The Savannah morning news., 1901-12-26
IN GLOWING STYLE
SAVANNAH CELEBRATED CHRIST
MAS WITH NOISE AND CHEER.
FIREWORKS IN THE PARK.
THE NIGHT MADE LIVELY BY
FIERY SHAFTS AND STARS.

An Ideal Day Contributed Much to
the Enjoyment of the Occasion and
the streets Were ThrOnged with
PeOpIe-Many Attended the Foot
ball Game and Races or Spent the
Day With Gun and DOg-BOnfires
in the Park Extension the Princi-
pal Attraction at Night-ROman
Candle Combat Between Opposing
CrOwds-Everywher the Spirit OF
Christmas Good Cheer.
Christmas Day was celebrated in
glowing and glorious fashion in Savan-
nah. The observance began with the
early morning and continued until long
after the city clocks had tolled the
midnight hour and announced that the
day was over.
The weather man had been kind and
furnished day for the enjoyment of
the people against which nobody was
in a position to register a protest.
Practically every store and Office in
the city was closed and this gave d
chance to enjoy the day to the fullest
extent, without being annoyed by
work. The courts and the banks were
closed, too, in accordance with their
inNariable custom, and even the bars,
until late in the afternoon, gave their
employees holiday anc stopped dis
pensing Christmas disturbance.
During the afternoon the football
game and the races carried many peo-
nile AWAY froro tho c;tx, r,l,{Io x,aca,,
others had taken advantage of the
holiday to spend it with gun and dog
or rod. The Hunt Club had a meet dur
ing the morning and helped take Sa-
vannah people away from the city.
Notwithstanding these outside attrac-
tions the streets were thronged from
early morning until midnight.
Fireworks were very much in evil
dence. Good nature prevailed
everywhere, and nobdy made any
protest against the noisy salutation
of the jovial crowds, expressed with
crackers or some other noise-conveying
medium.
At night the principal attraction was
the Park Extension, where a number of
bonfires were lighted. 1t was notice.
able, however, that these did not APP
proach the bonfires of former Christ
masses, either in size or dura ton, and
before o'clock practically all of them
had been burned to the ground.
The bonfire that was to advertise
the presentation of 1.-THE Continental
Dragon suffered prematurely the fate
of its fellows. an ingenious and not
very well behaved mob of small boys
having burned it two hours in advance
of schedule time. Mr.. Jack Taggart
who is to star in THE Continental
Dragon" next month, had hit upon a
novel and what might have been very
effective way of advertising the play.
He secured $50 barrels, which were ar
ranged in a pyramid, a sign having
been prepared for the illumination to
bring out in vividness and show the
Christmas night crowd that the Con-
tinental Dragon was to be presented.
Mr.. Taggart had invited his friends
to see the show. At early dusk a
crowd of gay roysterers struck the
pyramid. Such an opportunity could
not be missed, and one of them touched
off the highly infiammable stuff that
had served as a base for the pyramid
A friend of Mr.. Taggart flew to the
rescue, but his efforts were unavailing
In the melee, few small boys worked
their barrel-lifting genius for all it
was worth, transferring some of Mr..
Taggarts material to their own more
modest bonfires. The Dragon
bonfire burned brilliantly and
brightly illumined the sign. 1t
attracted wide notice, and Mr.. Tag
CART said after it was all over that he.
was very well pleased with it's success.
The fireworks were handsomer and
more numerous and elaborate than
have been seen in the Park in many
years. Those who were actively en-
gagged in displaying them seemed to
have on hand an inexhaustible supply
A Roman candle combat between
two opposing crowds of boys greatly
enlivened matters in the Park Exten-
BILE portion of the audience guessing
whether they would get away from
the scene with one eye or two. Curl
ously enough. beyond few scorched
coats, no particular damage was done
The spirit of Christmas good cheer
prevailed everywhere, and during the
day a number of presentations of
Christmas gifts were made by employees
to their employer, or. as in the case
of the railways, to the heads of their
departments. So far as could be seen
from casual survey of the streets.
there was little disturbance, and the
crowds appeared to endure the some
times tiresome opportunities of their
too enthusiastic fellows with an easy
tolerance. In the less reputable sec
tions of the city there was the usual
amount of trouble, but for the rest the
police were not put to annoyance, and
spent a comparatively quiet day