The Norwegian Orphanage Society held a festival last Sunday afternoon at the Zion Lutheran Church. The festival was very well attended although the day was very cold and stormy. The original intention was to have the children of the Orphanage present, but the superintendent would not risk the exposure to the weather of any but the strongest, so that only a few of the older children were present at the Church.

The festival was opened with prayer and scripture reading by Reverend C. L. Jothen, minister at the Hauge Lutheran Church. Reverend C. K. Solberg welcomed the people and gave a brief account of the reason for the festival.

The Norwegian King and Queen has presented the Orphanage with a picture of 2themselves, and today this picture was to be placed in the hands of the directors of the Orphanage by Consul F. H. Gade, representing the royal couple. The speaker also referred to the occasion for the gift by the King and Queen. During his recent visit to Norway, Attorney Olaf Ray had obtained audience with the King and had told the latter of the benevolent institutions organized by the Norwegian-Americans in Chicago--the Orphanage and the Home for the Aged. He also mentioned that he, the speaker, on his visit to Norway had spoken to secretary Gronvold about the matter; the King was not present in the Norwegian capital at the time. Both he, the speaker, and Attornoy Ray had emphasized that the most desirable gift from the King would be a token of remembrance, to be kept by the institution. The beautiful signed pen sketches of the King and the Queen arrived in time for the bazaar hold recently, but had been delayed by the customs house inspection. Consul Gade had succeeded, however, in getting the picture through the customs house free of duty.

A quartet from the Orphanage sang the Norwegian national anthem, after 3which Consul Gade was introduced to the audience and spoke as follows:

"This day, St. Valentine's Day, as we all know, is a children's day in America. On that day it is the custom that the children give and receive presents. The most beautiful present that the children of the Norwegian Orphanage are receiving today is from the Norwegian royal couple--the auto-graphed pictures of King Haakon and Queen Maud.

"This is a gift which not only will please the children today; it will also bring pleasure and encouragement in the future, because it is an assurance that the Norwegian royal couple is among the many interested and good friends of the Orphanage. Fond of children as King Haakon and Queen Maud are, they have rejoiced in hearing of this home which so far has solved its task in such a brilliant manner; that today, in spite of reverses and accidents, it is firmly placed on solid ground, the finest memorial to the love and care 4bestowed by the Norwegian-American of Chicago upon the little ones who need assistance.

"A couple of weeks, ago the Home for the Aged received a similar gift accompanied by a message from the Norwegian King and Queen. Again, today, I have a message from the royal couple, this time to the Norwegian children of Chicago. The portraits are to remind the children of their Norwegian descent; of the fact that their ancestors were Norwegians.

"Even though the children have never seen Norway, they should not forget that Norway is the land of their forefathers; that once upon a time it was the land of their father and mother; that for these reasons they themselves are bound to that country with a multitude of ties. The children have Norwegian blood in their veins; they have Norwegian characteristics in their nature, characteristics with which they will never be able to part--or wish to part--however good and loyal American citizens they may become, because 5the Norwegian inheritance within them is about the noblest they possess. Norwegians are welcomed in America just because they are considered in possession of national characteristics which make them good citizens--diligence, willingness to work, honesty, and respect for law. In the se traits Norway has endowed her children with a wealth which cannot be estimated too highly, and the descendants have, in these traits, received an inheritance which they cannot value too highly, and which they should guard with great diligence.

"My message to the Norwegian-American children is: Be proud of your Norwegian ancestry, and be ever watchful that you honor Norway; in doing so you are honoring yourselves. The Norwegian child in America must learn, in addition to American history, the history of Norway, the glorious memories from the times of the ancient kings, the Kaakons, the Olavs, the significance of 1814 and 1905; the pride of Norwegians at the new age of Haakons and Olavs. The Norwegian child in America must learn to know Norwegian literature which, at the present time, ranks among the very best 6in the literature of the world. The Norwegian child in America must learn of the great feats of Nansen and Amundsen.

"Even though the Norwegian child in America never has a chance to come to Norway, the country where his father and mother played when they were children, he must, at least in spirit, see the magnificent nature of the country; the mountains with their snow-capped tops; the boiling waterfalls down the mountain sides; the dark, evergreen forests; the bright, smiling, birch-clad hillsides--all of this so very different from the level prairieland that we inhabit here.

"The Norwegian child in America must also learn of the inhabitants of fable-land in Norway, the Trolls, the Hulder, the Draugen, the Nokken, the Nissen--by all means they must come to love the ancient pleasant Christmas, Nissen.

"But above all of this, the Norwegian child in America must be taught the 7religion of their fathers; he must come to know and love the God who has aided Norway in days of danger; who has helped father and mother; who will lead onward the child, too, when in genuine faith and confidence he turns to Him."

Mr. Fredriksen gave a tenor solo, with piano accompaniment. Attorney Ray gave a speech concerning his audience with the Norwegian King on the occasion of the coronation.

The president of the Orphanage, Reverend Ellestad, on behalf of the Orphanage Society, expressed appreciation for the royal gift.