Evening star., 1944-12-26
Christmas Mail
Still Arriving;
Delivery Rushed
Total Handled Here
Is Less Than in l943,
| Postmaster Says

Carloads of Christmas mail still
were arriving in Washington to-
day, Postmaster Vincent C. Burke
announced this morning. The mail
will be delivered as rapidly as pos
sible.
The extra force of high school
boys and girls will be kept on duty
today and probably tomorrow to de-
liver the mail, he said.
The flood OF mail this year was
lighter than last year, Mr.. Burke
said. Letter mail was about the
same quantity, but parcel post was
smaller. Outgoing parcels dropped
on by about 8 per cent, compared
with last year, while incoming par
GELS were about 812 per cent less
than last year.
Colder Weather Due.
Washington's fourth wartime
Christmas found the Capital cele.
brating with widely varying senti-
ments, with many homes showing a
vacant chair at the table and others
ringing with a joyous welcome for a
serviceman back for the holidays.
The weather, as if in harmony
with wartime Christmas, contin-
ued overcast, with a prospect of
clearing this afternoon. 1t will be
colder tonight.
Thousands attended religious serv-
ices and many later dropped into
churches which remained open for
meditation and prayer.
Cabs, Dinners Scarce.
Christmas trees and decorations
were noticeably fewer than in past
years, with the only supplies OF
ornaments left over from previous
celebrations.
In downtown Washington, there
was a scramble both for taxicabs
and for places to eat. Cabs we're
scarce, as many dryers took the
holiday off. and so fmany restau-
rants were either closed or short OF
help that it was difficult to dine out.
At Union Station. Christmas Day
was quleter than usual, but thou
sands were returning last night and
early today from brief vacations.
Parents, Sons Talk.
The spirit of the day came to the
city from around the world in radio
programs from Leyte, England and
many other places carrying the
voices of boys in uniform. Touch
ing incidents came over the air in
the form of personal messages be-
| tUnan
abroad
From England the voice of King
George VI was heard in a PRAYER
for all Allied peoples. Speaking
from the royal flreside, the King
expressed the hope that before
next Christmas the story of liberia :
ton and triumph will be complete. 4"
In his most optimistic wartime
Christmas message the ruler told
his subjects that the lamps which
the Germans put out all over
Europe, first in 1914 and then in
1889, are being slowly rekindled. :"
and he added that I'VE long for
new birth of freedom and order
among all nations so that happiness
and concord may prevail and the
source of war may be banished
from our midst"
Dutch Given Hope.
In like vein, Queen Wilhelmina
OF the Netherlands sent her people
message of hope and of confidence
in speedy liberation, telling them
that the message of Christmas
enables us to call a courageous and
convincing mo- to the dark powers
that threaten us with destruction"
In another message to the Neither
lands people, Prince Bernhard,
speaking as commander in chief of
the Netherlands armed forces, paid
tribute to the valor of his country
men.
Pope Plus XII, who Sunday had
called upon the nations of the world
to form an organization for lasting
peace, attended a Christmas Day
distribution of gifts to children of
refugees in the main auditorium OF
the pontifical Gregorian University
in Rome.