The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1897-06-08
tor 1jMorneu.

~ S4 lAQ -lSAIe Clllk6,
overlooking the Hudson, says the
Evening News is one OF the
most novel summer resorts to be found
within a radius Of many miles. Tho
house bears a masculine and. to the lay
man, scarcely an appropriate name, since
Its inmates = all women and the only
specimens of men folk around the
premises are the gardner and his helpers.
tiliing the garden.
st. Michaels villa is a huge, three
storied building. situated In the borough
of Englewocd Cliffs, Bergen County, and
under the care Of tho Sisters of st.
Joseph, whose mother house is at No. 81
York street. Jersey City. Some ten years
ago the sisters Of this order hired a. cot
tage in Englcwood on the Palisades and
established . sert OF henle clearinghouse
for servants wse were cut OF health and
needed rest, and for clerks and sales
women that the latter might get through
change of air with the comforts of good
food n good beds during their brief
vacations at q sum within their means.
The enterprise Was successful from the
start. and soon q familiar sight during the
summer months wa the carry-all of the
good Sisters toiling up the hill bearing
wan-faced women to a restful home, or
else taking the train on their homeward
way those who had found health and
vigor in the bracing air of the Palisades.
Each season made an increase of accom-
mediation necessary. and seven years ago
the present large structure was erected.
A cherry. bright-faced Sister met a
News representative at the door one
day last week and g~raciously responded
to the request to go through the build
ing. There was a decided odor of soap
and water, paint and varnish on en-
trance. for the spring housekeeping was
just over and everything shone in pre-
paration for the opening of the season,
June l. From the entrance hall, a long
corridor runs at right angles. and on the
west side are the office, library, a recrea-
ton hall, and reception rooms. On the
east are bedrooms, single and en- suite.
simply but fully furnished; rooms ar
ranged .dormitory fashion, with rows of
single beds and rooms with parlors at
tached. The principal apartment on this
floor is the. dining room, a room airy,
s~crupulously neat. with great windows
framing a picture of the Hudson and the
opposite shore. Tabiss holding twelve
each are arranged in rows and 200 hungry
women dine in company when the season
is at its height. In a corridor leading
from the dining room is a sort of a shop,
where o water, candy and the other
delicacies dear to a woman palate are
sold by a sweet-faced Sister, whose smile
wads of the dyspepsia her wares might
possible induce.
Two more stories occupied by sleeping
rooms rise over the first floor. In the
centre of the third floor is a commodious
chapel fitted up in natural wood, against
which the pure white altar shows in
beautiful contrast. The chapel accommo-
dates about 200, and here every morning
mass is said and in the afternoon YES
pers are chanted by the resident priest.
Although st. Miehael's is under the
charge of the Sisters of st. Joseph, the
summer inmates have perfect liberty in
the matter of church attendance. They
go to the chapel if so disposed, or worship
in the open air If that suits them better.
Neither does the religious element inter-
ferafaxss1ny way with their recreations.
~ e hall is at their service for
dancing, they may take books
Me rocks to read. or they may
lAAte In the library and peruse the
Latest romance. Eight sisters are on duty
to look after the interests of the house,
and a corps of servants are on hand to
do the work of the establishment. And
how great this work is may be guessed
from the fact that attached to the house
are a dairy. bakeshop and a laundry. A
garden of several acres furnishes vege-
tables for the table and the stewards
office is not the least important in the
whole establishment.
Where do your guests come FROM"
the sister was asked.
"Oh, from New York, Brooklyn, Jersey
City, Newark, from all the large cities
nearby in fact. They are all of good
class, too. Nearly all se~lf-supporting
women, clerks. teachers. artists. writer's,
all sorts of women who need rest and
change of air. Some come for a week.
some for a fortnight and longer. some for
the who'll summer. 1t is not a charity
or a fresh-air home In the ordinary sense
of the term. Each visitor pays her
board, but the charge is reasonable. If
a party of six come and occupy one of
the large dormitories, we charge them IS
a week apiece, and they always tell US
they get more than their moneys worth.
From this the price ranges to s13. OF
course, there are cases where a still
smaller sum is asked, but that is a pri-
waite matter and is in Sister Ambrose's
hands. We don't interfere with our
guests. They go and come as they please,
but naturally most of them are of our
own confession and so our chapel is al
ways well filled with ~worshippers. The
villa is nearly s~elf-supporting. We take
in enough for current expenses, but then
the building is not yet entirely paid for
and we have interest charges to meet.
But we are doing well and in a little
while, a few years, we shall be out of
debt"
Then the sister opened a door which
led out upon a piazza which encircles
three sides Of the house. There are three
such piazzas and from them is obtained
a magnificent view up and down the
river. Grants tomb Is in plain sight and
from the upper piazza d can look
across anhat Island and catch a
glimpse of the blue waters of Long
Island Sound. Adjoining the villa
grounds are long stretches of woods, and
here the guests car hunt wild flowers
or rest on the huge rocks thrown uI
when that wondrous palisade formation
rose in some remote geological period,
49,