The evening tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 189?-190?, 1896-12-29
THIS TREE BORE COIN



Society People to Whom the Hsvemey-
ers Distributed Golden Gifts From o10.-
900 Tree In . Gotham Palace.
The smart folk who luxuriate in the
gilded gardens of swelldom are sup
posed to be so thoroughly satiated with
pleasures Of every kind that Christ
mas tree burdened with holiday gifts
would seem to have few attractions for
them.
Yet each year there is a Christmas
tree party in one of the fine houses in
New York which many socially ambi-
tious millionaires, their wives and sons
and daughters would give almost any
thing for the privilege of attending and
joining in the revels.
This Christmas tree is wonder Of it's
kind. 1t probably ranks pr eminent
among the hundreds of thousands Of
Christmas trees set up in all parts OF
the world. It is small tree, not more
than feet high, and the average
child would not regard it with as much
pleasure as tree bedecked with dolls
and drums, Noah g arks and blocks, call
dy and popcorn and lighted with can
dies. Ten dollars will make the ordi-
nary tree very attractive affair. But
it takes $4,000 to decorate this par
ticular tree with trinkets and toys.
Six or seven years ago Mrs. Theodore
Havemeyer, the wife of the sugar king,
gave her first Christmas eve party, and
since then it has been the great holiday
event of swaggerdom. Her Madison
avenue house, Of plain brick, with
scarcely the shadow Of exterior orna-
mentatiOn, is credited with being the
finest house in New York, and that is
saying good deal when the palaces of
the Astors, the Vanderbilts and the
Goulds are remembered.
Mrs. Havemeyer is an Austrian. not
only All Austrian, but a native Of Wen
ma. and that city is considered to be
the happiest on earth A Viennese sits
up nights thinking over new ways to
squeeze little more happiness into ex-
istence. He is happy in poverty, hut
with money i'll his pocket his joy is as
wide as the world.
Mrs. Havemeyer has this trait, pecul.
lar to her native land. developed to
perfection. She has money by the van
load at her command, and what is
more, she knows how to spend it. 1t is
an old story among the shopkeepers that
she never asks the price of anything. If
she fancies wrap, a bonnet, bit of
jewelry, painting, piece of statuary,
roll of lace, she says, "Send it home.
An English shopkeeper barely escapes
fainting from JOY when he receives a
royal command TO take his wafes to the
palace and exhibit them to the queen,
and his New York brother has emo
tions Of the same kind when be sees
Mira. Havemeyer's carriage driving up
to his door.
Mrs. Havemeyer's Christmas tree
party this year was attended by 80
guests. Every woman Of note in New
York society has her own particular
set, and Mrs. Havemeyer's il the West
chester Country club crowd, the people
who spend ten months in the year golf
ing, hunting, yachting, skating, tobog-
gaming, polo playing and following the
other pleasures Of outdoor country life.
A dash into the city for few days,
week or month two or three times in
the town season and then back again
to the beloved country, that is the life
of this particular set.
The Christmas tree is set IN one cor
ner Of the great ballroom, where every
thing is white and gold. The walls are
OF glistening white marble, with deli
cate tracings Of gold. At one end is
great pipe organ built into the wall.
The organ is all white and gold. Cur
tains OF white satin and white velvet,
ornamented in gold, hang from the
windows and doors. Tiny gilt cotillon
chairs, upholstered in white, are scat
tered along the sides of the room. The
ceiling is painted in white and gold
the woodwork, with the exception Of
the polished flooring, is white and gold.
Golden brackets jut out from the walls,
holding bulbs of softened electric lights.
The wide doors look out upon wide
hallway, all marble and gold. A mar
BILE stairway, growing broader with
each upward step, leads to wide plat
form half way to the upper floor, and
from this platform the way leads into
the big conservatory, bigger than the
conservatory of any other house in New
York.
This is the place where the Christ
mas tree guests assembled OH Christmas
eve The fun did not begin until IL
o'clock, when the hostess grouped the
guests about the Christmas tree. There
they found Mr. Havemeyer, costumed
like tire conventional Santa Claus. He
called of name, and the owner walk
ed up and received tiny silk stocking
IL she were a woman, or papier
mache pig or COW or horse il a man.
Inside the stocking was a small pair Of
scissors, all solid gold, or gold hand
mirror. or gold scent bottle. IL man,
the fancy pig or other animal had stow.
ID away in its interior q gold match
box, q pocketknife with q gold han
die or small pipe sheathed in gold.
Everything ON the tree was Of gold.