New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-12-20
T|DY|NG UP THE WORLD XMAS CARDS FOR BL|N[
Holiday Pictures Delight Even
the Sight!ess.
GIFTS ENOUGH FOR ALL
Consumptives, Paupers, Insane,
Orphans and Criminals Will
. Share in Days Cheer.

|
How many people know that the blind
| like to receive Christmas cards? Yes
they do. The women Of the New York
| Flower Mission have discovered that in
| the course Of their efforts TO make the
! holiday season bit happy for the in
mates Of the various city institutions.
For some years. Miss Frances l..
I Russell, one of the two sisters who found
ed the mission away back in 1870. eX-
| planned to a Tribune reporter yesterday,
for some years In our annual distribu-
| ton Of Christmas gifts on Randalrs ISL
| and and Blackwel's Island and Wards
/ Island We never thought Of sending cards
| to the blind. They couldn't see them, so
| ii didn't occur to us that they'd want
| them Then one day, came a request
| from some Of the blind in the city aims
| house Couldn't they please have cards ?
$50 now every blind person over there
receives Christmas card. tied up with
| Il bit Of evergreen. They love to feel
| them. they say and they can smell the
evergreen.
christmas cards. do believe, give
more pleasure than any Of our other
presents They put them up on the wall
and keep them a long time, or else they
send them away to some of their rela-
| tivcs IN the old country.
This year we are tying a sprig Of pine
to every one of the eight hundred and
seventy-ive Christmas cards we shall
! send 10 the tuberculosis Hospital. A
friend up the Hudson shipped us a pine
tree, and we've cut it up for this
Flower Mission" Busy.
Busy as bees were the women Of the
mission Yesterday, in their rooms al No.
lOi West 10Th street. The rooms were
opened for the reception OF contributions,
and will remain open to-day, tomorrow.
Monday and Tuesday. Flower Mission
has come TO have wide meaning. 1t
means I'm the summer not only flowers
! bat fruit and delicacies Of all kinds for
! the poor and sick ana in the winter when
! Christmas comes II means Christmas
greens. warm clothes. good things To eat
TOYS for chidren-anything 10 make the
HOLIDAYS more pleasant for those whose
lives are not cast in pleasant lines.
CnH the day before Christmas the
women Of the mission Will be nara AT
work making wreaths ont Of the boxes
OF grecnery expressed to them by coun-
try friends; dressing dolls, filling stockings.
sorting gifts of clothes. Then on Tues
dav morning q big van loaded with
Christmas cheer Will leave the mission
rooms and take the boat FOR 'the island.
At the same time deputatIon Of wom-
cu viii go over o. nail up the decorations
ard distribute the gifts. Think ~ ~
seven hundred persons in the Almshous",
nearly nine hundred an the tuberculosis
Hcspitai eight hundred in the city Hos
initial six hundred iu the Metropolitan.
two thousand insane on Wards Island
and most pathetic OF all-twelve hum
dreJ children on Randalrs Island; all IN
he remembered with some Christmas giiU
And the New York Flower Mission IS
going to do Il. To some Of them VIII
go oranges. candy and glasses of Jelly;
10 all Of them cards: and every little sick
Girl will get a doll. and every child VIII
get some kind Of toy.
no Need Of "Spugs.'
Resides this invasion Of the ISLANDS
there are poor and sick people in the
tenement houses Of New York to be re-
membered. The gifts the mission distrib-
MICS through the visitors Of the Charity
Organization Society and through Bible
readers These visitors. knowing the
moods of the different families, Miss Rus
..u g..s can Mace each gift where IL
will do the most good.
Though Yesterday was only the first day
the rooms were open. many contributions
arrived. From a Christian Endeavor SO
cietv I'm South Salem came box con-
tanning eighty-four tumblers of jelly ana
other deucacics The Needlework Guild
sent , box of new clothing little dresses
for children. petticoats. caps and coats.
rb.r. ,ycr. boxes of dolls, dressed hy
fortunate children for the less fortunate.
and there we're barrels and barrels OF
grceuery
..,ut not as much as we'd like sighed
Miss Russell. "Greenery is getting rather
scarce within the area OF NIFTY miles on
either side OF New York, from beyond
which the express companies do not send
,.irss IN us free Of charge. within that
area they forward everything to us with
out charge
The mission is also buying supplies for
IN. moor AS fast as it can collect money.
II has spent 500 80 far this year
and we would like to spend more
said Miss Russell. for. oh. dear. all We
nh, a drnu in thp bilpEet.'