The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-12-26
GREAT FEAST IN GARDEN.
THE SALTITION ARMY FEEDS CITP's
POoR AND HUNGRY.

| Away In Baskets III the Forenoon-In
the Evening About 5000 WATTS Sat
| Down About the Enormous Tables That
Were Frcighted with the Good Things
| of the Seasonal Remarkable Scenes
There was not man. woman or child In the
whole great island OF Manhattan yesterday
who could not have had a Christmas dinner for
the asking. All who had the strength to go to
the places where the food was served. received
as much as they could cat. Food was distrlb~
uted among many who could not come TO the
great free dinners.
The Salvation Army distributed 1920 un.
cooked dinners for families OF i've In the fores
noon Last evening, N Madison Square Garden
the Salvation Army fed more than Ave thous-
and persons with all the turkey and plum
pudding they could eat. Frank Tlford, bank
president md grocer caused 100 pounds OF
turkey to he stuffed into less than five hundred
ncwsboys OF Lyric Hall. at Sixth avenue and
Forty-second street. William NJ Fliess. .
broker. furnished q similar feast ut the Brace
Memorial Ncwsbovs' Home for every boy that
came to be fed Missions and churches and
politicians from one end OF the town TO tho
other and from tho Bowcry to Tenth avenue
WED with each other in providing some sort OF
an eNcuie TO every living soul that Christmas
was more than n mere name
For nearly month women and men In the
Salvation Army uniform have stood on the
street corners beside iron pots hanging from
tripols, asking passers-by to Keep the Pop
Boiling" by dropping in coins to raise Christ
mas dinner fund for the poor. The proceeds
ings at Madison square Garden yesterday were
in great part the result OF these collections.
Bakers and markctmen sent carloads OF bread,
turkeys and vegetables. Others sent tons OF
coal to help In the cooking. The Madison
Coz I'd. tla, ~ hn
Garlen for the day and the night for less than
half the usual price The line and staff officers
OF tho Salvation Army worked without any ne
ward or hope OF reward in this world until they
were fairly staggering from exhaustion.
The distribution began at IL O'Clock in the
morning. At that hour the holders OF tickets
for the uncooked dinners had been told to
come for their baskets Tho tick cts had been
distributed by Salvation Army workers who
knew that each man or woman who took q
ticket would be In actual need. on Christmas. OF
dinner Tor five persons The $500 split wood
baskets containing each fowl. Ave pounds OF
potatoes, n loaf oil bread. some butter and 1--WE
apples or bananas. were piled along the Twen-
| ty-sixth street siie OF the Garden. The pile
was SO high that one who stood in the middle
OF the great floor could not see the army folks
who were running up and down behind the
heap. This small mountain range OF food was
as lOnR as Tue moor OF the durOen ltselI. 1ner0
were passes in 1t at intervals OF n hundred feet
10 facilitate the movements OF the workers.
The ticket holders began gathering at ths
Fourth avenue and Twenty-seventh street en-
trance OF the Garden soon after o o'clock
Capt. Price OF tho Tenderloin police had twenty
OF his men there. They had nothing to do but
TO form the people IN line. BY IL o'clock tho
line wound up and down the Fourth avenue
sidewalk between Twenty-seventh and Twen-
ty-siSth streets In four or five folds. Most OF
the applicants were women. When the door
was unbolted Commander Booth-Tucker and
his wife. the Consul. met the entering line and
led 1t across the great floor 70 the head OF the
great pile OF baskets. Twenty officers OF
the Army stood on either side 10 hand
out the baskets. The Booth fuckers
helped. As fast az the ticket holders received
their baskets. they were gently urged along
toward the Madison avenue entrance and
guided out Of the building Some OF the women
were 80 feeble from age or prlvation that they
could scarcely lit the big baskets. Stout SAX
walton Army lasscs were detailed TO help those
people to their homes Many OF those who re-
ceived baskets wanted to stop and tell Of their
gratitude: they were particularly anxious to
talk to the Booth fuckers directly. Some of
them wanted to ask for two or moro baskets.
But whatever the preteXt. none was allowed
To loitcr.
Outside the Garden. as the line emerged there
were indications that Some OF the tickets had
gone wrong. despite the pains the Army people
had taken to distribute them economically and
wisely. number OF Italian men and women
and some Fast Side Poles had established
cIichcn market and were buying the fowls out
OF the baskets for five cents each and offering
them for sale for 10. 10 and 20 cents each.
Very little OF this sort OF business was
done. So far as the reporters could learn.
not moro than thirty chickens changed
hands in these transactions The miserss
bic creatures who were engaged in tbs
traffic had the grace to seem ashamed Of them.
selves when their conduct was inquired into,
The Italian women gave up their attempts and
went away. Some of the Poles insisted
detlantly that Christmas meant nothing to
them and that II they could turn It to profit,
they did well by themselves and by their faith.
4 few Of the dishonest sort had tickets, and By
holding on to them after receiving their
baskets. gained admission Il second and a third
time. A few officers OF the Army had been
detailed to look out for these swinders and
only ono or two OF them were successful In
carrying of more than one basket. One woman
was recognized as a repeater Just as she was
tagging on her third basket
All but ten or twelve OF the 1920 baskets
were out OF the Garden by l o'clock and the
doors were closed until O'Clock In the after.
noon when the applicants for the widely ad-
vertlsed sit down dinner" made their
appearance. Great signs at the Madison
avenue entrance directed guests to ems
ter at tho northeast corner OF the Garden
and visitors 10 20 in by tho usual gates
Admission was free to all spectators. but re.
served seats In the boxes and all along tho
arena were sold for prices varying from 81 to
10 cents. The seats were nearly all filed while
the dinner was going on. Prominent in one
box was group Of weil-kno.n bookmakers
and gambling house proprietors. Commander
Booth Tucker was told who they were and 40
once went to them and told them that the
prico OF their box had been raised $50. They
nodded cheerluly
Well raise that $50 and make it $780," said
one OF them. laughing
i call that began Booth Tucker. but they
Interrupted him with shouts OF approval and
dIved into their pocketbooks. Il call that very
generous OF you" he said IA soon as they
would let him. They consulted behind their