Evening star., 1901-12-21
Christmas Will Be a Great Occasion
at the White House.
WARM WELCOME FOR SANTA CLAUS
How the Day Was Celebrated in
Past Administrations.
STRIKING CON ASTS


will have to take with him large
supply of those things that will de-
light the hearts Of the youngsters of the
White House. 1t will not be that Santa
Claus will deal 30 much more generously
with the3 e3children Of the Presidents family
than with other little ones to cause him to
be so heavily loaded when he travels silent
ly down the big chimneys, but because
there are a number Of children to please.
They are expectant and happy children,
too, and look forward to Santa Claus COM
Ing with all the eagerness that is custom
ary with little ones.
This will be the merriest Christmas the
White House has known for five years.
For four Christmases preceding this one
there have been no childish voices to echo
and re-echo through the immense rooms
of the home Of the chief executive Of the
land. President. and Mrs. Mckinley, as
everybody knows, had no children, and
their Christmases were spent very much
like any other days of the year. Yet in the
big heart of the dead President there was
love and kindness for every child in the
, land Although without children himself.
President Mckinley thought often during
the holidays Of the joy and happiness that
reigns in nearly all homes At the same
time the heart Of the President went out
with tender sympathy to those little ones
whose circumstances were such that their
ChriStmases were not all that should be,
and he contributed from his own pocket
to aid in carrying the sunshine of the day
among the poor and poverty-stricken of
Washington.
President and Mrs. Mckinley spent four
Christmases in the White House, but none
of these was celebrated in any manner
that resambled the commemoration of the
day in homes where there were young
hearts and hopeful minds. The custom OF
the President and his wife was to remain
a q HOnSa during
with the exception Of going to church in
the morning and possibly taking a ride in
the afternoon before dinner. Sometimes
there were no invited guests with them Tor
dinner, the l resident realized that most
of his friends preferred spending the day
in their own homes and with their own
families. The Christmas table was always
well provided with good things to eat. The
centerpiece was invariably a fine turkey
contributed by Horace Voce of Rhode
Island. In contrast with this silent and
lonely observance will be the happy, frolic-
some celebration of the young people of
President Roosevelt's family. Joyous to
the greatest degree will be the way the
Roosevelt girls and boys will celebrate the
day.
A Welcome for Santa Claus.
Three and possibly four Of the children
will hang up their stockings in traditional
fashion for Santa Claus to fill. And on
Christmas day there will be distribution
mas President Roosevelt was the central
figure at the Christmas tree given in the
Cove school house at Oyster Bay. The
children of that place will long remember
the bestowal of the presents by Mr. Roose-
welt. He did not assume the makeup of
Santa Claus, but he did present each toy
on the tree with appropriate remarks. OF
course, the Roosevelt children will invite a
number of their friends in the city and out
side to be their guests on Christmas day.
The schools of Washington will all give a
recess of ten days during the holiday sea-
son, and the children of the White House
will have plenty Of time to play over the
beautiful grounds and over the big build
ing with their little guests who visit them.
No stop is put to the livelineSs and romp-
ing disposition of the children of the White
House. They run over the grounds and
through the building much in the same way
they have always done in their Oyster
Bay home. Just a few days ago, when the
Presidents waiting room was thronged
with visitors waiting to see him, there was
a noise in the old attic overhead that re-
sembled the tramp of two or three horses,
and those who did not think of the chill
dren were at loss to know the cause of the
noise. They soon found that it was the
children at play in the attic. The six
Roosevelt children are Miss Alice, who will
make her debut in Washington society in
January; Theodore, the fourteen-year-o old
son of the President; Kermit. twelve years
old; Ethel, Archibald and Quentin. The
ldlleT Is the DdDy, DuC ArCnlD2lg, Ethel and
Kermit are also determined to- hang up
their stockings. Archibald is about seven
years old, and has not yet formed an ex-
pert knowledge Of Santa Claus. The other
two children next to him in age declare
that Santa Claus shall not pass them by
without proper recognition
The Cleveland Children,
The Christmases Of the Clevelands were
typical of the day in most American homes
The stiffness and quiet that prevailed in
the childless home Of the McIkinleys was
different to the times when Ruth Esther
and Marion made the house resound with
childish laughter and the unrestrained glee
and joy Of Christmas times. Marion was
too young to know much about these times,
but Ruth and Esther will never forget the
happy Christmas days that marked their
cially, bright little tot that she was and
old enough to know the significance Of
Christmas and 20 look forward with ex-
pectancy to the coming night when Santa
Claus would climb down the chimneys, re-
members those days and talks about them
now. Grover Cleveland was supposed to be
too dignifed to take part in the simple de-
lights and frolics Of the occasion, but there
exists a good deal today that Is idle sup
position as to Mr.. Cleveland, and Ruth
could tell OF many an hour when her father
lent his consent and smiles to her pranks
and to her plays. She remembers the pref
ty nickel-plated tricycle. that he selected
and bought for her himself He helped
teach her to ride it and laughed at her first
failures. When she had mastered it and
furiously rode up and down the hallway of
the private part Of the Executive Mansion
he did not frown about the noise, but en-
couraged her to get all she could in the
way of happiness out Of her baby life
These are traditions at the White House
and are talked of among the old attendants
when they want to mention In a most con-
fidential manner the private life of the
Clevelands.
Express wagons made many trips to the
White House during the Christmases spent
there by the McKinleys, but the old Off
cials say that In the last Cleveland admin
istration express wagon followed wagon in
the Christmas season. Fathers and moth
ers all over the land thought kindly of the
little ones Of President and Mrs. Cleye-
land. and sent unstintedly of toys and
handsome presents designed to please the
children. This greatly pleased Mrs. Cleye-
land, and she made 1t a rule to have the
presents placed in order in the library.
They were piled high upon the limbs of
big Christmas trees and displayed all over
the room. Then on Christmas day the
children were shown the rare spectacle.
All the White House attendants, together
with the policemen in the grounds. were
brought in to look over the tree
For years a story was circulated that
Iftfla Rr,th waa deaf and dumb h,,t - -.