Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-12-20
Nursery of Astro-Hungarian EN-
bassy on Christmas Morning.

hira. the debutante daughter OF the Jap
anese ambassador Will see for the first
time how Christmas IS celebrated I'm this
country. She is OF course. past the age
OF the decorated tree but she will never
theless make and receive the customary
gifts OF the season. Although she has
been in this country only a short time.
she has already made many friends and
will be very busy holiday week. Several
events are planned specially in her honor.
in which she will have opportunity 81
understanding and entering into the spirit
of the western way of making merry.
or course the legations. and there are
many of them, which number young peo-
pie among their numbers. are the ones.
which. as it is to be expected. celebrate
Christmas most strenuously. But this IL
by no means to be understood as implying
that Christmas Is neglected in those
where there are no children. for this is far
from being the case. Take. for instance.
the British embassy. The English are
proverbial for the hearty and whole
souied way in which they celebrate the
festival of the birth of Christ. and indeed
it is from them that America gets many
of the features Of its own celebration.
Naturally enough, then. King Edwards
embassy is one of the jolliest spots in the
whole city at Yuletide.
Ambassador and Mrs Bryce have not
yet spent a Christmas in Washington in
their official capacities. but they will fol-
low the custom Of many years at the en-
bassy on that day. The entire staff Sec
retaries and attaches and their wives viii
gather there Tor a hearty old English
Yuletide iollification. There will be din
ner at which a real English plum pudding
from across the pond will be a feature
Then there will be merry making and
singing of carols around the immense
ioI off hat n~nh 0od
between the several members of the en-
bassy.
The French embassy is another diplo-
matte home where there are no children,
but where. nevertheless, .the Christmas
celebration is an important one. Nine.
Jusserand. the wife of the ambassador
from the French republic is an enthusiast
tic admrer of children. and every Christ
mas she decorates with her own hands. not
one. but three charming trees. on which
she hangs the gifts that she has for her
small friends They come in at her in
vitation on Christmas afternoon, and there
is great joy as their hostess presents them
with the tokens of her remembrance. At
the same time. as do many other host
esses in the diplomatic set. she informally
receives her friends who drop in to offer
the compliments of the season.
Baron Mayor des Planches. the Italian
amba ssador and the Baroness des
P'anches are accustomed to receive on
this day the Fluctuations of the members
of the embassy staff. and they mark the
occasion by giving dinner that evening
to their fellow countrymen of the en-
bassy. This is the custom at number of
the other embassies and legations. the
members of which have established an an
nual practice of dining together on Christ
mas day.
The members of the diplomatic corps al
most without exception take a great deal
of interest i'm the efforts that are made to
afford the poor an opportunity to be merry
ct Christmas time. Many of the ladies OF
the legations are active in the organiza-
ton and the serving of the dinner to the
aged people AT the home OF the Little Sis
ters of the Poor and at other institutions.
The individual diplomats are also gener-
Gus contributors to the funds for the
Christmas dinners given by the various
charitable organizations of the Capital
CITY