The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1894-12-26
CHRISTMAS.
Twas a Merry One All
Round.
Special Services at the Churches and
Entertainments at the Theaters.
- A. al f~haav NJ Ch faI I,Ia I'm
Plenty of Good Cheer at Charitable In
stitutions-No Skating.

There was only one "eut" about 1S04's
Christmas in prvvi6epse, ana that was
the disappointment Of gssd many ehad-
ron bsssuse eupsvtstSsesnt Astssvay's
prophecy was Rcs fuiAiied. wth fo~r
inches Of ice en- the chain Of lshas ths day
before and a falling tberDsneaer, the
ruler OF Rogor Williams Park
had felt justified 10 dselasing
that there would 10 skating fer Chsist-
mas and every one believed biD--sven
THE NEWS was fooled. Bot after the first
few grumbies Of early wsrnisg, vhes the
would be- skaters discovered that they had
walked up to very melting Christmas,the
rest Of the day was, according 70 the
usual program, of good chcsr ana pleasant
discoveries of the meaning Of all tho
whisperings and mysterious packages
that had been in evidences for the fort
night previous.
Until afternoon and evening when the
theaters opened 1t proved to be almost as
much OF home day - Than ksg giving was.
The city was quiet, that 10, the out door
part of 1t was, and Westminstex street
presented O quiet, relieved appearance
after the day before, the last "a hours OF
shopping, when the stalwart patrciman,
Billy O'Brien, had been surprised into
exclaiming somsthing about a mad rush
OF women.
At al tho Catholic and Episcopal
Churches there were special services With
the elaborate music incidental to Christ :
mas.
Holiday dinners were served at all OF
the charitable institut ions and in nearly
every inctance an ENTERTAINMENT program
was furnished for the amusenent Of she
inmates.
Out at Cranston the big colony of the
States unfortunates enjoyed the best
holiday OF the year. And all the inmates
from the "iifs men" with the prison tan
of years's confinement down TO the little
fellows In the Reform School, who spent
last Christmas atshoms or In the streets,
had occasion TO bless the custom Of OBJ
serving holidays at the State Institution.
Superintendent Eastman, DIR. George r.
Keens, Deputy Wood, Warden Wall,
Deputy Stone, Superintendent Murray
and their officers and assistants had
worked for two weeks in preparing for
tho days celebration and their efforts
were successful and appreciated.
There were good entertainment pro-
grams of music and readings provided for
the inmates Of each department, big din
ners were served and as far forth as pos
sible the daily restrained was relaxed.
Prison convicts and jailmen, paupers and
insane people, the workhouss men and
women and the boys and girls, who
ara being punished as the result OF having
bad fathers, or bad mothers, or both, were
all comparatively happy and for few
hours at least able to forget that they do
not seem TO be like OF her folks.
Among the many gifts recstved for the
children at the Aims House there We're
very generous supplies sent out by the CAL
lendar, McAuslsn d Troup Company, the
l.. A. Tillinghast Company and X. l.. Rose
Company.
The annual dinner for the city's poor
children was very successful, ss was at
tested by the ear-to-ear smiling enjoy
ment Of good things by over thousand
boys In Music Hall and 900 little girls in
Steinway Hall.
There were the regular holiday perfor-
mances, afternoon and evening, at all the
theaters, each one attracting q crowded
house, as usual, aad in tho evening the
polo enthusiasts found their way to In
fantry Hall, where the home team pre-
sontsd them with q Christnnas victory to
the tune of 3 to L