鈥楾omorrow will be Christmas Day 鈥� the day of all days in the year to the Christian world,鈥� the Victoria Daily Times intoned in an editorial on this day in 1913.
It had been a tough year in Victoria, hard hit by an economic crisis that started in the spring. But there was optimism in the air, with the opening of the new Royal Theatre just days away, and the word that the man in charge of stores for the Hudson鈥檚 Bay Company would be spending his Christmas vacation here.
The newspaper summed up the feeling of Christmas Eve with a single sentence:
鈥淭here would be no mistaking the Christmas expression: The shops, first of all, with their gay greetings, inviting looks and sort of well-turned-over-but-still-something-worth-looking-at blink at one as one passes the windows; the people hurrying in and out with that curiously confused appearance, half triumphant satisfaction, half bewildered puzzlement, but laden to the eyes with a heterogeneous collection of parcels; the good-natured haste with which the time of day is passed; the amiable way in which grown-ups and little folks alike elbow their way in and out of cars and doors, as if each quite understood the importance of the other fellow鈥檚 mission as well as his own; the general air of affability and congeniality and good cheer, which affect the very smoke of the chimneys and the scraps of paper in the gutter which periodically whirl round in giddy foolishness from very joy of anticipation.鈥�
It really was the season of giving, as the Times noted. 鈥淭he very mention of a family in need has been enough to bring forward whole queues of jingling coins and beaming-faced cheques, just dancing to be exchanged for a Christmas dinner for some little boy or girl.鈥�
Then as now, there were needy people in our midst.
The Friendly Help Society was there to lend a hand, just as the Times 91原创 Christmas Fund and other agencies help today.
鈥淚n spite of the fact that this year the list of families requiring these hampers has grown, the public have one and all come forward in a generous and open-handed manner, and the contributions and donations are nearly double those of previous years,鈥� the Daily 91原创 reported.
鈥淭he children of all the public schools in the city, the Saanich Women鈥檚 Social Club and the Pythian Sisters, in addition to the many kind friends who have sent individually, have all contributed on a large scale.鈥�
The 91原创 said that every hamper had 鈥渁 little of everything,鈥� including a roast of beef and general groceries.
David Spencer鈥檚 department store was open late on Christmas Eve to ensure that everyone had a chance to pick up gift items. A full-page ad in the 91原创 offered many suggestions.
For women, Spencer鈥檚 suggested buying tea and fancy aprons, a pair of gloves, handkerchiefs, belts, silk hose and brassieres. For men, the store suggested knitted vests, smoking jackets, scarves, braces, gloves and slippers.
And that鈥檚 not all. The store also sold novelty pipe racks, pin cushions, books for boys and girls, fountain pens 鈥� splendid gifts for either men or women 鈥� and Ensign cameras. For 25 cents, customers could buy six small surprise packets, ready for tying on the tree.
The Christmas spirit, as understood by the Times, did not extend to industrialist Andrew Carnegie, who had said he had no interest in celebrating.
Just a decade before, Carnegie had given the city a library building, still standing at Yates and Blanshard. That gift was apparently forgotten.
Urging its readers to celebrate the season of joy and gladness with greater heartiness than ever before, the Times said that notwithstanding the financial difficulties, no one would deny that all was well in the world 鈥� in particular 91原创 Island.
A century later, Christmas hasn鈥檛 changed that much. It鈥檚 still a season of giving and of good cheer. There are still people in our community who need a helping hand 鈥� and even more people ready to give it.
Despite all the worries of the world, we remain blessed.
Merry Christmas to all.
