The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1909-01-20
WORKSHOP IN PALACE
ltaly's Queen Establishes One TO
Benefit Earthquake Sufferers.
BUSY HIVE OF INDUSTRY.

make DOLLS Clothes For Foor GAIA
brian Children-stories of tho Dis
aster.
, 1t is impossible to enumerate the re.
lief committees of all kinds, each with
a practical object, (which have been
formed Ia Rome for the benefit of the
earthquake sufferers In southern Italy
and Sicily. Queen Helena, who is per
haps the most useful of all the agcn-
cies Of relief, has had the heavy furHi-
ture removed from three big rooms Of
the royal palace, putting in tables. sew
ing machines, forty or fifty workbas-
kets, chairs and nothing else. Here la
dies Of the oldest aristocracy and work
girls are gathered together in friendly
intimacy. cutting out and sewing rs
though their lives depended upon fin
ishing.
The queen is rs busy as the rest ad-
vising and directing. even giving lev
sons and taking hand herself. This
goes on practically all day until
o'clock, when tea is served for an hour.
At these advertisements the great lady
and the modest sewing girl associate
as equals, says II special cable dispatch
from Rome to the New York Times.
Indeed. they almost change places in
giving instruction.
Other humble pupils are the royal
children, the Princesses Yolanda and
Mafalda. respectively seven and six
years old, who are permitted to be
present. They are established in cor.
nor. delighted. busy and important,
cutting out and making dolls clothes
for the poor little Calabrian children.
They have been promised that if they
do these well they shall soon be pro-
NOTED TO making baby clothes. Then
their cup of pride will be full.
The way in which the queen came 10
establish this hive of industry was
quaint. She called little dressmaker
that her maid patronizes to order some
children's clothes and saw her person
ally. In the midst of the conversation
the dressmaker remarked that it was
difficult to carry out so large an order
as she had joined society of sewing
girls, established to devote certain
number of hours every day to making
clothes for the refugees. buying the
material out of their own pockets.
The queen was impressed and in
vited them to the Quirinal promising
the material if they would give the
idea, which was enlarged into the
present organization. The queen is
right in her element and was heard
to observe, "If the cause were not so
awful these would be very happy days
for me-"
No wonder she was at Messina "our
lady Of mercy"
During the sewing in the royal work
room many stories are told about the
earthquake. The little princesses
were particularly interested in follow
ing that of an old woman, appearing
about 100 years old, who refused to
leave the ruins without her little treas
urr and was so obstinate that she
had to be left to her fate. Another
case was that of some sailors who
heard a queer noise under the ruins,
evidently coming from something ku-
man. So they dug on and found
woman and child in little shed
which had resisted the shock and the
fall of the debris, together with &
COW, which yielded enough milk to
l:cep them both alive. IT las, Il be
came so weak that they could OF lift
their heads, but they were 80. alive
when rescued, having given warmth
TO one another
Several children taken from the ruins
on the first day. when hunger was
not SO pressing, cried and kicked until
their favorite dolls OF toys We're found,
One younGster was found still clasping
Teddy bear in her arms.
Queen Helena in describing some of
the pathetic incidents of her visit TO
Reggie said:
''In one sunny street not Il sinGle
building remained intact, though the
facadcs of the buildings remained
standing. In these houses the living
and the dead were mi >ged. In them
were hundreds of corpses, besiGcG
many injured persons who were pen
ned in small spaces under the debris
or held down by timbers or stones
that rested upon legs or arms. Yet
upon the standing walls in many
places were cages containing canaries
entirely uninjured, which sang and
warbled joyousiy. The contrast pre-
sented was terrible.
The very day that l saw these ca
naries and heard the cries of impris-
oned persons under the ruins l visited
Messina. where young woman bereft
of her reason stood upon q heap Of
ruins singing and bowling to an au-
dience composed of corpses. The wo-
man proved to be the singer Gemma
Perugia, who had gone mad from grief
and who imagined herself at a cafe
chantant."