gifts are
| only made IN the most isolated and I'M
| civilized parts of the world, II even there.
! Last Christmas IL was emlnently correct
| 20 present lady with handsome silver
| glove or ieweiry-case, but now 1t IS
manifestation Of better taste 70 give her
! gOld-mounted card-case or a pair of Sl4
| opera-glasses. Books are also very popu-
lar as presents and the young man who
| sends his fdHcee aset Of Pompeli illustrated
will incur her everlasting gratitude.
| TOYS FOR THE CHILDREN.
In the toy-llne Richmond is beautifully
! blessed, and the chances are that thirty
thousand children will awake next Friday
morning with their eyes blaring IN aston
| lshment and their faces beamlng with JOY
at what the Joyous Christmas tide has
! brought unto them. No one but a child
| can duly appreciate tins natal day. The
! innocent young ones seem more gracious
| 10 receive the blessings God Is kind
enough 20 bestow upon them. The day
marks an era in their lives. and they look
upon it with unbounded eagerness and
| expectancy, and whether old Santa
provides for them generously or scantlly
they are never disappointed in what he
| leaves them.
In the stores on Broad street is every
thing that is beautiful and attractive to
the little ones. They gather IN front Of
the large windows and become perfectly
obhvious to everything in the world, OK
cept the hundreds Of beautiful things be-
| fore their eyes. The pretty dolls, car
-iages. tea-sets, pianos, little sets of furni-
| ture, turn the heads of the little maldens,
while the young master of seven winters
| gazes IN silent delight at the miniature
| tool-chests, toy-guns, tin horns, and little
| velocipedes.
IL is time Of rejoicing for them even
when they contemplate what is to be
| specially selected for their happiness, and
can any one who has ever been child
| blame them?
| THE OLDER ONES.
To those whose footsteps are feeble
| Christmas means a sweet sadness, for it is
marked by recollectiOns of faces that are
passing away into the unknown land and
| brings TO view the fact that when 1t again
| comes some friends will not be here TO
gather round the festive board and to as
sist In the celebration OF the anniversary
| of the birth of the Lord.
Though TO all Richmond the approach
| ing day promises to bring much pleasure,