New-York tribune., 1905-12-24
THE CITY FULL OF JOY.
u5IL,S MERRY CHRISTMAS,
shopping, Mailing and ReueIJimg
Records Al Broken.


- title folks and OF sweet anticipation by the
-s.- ones, viii end tomorrow. but the busy week
-e,srafion for the fulilment of these closed
~ night It was great night in the districts
ssre the holiday buyers congregated. The damp.
,,.teninc weather and occasional light showers
- no effect the crowds The shoppers had a
-.ssr-a bls duty 10 perform. and the elements
ns not swerFe them from It
r.s YuIetide spirit was evident everywhere-on
-. streets in the shops over the length and
hrssdth of the city, on the ferryhcats the street
- end railway stations, through which passed
.-.,v thousands Of Christmas homegoers to attend
-. annual family reunion and enjoy the mince pie
,sst mother makes
ryerv ons carried bundles and looked happy.
-. rackages which piled high In expensive
.,nsges for children reared in the lap of luxury
..rtaned no more happiness than did the parcel
.tet tie East Side mother carried home for the
rrle olss whose sunshine comes less frequently.
Eut the shops were not the only busy places
,-,cls Sam is very much OF Santa Claus himself.
I'D acting as the emissary OF the cheerful giver,
5s.rbutes every year thousands on thousands Of
,-sssats through the mails.
T+is year the Christmas business in the Post
e,e has smashed all previous records The traffic
tss shown L per cent increase over last year s.
nurng the twenty-four hours between midnight
wednesday and the same hour Thursday 2,3d sacks
n Christmas mail were sent from the General
postofice TO the branch stations
The shopping centres OF 1zth-st 6th-ave-. 23d-st-
srd Broadway and l25th-st-. in Harlem with
,her decorated and merchandise laden booths,
r.nareGs Of street merchants and thousands of
shoppers, presented a scene like a great outdoor
AsEaar The congestion OF carriages in z3d-st, be
tween 5th and eth aves, interfered considerably
With the streetcar traffic
The people came from uptown, downtown, across
,ovn and out Of town. They came early, many Of
,hem and as many mora were. as late as mid
right still adding TO their purchases The stores
were simply compelled to remain open until then.
EFen when the lights in the department stores
we're turned down and the tired regiments of
sslssmen. saleswomen, cashiers and other en-
,loyes were dismissed for the night the shoppers
we're stiu there.
The immense throng of humanity and the conf
-ercial activity gave the outsider fine oppor-
tunity fer forming fair conception of New-1 orks
immense population and its wonderful business Re
sources
To accommodate the greatly increased trafno the
facilities on elevated and street lines and in the
subway were augmented, and while the increased
nurnber of trains and made travelling slower,
-te crowds were fairly well handled The guards
snd gafemen old net complain. as they usually 90,
of the size of parcels and there was no grumhling
hy the passengers for nearly every one was guilty
of violation Of the rule that is unoficially sus-
pended during the pre-Christmas week
It would be difficult, indeed TO even attempt 70
estimate the number of people who yesterday
crowded tbs shopping districts Many Of the
vcmen could probably have made their purchases
any Of the fine Gays that favored this city for
several days Of the last week, but there seems TO
be certain fascination in Christmas Ewes shop
ping.
The crowds moved Up and down the streets IN
rold walls The sidewalk place for the
hurrying persoa- There was jostlng, but it was
ali accepted in the spirit OF the season The doors
of the large stores swung to and fro, admitting and
discharging the thousands who had bought and
wers eager to buy until It looked II they would
break from their hinges
The street merchant, presiding his booth. and
the ttinerant pedIer with his little basket. were
literally patronized- Their stocks were OF great
variety. There was one stand with automatic toys,
next TO which perhaps would be another containing
z scintillating assortment OF tree ornaments A
third would exhibit for sale wrsaths OF holly
and sp-igs Of nlistletee for which there good
demand. while fourth held some articles Of dry
goods. II was an interesting but noisy scene
Above the booing OF q COW, the baaing of a
sheep the staccato voice Of talking doll could
Re heard the tinklng Of the Salvation Army lasses S
bell making last appeal 70 keen the pot boiling
for the dinner TO the poor on Christmas Day.
In the stores the wide aisles were blocked, and
progress was as slow on the street. The clerks
even in their increased number, appeared made
quste 70 the demand their services
There vas a larger number Of children IN the
holi6Ns crowd yesterday than earlier in the week.
and their shouts Of merry delight largely conpen-
sa1ed for the incouyeniences suffered, and caused
10 forget them
MANY COSTLY GIFTS BOUGHT.
That New-York is a prosperous community was
proved by the large business done by the big jewell
u houses, where Christmas gifts run into thou
sands Of dollars. The candy shops, with their
Tonderful assortment of confectlons for the girl
with the sweet tooth were crowded to the doors all
cay with lines four deep
It's worth mentioning that while the greater
part Of the patrons yesterday OF these palaces OF
sweets were men, most Of the purchases MADE al
The haberdashers were made by women, and in the
next few days there viii be seen such brilliant
crsvats as only women can buy
One Of the busiest spots in this city was the
Grand Central Station Throughout the day peo-
pie from I'd State, from New England and e9 Ire9
tie waiting room. According TO officials, the Christ
mas trafic has never before been SO heaeH 49, Al te
principal trains were sent out IN TWO or three ss1
Some Of the trains were delayed by the late ar
rivals OF the mails. due to the oVererowded conal-
Tie feTv @ feT@naIs of the railroads running into
NsE-Jersey were also taxed TO their utmost pE Lie
holiday traffic The PENNSYLVANIA trains Iof W eSi5
tngton nd PHILADELPHIA IN TWO Sectloli9,
were the Erie trains for Buffalo, Cleveland ana
II was said that a conservative estimate Of the
Ffidav s5d Yesterday would be three hundred
thousand No difficulty was experienced now
For neariv q Month the Postofice has with aug
msnted force, been WORKING day ana isnI On ne
heavy Increase in The money order and registry De
"a ToTev orders made out since December repre-
sent & total Of more than SJ.oGDO9. -,
The Increase IN second class matter has aIso @ Deen
marked. Many q postman will be Welgheo ooWh E
with packsses when he starts on his route 20
morrow morning But the thought that on ths
cay he is the disseminater OF SO n1ueh haPFii0'S
Wi probably tend TO Tighten bis oufdeh
BIG SHIPMENT TO MANILA
Nor have Uncle Sans boys in the far off Philip
pHes been forgotten by their families and sweet
hesTts The shipments TO Manila began month
sgc. and they have been heavy. Every package
trnnn a-ln 2.- - L,nrn,s carries with i heart