Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1955-12-25
The White House
Lights Will Blaze
This Christmas
Historic Mansion Holds
Mdny Yule Memories

HOUSE CflflStItlaSeS curing Ills
regime, according to accounts.
But he was never too success
full.
Mrs. Hoover installed an old
custom from her family, which
called for the house lights to
be put out while the whole
group trooped through the
house carrying lighted candles
and singing Christmas carols.
Hoover led the procession each
year, it is recorded. wearing
a wan smile and looking Ill at
ease. No one really missed him
when he slipped quietly away"
The first family to spend
Christmas in the White House
was that of John Adams, the
second President.
Mrs. Adams, who has gone
down in history as the woman
who hung her laundry in the
East Room, related in letters
to friends how unhappy she
was at her first White House
Christmas.
The building was cold and
damp and far from completed.
There were no bells to sum-
mon the servants. and wood
for fuel was scarce, although
there was a forest of trees as
far as the eye could reach"
Despite the discomforts.
Abigail Adams planned to give
Christmas Day reception for
Congress-f1rst burning up 20
cords of wood in an effort to
dry out the walls. But the
party was FROST" she wrote
home. The guests sat around
intentionally, shivering in
the intense cold.
Touching Story
One Of the most touching
White House Christmas
stories concerns President An
drew Jackson. The Presidents
young nephew, Johnny Donel-
son. who spent the Christmas
of 1885 in the White House.
expressed some concern about
what Santa was bringing him
and asked his uncle: did you
ever hear of a Christmas
when Santa Claus didn't
come, Uncle Andrew"
YES" said the aged war
rior President. "Once, there
was little boy who never
heard of Santa Claus and who
never had a toy. When his
mother died he was all alone
in the world. I was that boy"
The reminder of his unhappy
childhood Spurred Jackson to
consider the plight of other
orphans, and he invited hun
dreds of them to the White
House that year, entertaining
them with wild tales of In
dian wars. The party also fea-
| tured a "snow ball fight" in the
East Room, with the young
sters using starched cotton
balls instead of snow. The
aged President is said to have
| joined in the game.
| Johnny Donelson and his
| five brothers and sisters tried
hard to make that 1885 Christ
mas pleasant for their uncle,
who was lonesome and sad
ened by the recent death Of
his much maligned wife,
Rachel. The youngsters insisted
jackson hang up his stocking
Christmas eve, and the next
morning his secretary, enter
ing the room Unexpectedly,
found the old warrior in tears
over the corncob pipe, tobacco
and other trinkets the children
had sneaked into the stocking.
Memorable Parties
Dolly Madison, still re-
garded as the most glamorous
of all the First Ladies, presided
at some of the most memora-
BILE White House Christmas
parties.
An old account describing
the Madisons' 1911 Christmas
said that Mrs. Madison, as
always, completely dominated
the scene"
She was described as "a
magnificent looking woman,
43 or so. tall, stately, buxom
and rosy" She wore much
rouge, the account continued,
enough indeed to be per-
ceptable in very bright light"
purple velvet frock, pearls
and many bracelets. Her hair
was worn in long dark ring
lets.
After the Virginia country
manner, all the food was
placed on the table at one
time-an elegant table, COM
pletely covered with a huge
mirror which Mrs. Madison
had had especially made in
France. There were turkeys,
chickens, canvas-back ducks,
roasted wild game, vegetables,
fruits and several kinds of
pudding.
There was a waiter for each
guest-available by the day
from several slave-owners at
the rate of 35 cents for an
evening party. Other prices
then current were: Turkeys.
rs cents each: ducks, so cents;
a whole pig, So.
All was not always rosy for
White House occupants at the
Christmas season. An anti
Hayes newspaper, still smart
ing over the bitterness of the
recent Tilden-Hayes Presiden-
tial campaign. had this to say
the first year Rutherford B.
Hayes was in the White House.
This unpleasant thought
will obtrude itself, that this
will be the first time a usurper