The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1882-11-15
LETTER FROM PHILADELPHIA.
The Rare Reyolution-Sett Down
Christmas Preparations-What the
People are Buying- Elegant
Things.
PmLADELrn1A, Nov. II. 1882.

result is no secret. Whether il is a revo-
lution or a revelation, or what it is, every
body is taken by surprise. The told
you SO : people are as much astonished
as the rest for nearly all the figuring
and guessing in advance shot " ide of the
mark. There is great confusion among
some of tho people who most confidently
made bets of hats and other articles of
apparel and merchandise. Now that the
public mind is free from the excess of
political excitement, we settle down to
business, which is what the American
people are supremely happy in attending
to.
To say that business is !" booming is
to put it very mildly. We have never
bad such business prosperity. 1t is not
like that seeming prosperity which follow
cd the war, and eliminated in the finan-
cial crash of 1878. This is solid, cash
prosperity, and is not built up on credit.
Country merchants are in town buying
goods and hurrying them home to where
their customers, cash in hand, are await.
ing them. The retail stores are doing an
enormous business. Shoppers, for the
most part, carry cash with them and pay
as they buy. The old way of charging
goods, to DO paid for at the end of three
or six months, has gone out Of fashion,
except in few instances. Everybody il
happier for this. That sort Of credit has
led the way to many rash purchases
which were bad for selleras well as buyer.
CHRISTMAS is COMING.
In the Christmas preparations we sec
abundant evidences Of prosperity and
general happiness. The early making
ready for Christmas is matter of recent
years. There was time when I'LL the
Christmas presents which changed hands
were bought within two weeks of Christ
mas day. 1t is vastly different now, In
the Christmas card exhibits, which are
novelties bearing date Of only few years,
we have already the Openings This
business Of making Christmas cards is
one which has suddenly attained great
proportions. From the homely little
caloTed device which sells for two cents,
up to the more elaborate and artistic card
al dollar or more, there is an unspeaka-
BILE variety in conception and execution,
ranging all the way from hideous to
splendid, from clumsy TO artistic. Now
everybody must have Christmas card !;
and the number which changes honds is
Increasingly enormous
CHRISTMAS AND THE ART GOODS.
1t is in objects of artistic merit ana
elegance that the Christmas business has
undergone the most radical changes The
Centennial show in 1876 did much to in
troduce among our citizens a taste for the
beautiful such as had not been known
before. Since that there has been con
slant growth. The porceains, bronzes,
aud other beautiful things now imported
from Europe, could not then have found
sale among our people. Now the demand
is not only from the city, but from people
in all tho ncighboring cities and towns
The coarse and tawdry ornaments which
adorned the mantels and tables in country
homes, have given place to statuettes and
porcelains Of real beauty. These are not
necessarily very costly. In fact many of
them are sold at such prices as may sur
prise some people who have almost feared
10 make inquiry as to the figures. Most
of these adornments are introduced into
the homes they decorate as Christmas
presents. The preparations made by
Bailey, Banks & Biddle for this Christ
mas season are enormous. The rich
things which Mr.. Bailey selected when in
Europe have arrived and are now tho
attraction of admiring throngs of people
Porcelains, brouzes, clocks marble statu-
airy, and a wondrous wealth of fino fancy
goods in bewildering variety would con-
fuse the visitor aut that they are arranged
with such admirable system, and carefully
marked with tho price.
THE BI-CENTENNIAL BANQUET.
Much criticism is INDUCED in because
of the Councilmen's free lunch, which
cost nearly seventeen hundred dollars,
and has to DO paid for out of the funds
which the city appropriated for furtheriug
the interests of the great show. 1t is
supposed that the hungry Councilmen
thought that the interests of the show
would be promoted by their eating a
dinner which cost fifteen dollars for every
man who sat down to the table. There
was no occasion for such feed, nor is
there any apology for squandering the
money on 1t. 1t is expected that the
Controller may have something to say
about the expenditure. RALPH.