Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-12-27

beautiful surprises, what with the men
getting home for Christmas and one thing
and another! OF course. we all know
Charlie Blddle, our wonderful Ace is home,
and Emlen Drayton, who was in the Ava.
ton. reached homo on Christmas Day. He
has been mustered out and so will be In
Philadelphia the rest of the winter Mrs
Robert Drayton, his mother, has apart
ments at the wellington this year. Houses
are pretty lonely when the only children
are sons and both of those are in the
service. Fritz Drayton-f beg pardon, Fred
lis still in France, but is expected homo
next month.
Imagine the George Bowers Joy on
Christmas Eve. They had had letters from
Junior about three weeks ago, saying he
was still in the hospital and did not see
any prospect of getting home very soon.
Well, It appears he was slated for sailing
few days after that and arrived here on
Christmas Eve He did not know his
family was in town for a few months; SO
he took the first train to Torresdale, to
find the house empty.
Il did not take him long, however, to
find out where his family was, and in
the meantime some one phoned in to his
mother to be sure and stay home for an
hour or SO, as heard the story, and 10
ana behold, who walks in upon her but
her son, whom she had thought in France.
And that's the way It's been all along.
Simply wonderful the happy, happy sur
.prises.
IT'S too bad that sad things have to come
i too. Only yesterday came the report
that Hobey Baker, who achieved such fame
as an aviator during the war, was killed
accidentally in France on Saturday while
flying.
It seems even moro sad, after the war
is practically over, to hear of these later
casualties. My. but weren't we proud Of
Hobey Baker when that news first came of
his downing a German panel Charlie
Biddle had lot to tell us about him when
he came back Just last week. He was the
younger son Of Mr.. Alfred Baker and
brother of Thorny Baker. His mother was
Miss Mary Pemberton, sister Of Mrs.
Hobart Hare, Mrs. Howard Ingham and
Mrs. Frank Dade. His father married Miss
Laura Butcher after his divorce from the
first Mrs. Baker, and the boys lived with
! him. Hobey was a celebrated Princeton
athlete, you know, and a very great favor
. ite in the younger set here. He was en-.
gagged to Mimi Scott Of New York. but the
engagement was recently broken and she
1. has married since. it's said. We were
all looking forward to seeing him soon and
to praising him in person though bless
you, he would have been just like Charlie
y Biddle, not willing to talk about himself
or his doings, only of the exploits Of the
/, others) 1t just seems too sad to think
we will not have the happiness of seeing
him again.
. CPEAKING Of deaths overseas, there
( ~ were memorial services this morning at
the home Of Mr.. and Mrs. Robert Koons
: at IS South Twenty-first street for their
son, Dallas w. Koons, who died in France
on the 14th Of this month. AS yet no
details have come OF his death, but Brew
ster, his brother cabled that 1t had oc-
Cured. A fine fellow and a sad loss to
his family and friends.
A RE WE ready for parties again? Well,
11I should SHAY sho." Witness the size
{ Of the crowd at the Charity Ball last night
! and then you won't ask. never saw any
1 thing to beat It. Besides all the Dolly
brakes and Bobby Blakes and everything
and there were about three hundred in
= the pageant, there were Emergency Aid
Aides, who drilled and National Leaguers
who did the same, only not quite SO much.
And then there were thousands in. the
audience. And when the grand march was
over you ought to have seen that floor.
Jammed. 'absotively:" why you couldn't
get on It without having your feet stepped
on, and as to dancing, we'll it could hardly
be did.
The prettiest sets were the Candylano
z children and the America set. Charlie
Morgan and Genevieve Gibbs were mary
y elous in that, and Brice Blynn and Alva
" Sergeant as the leaders Of the Dolly brakes
and Bobby Blakes were wonderful. Alva
wore the most gorgeous red wig I have
ever seen and my goodness but she did
dance! As for Brownie Watburton and
the rest of the tableaux bunch-They were
. simply splendid.
I thought I'd choke laughing at Mar
garet Berwind. She was captain Of the
u. A. AS and she yelled her commands
!, at the top Of her lungs. To say she put
.'pep" into the drill, would be going It
mild. Every now and then her voice
would take on a little shrek that kind Of
creaked on its hinges. But my dears, she
, fxed those girls with an eagle eye, that
(. told me she could command all right and
certainly would have hated to have been
in that bunch and put the wrong foot first
at any thine Captain Berwind knew what
she was doing and don't you forget 1t.
4 There were some very pretty frocks
worn by those In the audience. noticed
sybil Wright Coates especially. She had
one OF those lovely red velvet gowns with
the draped skirt and v shaped bodice