CITY OBSERVES CHRISTMAS EVE.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18643, 24 December 1928, Page 9

CITY OBSERVES CHRISTMAS EVE.

HOLIDAY SPIRIT MANIFESTED BY HAPPY CROWDS.

SHOPS BEAR ANIMATED APPEARANCE, AND TRADE IS BRISK.

A spirit of good-fellowship, almost of happy jollity, manifested among all classes of people

■ classes ui I old and young I alike, betokens the ' fact that to-day is I Christmas Eve — I the day of busy I shopping, anxiety I among parents, I happy anticipation I among children, I and a free and easy I comp a n i o n s h i p I among men. Christmas comes but once a year, and it is fortunate

for most that a twelve months interval exists. For Christmas is not only a time for holiday and pleasure, but it is a strenuous and often harrowing period for many. The sending and reciprocating of greetings, the hurly-burly of shopping, and the general rush that exists during the period before a holiday, all combine to form an arduous duty, and many a tired parent emits a deep sigh of relief when Christmas Eve comes to an end. In the city to-day there were early indications of the holiday atmosphere. Busy crowds thronged the streets, and the shops were filled with bustling crowds making their purchases. It was not until the early afternoon, however, that the crowds grew particularly large, and during the lunch-hour the town did not bear a very animated appearance. Those who did their shopping in the morning were able to do it in comparative comfort, but the afternoon shopping was strenuous and arduous. During the past week shopping has been very busy, and it is apparent that the numbers who recognise the wisdom of early shopping are growing each year. Stationery and book firms, tobacconists and drapery firms have been doing a thriving trade, and the assistants in these shops have been working at high pressure. Despite the growing tendency to modernism, Father Christmas has not yet become a myth, and it is evident that children are still imbued with the time-honoured idea. At those shops where Father Christmas is represented in personal form, children are to be seen gleefully gravtitating towards the symbolic figure, where they receive promises of all manner and kind of gifts. Many a worried father is rehearsing his role for this evening, and anxiously hoping that the children do not “twig” him. Christmas hampers are proving as popular as ever, and it seems that Christmas 1928 is going to be celebrated with merry and cheerful observance.

Business in the town is practically at a Standstill. Legal firms have commenced the annual vacation, and insurance offices, land agencies and other commercial firms are all winding up in preparation for the holidays. Many offices re-open during the week, but there will be little business transacted until after the New Year.

Railway booking offices present scenes of animation to-day. Holiday makers are preparing for their journeys, and all the scenic resorts are com-' ing in for strong support. The ferry services during the next few days will be fully engaged with the rush of holiday traffic.