New-York tribune., 1909-05-30
DANCING ON THE GREEN
Trenty-fue Hundred Girls of p. S.
athletic League Take Part.

One Of the twenty-five hundred children who were
taken 10 Van Cortlandt Park yesterday 10 dance
FOLK dances on the green stopped down and rubbed
her face IN the grass as her schoomates marched IN
from the subway station
WHY It's SOFT she said in aved tone The
child came from the most crowded part Of the East
Side and she had never seen patch Of growing
grass.
Yesterdays meet vas the annual May festival Of
the girls branch Of the Public Schools Athletic
League Forty-nine schools were represented, and
each school brought q tall Maypole. with ribbons
showing its own coOTs, 10 be wound around the
pole in the final dance Every teacher had been
supplied with a chart showing just the position her
school was 70 take on the green, and fifty police
men under Captain Ward Of the 18th Precinct,
kept all outsiders of the space reserved for the
dancing so there was none of that confusion which
rather mixed things up at the dances Of the girls
branch in Central Park last year
a pretty sight the children made in their dresses
Of many colors. Even before the band cane-lt
was the boys band from the Catholic I'1otectory-
they couldn't help Joining hands and skipping
around in the unaccustomed grass Public School %
danced about q pol adorned with blue and yellow
rjhbons Public School IS had pale blue and white
ribbons and the girls wore blue bows their white
dresses Sensible Public School So came out in
boomers No Ile Manhattan had pole Eayly be-
s5ecked with red white and blue, and the girls car
risd out The patriotic effect in their clothes
First came a group If Swedish dances, ending
with the favori5e 'Oxdons.-' Then there were
British dances-the Highland fling. the Irish lit
and the lovely English morris dance Hungary
was remembered with the csardas and Italy with
the tsrautella Ia between the dances the children
ran relay races each school by itself Prettest Of
all was the Iast-the winding Of fifty may
poles TO celebrate the coming of MAY" IL spite
OF the tendency maypole ribbons TO get tangled,
the girls did it very well, except in few schools
which-like the foolish virgins who forgot 10 I'LL
their lamps with oil didn't weight down the poles
with stones. When public School As pole began to
rock pretty teacher volunteered TO hold it firm,
but she Vas sorry afterward. for before she knew
Il she Was wound up like cocoon.
Last Of all the girls hockeG together-to the great
ietriment OF the luncheon baskets and hats Of Pub
lie School %. which happened TO be in the storm
centre-and sang The Star Spangled Banner. Then.
the ceremonies ended they dispersed TO picnic all
over the place. Major General Porter, up behind
the old Van CortlandJ mansion, blossomed out in
ginger wafer boxes all his stately stone front.
and the mansion itself was invaded by excited
little girls. who willing to delay their sand
they insisted on calling ''Washington's house"
Among the lea que officers there were Miss Cath
crime Levericls. the president. Mrs. Elizabeth
Burchenal. she instructor ia dancing, and Dr. Q
Ward Crompton. the secretary Thousands of
visitors hockei to the place to witness the dan
cling among them many girl members Of the league
Who were not taking part.