CHILDREN MADE HAPPY

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 18281, 23 December 1922, Page 8

CHILDREN MADE HAPPY

ROTARY CLUB'S EFFORT.

SANTA CEAUS AT TOWN HALL

CHILDREN OF POOR PEOPLE

Yesterday was a day of real festival for over a thousand poor children of Auckland, who wcro treated to a splendid Christmas-treo celebration at the Town Hall through tho generosity of the Rotary Club. The children, numbering about 1400, wero from the poorest homes of tho city; they were marshalled by tho social

workers, who keep closely in touch with all the city's needy cases, and tinder their kindly escort, arrived at the Town Hall shortly after two o'clock. For tho next two hours the scene was a memorable- and deeply interesting one, full of joy and childish excitement, with an occasional touch of pathos to remind one that at. ! the back of all the laughter und the hap- | piness there was the shadow of poverty, ; the anxiety for the future that looks all j too plainly from tho eyes of tho mothers of the poor. But for ono day, all troubles i were forgotten, and it was a radi j antly happy host of little girls and boys | that chattered and laughed and gazed I eagerly at tho magnificent Chris-lmas j tree with its coloured trimmings and gay lights. Handing out the Gifts. Beneath tho platform a long row of tables was arranged, each ono containing gifts for girls and boys of various | ages. Rotarians stood behind tho tables j and handed out tho gifts as tho small ; folk, each ono of whom had previously j been given a gift ticket, wero marI shalled in a long queue and passed across the hall. There were dolls and wheel-

I barrows, tea-sets, books of adventure, | paints, stuffed animals—practically all tho I things that Santa Clans will fill his sacks I with to-morrow night for the children who i have not yet had their Christmas treat. ! The rotarians performed their pleasant task l with much zest, taking kindly thought to j the selection of each gift, so that each I fluid passed on its way with a beaming I face. A little farther on other rotarians j presided over boxes filled with bags of i sweets and shiny red apples, while yet other brothers of the band worked sti-enu-ously at blowing up tho gaudy balloons which topped off tho gift-list. Tale of a Ticket. The majority of the children were accompanied by their mothers, who came carrying tho baby on ono arm, a kit slung across tho other, to receive gifts for tho toddlers and in some cases for tho little sick boy or girl at home. Sometimes the tiny folk got tired before their turn came to pass by tho gift-tables, and had to be carried, sleepy-eyed and nodding, to receive their toys. " Please, I haven't got a ticket; baby got tired of waiting, and he's eat it," volunteered ono young mother rather anxiously, bat tho man behind the table merely beamed, and was far more sympathetic than any tramway inspector who is told the same tale. A fine spirit of generosity •■'aaracterised the whole entertainment, and without a doubt the joy of the afternoon was extended later on to many a little ailing brother or sister who was unable to join in tho fun. The behaviour of tho children was wonderfully good, and the discipline of the social workers most effective. In a crowd of over a thousand children it might have been expected that thero would bo a few unruly spirits, but, if there were, tho piercing trill of the Rev. F. R. Jeffrey's whistle very quickly brought them to order, and the long queue was maintained for two hours in a manner that would havo been an object lesson to anv five o'clock tram rush of Auckland citizens. Social Workers' Gratitude. After the last child had passed from the hall, the, Rev. F. R. Jeffroys made an eloquent little speech of thanks to the Rotary Club on behalf of the social workers. For several years some of the latter had been giving the children a Christmas treat at St. James' Hall, he said, but the matter was now too great for them to handle, and they were deeply grateful to the business men of Auckland, who, as members of the Rotary Club, has given so generous and delightful an entertainment. Mr. C. Rhodes, president of the club, replied briefly, expressing the pleasure which members had felt in making Christmas a real festival for so many poor children of the city.