Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-01-07
SKATERS UNDER ROOF.
Brilliant Opening of the Ice Palace Mt
Convention Hall.

1
| Brilliant Opening of the Ice Palace Mt
Convention Hall.
The. opening Of the ice palace at Con-
vention Hall last night was the bigges.
affair OF its kind that has ever occurred
In Washington. There were fully four
thousand people in the hail, and tickets of
admission were refused those who came
| after $780, Only those who had the in
vitattons issued by Manager David B. Tow
! ers were admitted after that hour. The
selling of tickets to go OF the ice was stop
| ped also about that time as there were
then about twelve hundred people on the
ice surface. Every pair of skates in the
| haH we're rented shortly after the doors
| were opened, and then only those who pos
sessad their own steel runners We're per-
| united to buy ice privileges
Around the edge of the ice basin and in
the gallery were fully three thousand peo-
pie as much interested in the sport as the
| skaters themselves. By o'clock there
was no place obtaina0le from which to
l. view the skaters and the few who came in
selves with listening to the excellent mu-
Sic and striving to get some one elses pla ce.
The Scene ON the Ice.
The scene on the ice was varied and in
tcresting. There were all sorts and condi-
fancy artists from Baltimore and Canada
A party Of twenty-e.ght came from Balti-
| more to show the Washington skaters
thing or two, and it is but fair to say that
they suco eeded. The Queens University
| hockey team, the intercollegiate cham
pions of Canada, were there and WED with
the Baltimore skaters in showing off their
fancy PAGES. Those in the party were r.
Hissock, A. b. Cunningham. j. S. Rey-
O. ~ n
McLennan, G. Mckay, J. ]. Hardy, w.
Merrill and Guy Curtis. The music inspired
all the skaters to do their best, and when
waltz or two step was played it was
eight hundred all keeping perfect tine with
the musical clang of the steel runners.
AT one end of the hall is representa-
ton Of the Land of the Midnight Sum-"
ranging all the way across the building.
1t was painted by ''Zen." and makes an
exceptionally pretty background when
viewed from the entrance to the hall. The
lights in the hall have been reinforced by
two rows of brilliant arc lights in the cell
ing, and these, coupled with the regular
number Of .incandescent lights, which are
now clothed in red, white and blue globes,
make the place as light as day. Such
palace must be witnessed to be fully appre-
ciated.
For Comfort and Convenience.
The reception rooms for ladies and gen.
tlemen. the smoking room for the latter,
and the retiring and waiting rooms were
all pa:roniZed to their utmost capacity.
The fittings of these rooms are elaborate
and are on the Turkish order. Cathedral
stained glass windows separate the differ
ent rooms, while hidden ipcandescent lamps
shed soft glow over all of them that just
fits the furnishings. In the smoking room
the scent of Turkish cigarettes lent an
added realism to the scene. The cafe, sit
uated in the gallery, did land office bust
ness throughout the evening, while the diff
1erent attractions and articles offered for
sale in the lobby and on the promenade
were all well patronized. Just over the
entrance doors Is situated the bandstand,
and here the excellent orchestra provided
by the ice palace 0iscoursed music through
out the entire evening.
The Ice was just triflc rough last even
iIig, but as soon as another coat Is put on
this defect will! be remedied. 1t is prob
able that the largest crowd that will ever
skate over its surface was on the ice last
night, and this accounted in some degree
Tor the way in which it was cut up toward
the end. Although there were twelve hun
cred and more persons on the ice at one
time they were not crowded in the least.
The Ice is one hundred feet wide and two
hundred ard ten feet long, making it the
largest inclosed ice surface in the world
although there are several such institu-
tons In the world, it is the expressed opin-
len that none Of them can come up to the
one at the capital of the United States.
The ice isDfrozen by means of a $50 horse
power Corl.ss engine and two $50 horse
power boilers. There are $4,000 feet CT
pipe used in the process, which is going
on all the time.
Two Sessions Daily.
1t would seem that the expectations of
Manager Towers had not been placed too
high. The record which was made for the ice
palace last night was a great one and very
few places Of amusement are forced to stop
selling tickets of admission in such a short
time after the opening of the doors. 1t is
probably nearer to a metropolitan place of
amusement than anything which has ever
been inaugurated here. and judging from
the manner in which the crowds fought for
admission after the box windows had been
closed it would seem that the public at
large were cognizant of this fact. No one
doubts now that the ice palace will be
success and that it will continue to be
success Until the management sees fit to
close down for the summer months.
There were a number of prominent Citi-
zens of Washington in attendance last
evening, while some of the most notable
on the ice were several members of the
foreign legations. There will be two ses-
sions every day, one from 2 to g. and the
other from S to 1890 In addition to this
a special hour from 1 to every afternoon
will be put aside for the special instruction
of ladies, and they will have the exclusive
use of the hall during that period. In
StructOrS will be on hand at all times =