Evening star., 1934-04-15
VISITORS THR0NG
C|TYF0R FESTIVAL
Blossoms Reach Prime as
Final Touches Are Put On
Elaborate Plans.

With the vanguard of the thousands
coming here tor the Cherry Blossom
Festival alreaoy in town, plans fol-
the elaborate three-day celebration
were receiving their final touches last
night.
The blossoms around the still waters
of the Tidal Basin are in their prime
today, the twenty second blosSoming
since the trees were first planted
there the gift of the City of Toxic
The festival will start Thursday before
the blossoms have said good-by for
another year.
Ceremonial Opens Festival.
A Commute sunrise ceremonial at
dawn Thursday will open the festival
which, in its three days course, will
take in such events as the coronation
of the queen of the festival. Miss
Eleanor Roosevelt; the festival parade
a regatta, display of fireworks. the
presentation of the operetta, The
Mikado." and an elaborately staged
horse show. A reception and ball at
the Mayf1ower Hotel Saturday night
will bring the festival to a close.
The program for the sunrise cere-
monial will include the playing of a
number of musical selections of Spring
time inspiration by the Marine Band,
under the direction of Capt Taylor
Branson. They include Stephan's
Cherry Blossoms Sinding's Rustic
of Spring" Mendelssohn's Spring
Song" Grainger's Country Gardens"
and Hadley's Ballet of Flowers"
Dancers Will Appear.
The Davis Dancers will present
Morning Song" and Miss Evelyn will
perform pan dance. The Chace
Dancers will present Spring Time.
with an incidental solo by Miss Manon
Chace.
The sunrise ceremonial will take
place along the Tidal Basin just west
of the boat house. 1t is being ar
ranged by Mrs. Elizabeth K. Peoples,
director of the Community Center De-
partment.
The Parade Committee, headed by
Gen. Amos A. Fries, announced yes
terday that a public subscription
would be taken up in order to COL
lect s400 to build float for the queen
of the festival and her II attendants.
All contributions will be welcome,
Gen. Fries said, from one penny up.
The names of all donors will be in
scribed on a roll to be presented to
the queen in front of the grandstand
at her coronation. Subscriptions
should be sent to the Parade Commit
tee at Room 220, Shoreham Building
The queens float has already been
designed, and its construction will be
finished by Thursday Its predomin-
atlng motif is the rising sun, and the
upper portions are carried out in the
curving lines suggestive of japanese
pagodas. The queen will be seated
high up in the rear Of the float. and
her II attendants on a series of
descending steps below her Their
dresses will be pink, the darkest shade
at the bottom and the lighteSt at
the top the same arrangement as is
found in cherry blossom.
The parade is to be staged on the
second day of the festival Already
"a floats have been entered, and by
the time entries are closed, it is ex-
pected that 40 will be in line. The
floats are all elaborate affairs. most
OF them with a historical motif.
Horse Show Entries Limited.
If the festival suffers from anything.
1t seems that some of the events are
too popular. 1t has already been
necessary to limit entries to the horse
show by invitation only, and now a
somewhat similar problem threatens
the regatta, to be held Saturday at
the Tidal Basin. Dr. Roy L. Sexton,
chairman of the Regatta Committee.
said today that so many entries for
the various regatta events had been
received that the committee was hav-
Ing difficulty placing them.
The committee. he said. is planning
to arrange boat rides around the
basin for the public. at a nominal
charge to afford view of the bios
SONS from the water.
Also under consideration is a scheme
to build float in the middle of the
basin for use in official receptions
during the festival.
For the horse show there will be
five silver prize awards. These will
go to the winners in the hunter class.
the ladies' hunter class. the hunt team
class for three gentleman riders. the
hunt team class for children and the
Olympia jumping class.
Shopping Interlude Provided.
There will be a break in the pro-
gram on Saturday morning. which
will be allowed as an interval for the
visiting thousands to do their shop
ping at Washington's stores.
In preparation for this the Decora-
tions Committee, under the chairman
ship of c. Melvin Sharp, has requested
all merchants in the city to decorate
their stores with cherry blossoms or
with decorative schemes harmonizing
with the spirit of the Cherry Blossom
Festival.
Some merchants have already put
their decorations in place. and many
downtown store windows are showing
sprays of cherry blossoms, scenes of