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Show I Sh'i : i I How the Wounded Are Made Happy At the Holiday Season Elaborate Plans for the Yuletide In the Hospitals -of the Allied Nations. Copyright, 1917, byThe lDtcrn.itlon.il Syndicate. HRISTMAS IS THE SEASON m when our thoughts turn to j m deeds of charity and pood will j towards othors. It Is especially Incumbent on us this year to remember remem-ber those who arc fighting our battles and those who having foughtaro rccup-oratlng rccup-oratlng from their wounds In the military mil-itary hospitals. Those of us who aro In bright and cheerful homes amid pleasant and comfortable conditions do but a small part of our patriotic and christian duty by contributing toward the happiness hap-piness and. relief of tho men who havo risked their all for the welfare of mankind. This Christmas from hundreds hun-dreds of thousands of hearthstones j will go up prayers for their safety and from millions of hands will go forth little tokens of the love and affection in which they are held by tho heart bleeding ones left behind. This Is tho fourth Christmas of tho world war and while thousands, of men have gone to their deaths, thousands thou-sands more fill tho hospitals In varioxis stages of recovery. They have been mado as comfortable as possible In the big hospitals and convalescent homes but Christmas Is ono of the saddest seasons of tho .year unless one Is remembered and the good womon of the Allied nations will sec to it that the wounded men arc not forgotten. This year the preparations for the , holiday season In tho hospitals are oven greater than In previous years on account of tho United States bcing actually at-war. In former years our I people sent aid and our nurses were at tho bedside of tho wounded, but this year It is our war as well as those of tho- people "over there," and the touch of .tho American woman's hand will be found in, tho Christmas festivities festivi-ties of tho hospitals of France, Bel-glum Bel-glum and England. All sorts of amusements arc provided pro-vided in' the hospitals, the Inevitable talking machine being ono of the Christmas gifts In ovcry ward. r "At tlmos on Christmas morning," said the nurso, "ono cannot hold a conversation for it seems that hundreds hun-dreds of machines aro vicing with each other in playing familiar airs. ! Tho men love tho 'canned music and If the people who send those machines and records to the hospital could only seo the happiness it brings to tho maimed and helpless It would do their hearts good. It drives away the melancholy mel-ancholy which comes to some men as soon as they are unfit for service." Queen Mary Interested. Royalty is especially Interested In the Christmas festivities and Queen Mary spends nearly tho entire Christmas Christ-mas day going from hospital to hospital hos-pital with good cheer for tho soldiers. Great bunches of flowers are sent from the royal hot housos to the military hospitals and each wounded soldier has his own Christmas bouquet. Cigars, cigarettes and sweets aro also sent from Buckingham Palace. Pal-ace. Tho blind are given special boxes and tho good ladles of tho nobility no-bility make a special effort to seo that these sightless men aro mado as happy as possible during tho holiday season. Tho llttlo children who are suffering from wounds as the result of Zeppelin raids are given toys and Christmas trees aro set up for them. Those innocent victims of German fright fulness come in for a large sharo of the Christmas treat. Poor little creatures who arc compelled to suffer, suf-fer, frequently, for the rest of their lives through German crimes aro tho most pathetic sights In tho English hospitals and it seems but fitting that on tho birthday of the Christ Child theso children should share the y Christmas festivities with the men who aro fighting to save them from t further torture. Carol Singing1. Carol singing has always been a i part of the English Christmas and parties of young girls go from hospital to hospital on Christmas morning singing carols to tho soldiers. At the j convalescent homes the men have the genuine English Christmas dinner with its Paron of beef and steaming plum pudding. Sometimes when the ! convalescont homo is In the country the men bring in tho Yule log in true English fashion and it is burned od the hearth. Gamos of ail sorts are played and It Is surprising how men who arc minus a leg can manage to get about on crutches and for a lime at least forget tlie price they have paid In their efforts to crush the auto- cracy of tho Kaiser. Many of the theatres invite the men to tho Christ- i mas matinee and when tho men are practically well except f or being crippled crip-pled the good people of London who havo automobiles send tho cars to the hospitals and tako tho men to the theatres as their guests. Tho relatives of tho sick men aro invited to visit tho Hospitals on Christmas and they corao' in droves to enjoy tho day wilh their ' "heroes." Those who aro too 111 to' rccelvo company aro tenderly watched over by tho nurses who strive In some way to make Christmas a little brighter for them than other days. King George's Tea. King George always entertains hundreds hun-dreds of wounded heroes (who aro so far in their recovery as to be able to walk), at tea on' Christmas afternoon at Buckingham Palace. Hero tho men are waited upon by tho royal ladles. The Princess Mnry acts as head waitress wait-ress and is assisted by such well-known well-known women as the Duchess of Devonshire, De-vonshire, the Duchess of Southcrland and tho Duchess Buccleuch together with a number of marchionesses and countesses. Queen Alexandra always puts In an appearance and greets the men. The King and Queen como in and spend some llmo talking with the soldiers and congratulating them on their great work. After tea tho men go to tho big' Riding School where there Is an excellent variety show given, the performers being selected from the best talent of the London theatres. Theso theatricals arc always al-ways greatly cDjoyed by tho men. Tho tea parties extend throughout the holiday week In order that all tho men may have a part. Cigars and tobacco aro given out as tho guests j leave. Variouc noblemen make up parties of convalescent soldiers and entertain them at tho theatre forTho ' Christmas matinee or by taking them on long automobile rides. The Indoor circus Is one of the great Christmas entertainments in London as well as the pantomime and both of these amusement halls aro crowded with convalescents who arc guests for the occasion. All London is wide open to tho wdunded hero who can manage to get about on Christmas. Theatrical Performances. Theatrical performances arc one of tho Christmas treats at many of the military hospitals Last year a stage was erected In a hospital at Birmingham, Birming-ham, 'England. Scenery was painted for the' occasion and the entire company, com-pany, Including the orchestra, moved to" the hospital for a Christmas matinee. mat-inee. The cots of tho men wero moved to the front and three hundred bedridden bed-ridden fighting men witnessed an entire en-tire -performance of tho "Babes in the Woods" given with all the appurtenances appur-tenances of a first class theatre. Fifty of theso men wero unable even to sit up, but their Christmas was made nappy, by tho "mountain coming to Mahomet when Mahomet could not go to the mountain." This year the porformanco Is to be repeated and although it will bo tho samo with practically the same casto a new sot of heroes will be proscnt at tho show the- men who composed tho audience audi-ence of last year have either gono back to the- front, been discharged as unfit for service or havo gone to their final reward above. In France And Belgium. Christmas In the French hospitals Is made one round of music and feasting feast-ing wherever ho soldier Is In condition condi-tion to bear the qxcitement. Theatrical The-atrical performances and concerts are the order of the day, tho various art- $jgiFv ists going from hospital to hospital ft. singing and playing and even dancing t, to amuse tho mem- Tho French jf. priests take an active part in gettjng , up theso entertainments. Even In tho H shell ruined towns these noblemen. M twenty thousand of whom arc serving ' in the ranks of tho French army, gather tho convalescents about them , M and try to make tho day a happy one. W They -always contrive to find a suit- ablo place to hold a religious service first, and last year one priest used an old fountain Jo the center of the town . for an altar and gathered tho conva- , : lescent soldiers about him in tho shell 1 wrecked town and celebrated mass. 1 while a German -aeroplane was flying I overhead, Aftor mass he gathered the men about, him. -and the girl3 of the village oam-o ovor and cheered the men by singing songs-for them. Then there was a Christmas dinner and tho opening of boxes' from home. This H goes on all over Franco. Down In tho southern part of the country where The air Is balmy and tho wounded may sit out in the sunshine. band concerts arc given whilo ciaT3JSSUl " ' and sweets are passed around. 'SSmHl In Belgium the scenes aro rcpcatodHRKtt for although this little land has been WpK crushed for tho time being her people havo never lost heart and although SjL saddened by the loss of so many of flj her bravo men thoso who aro In tho hospitals are mado to enjoy their jH Christmas through tho kindness of tho Allies including tho Americans Bj who have done so much to relievo th& sufferings of King Albert's people. And so it will be seen that even in this war of blood and hate tho spirit of Christian charity still spreads .her wings, over thoso who have suffered In the cause ot right and the message of "Peace on Earth good Will to Men" still shines through the dark-ened dark-ened eky. |