The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1883-12-01
THE BTTIXG MIMI.
UOSersatiosS Of 4 FlOOr Walker on
homen who Buy for the
Sake OF RuyiRg.
New Ork sua.l

"t euat 10 ull, dllu
II they happen to be out of ready
money. they feel obliged to make
believe buy. | know those custo.
mers tolerably well, and can pick
them right out if can only get a
sight of them in the doorway.
They will enter sort of east down.
but brighten right up as soon as
they get their eyes on the goods.
The sight seems to act on them
aomewhrt as a cocktail operates
on man; lisa regular morning
stimulus. Women haven't the
head to stand against genuine
mark down, and il they can't buy
themselves, they are bound to see
other people buy.
"a man whose wife deals pretty
largely here told me last summer
that she bad bought seventeen
dress patterns in two months, aud
had only had three of them made
up. lie said the habit ran in his
wife's family. Her sister, II seems,
had about two dozen pair Of new
shoes of all kinds on hand last
winter, and only stopped buying
when her husband told her a yarn
about u women being sent to q
private asylum for doing such
things. A dozen pair is not very
strong, but two dozen beats even
Napolean Ill, who had only TWEEN
IS pair of boots when he was trap.
ped at Sedan.
NO, | do not think the buying
nlania is stronger than klept0ma.
mia, but il is quite as strong, and,
in my opinion, a good deal more
genuine. Cases oftrue kleptoma-
MIA are rare.r
''ls not kleptomania the result
of what you call the buying MA.
nia ~ asked the reporter.
"N0t by any means. The two
eases are entirely different. The
chronic shopper has the habit of
buying, that's all | have seldom
known one to steal anything. The
true kleptomaniac, however, acts
from an irresistible impulse whicll
only breaks out occasionally.
There are bogus kleptomaniacs-
'magpics,' We call tlem--who tuck
away anything they can lay hands
on; but they are nothing more
than thieves. People exaggeratr
somewhat as to the number of
shoplifters detected In stores; we
watch people closely nowadays.
The worst eases among those
who have the buying mania well
developed are the specialists. A
woman used to come In here who
would buy six dozen handker-
chiefs at once, ahd even repeat
the act ou the ALLOWING day. ]
understandable she is an excel.
| lent lady, who is greatly beloved
by her husband. lie once sold
twelve gross of handkerclliefs'
purchased BY her, at auction, and
his wife did not miss them. 1t il
lucky that ha is a very wealthy
man. As for the stocking rage,
they all have il. Gloves used to
be the great articles for run, but
stockings of all varieties are now
the craze. This has been the ease
for long time, but this year it is
stronger than ever. ! do not
think the average woman is ever
so entirely happy as when she IL
buying those articles. The trade
runs in strcaks on stockings
when We marked down those lisfe
thread silk finished stockings from
so to III cents this house was
stormcd. We have about 300 va
rieties of those goods, varying
from 20 cents to $3.50 pair
There is a grade at sl2. but we
sell few at that price. The affec-
ton for stockings is very general
among women. The rich buy
three or four dozen of the hall
dozen varieties, but | have known
plenty of women who were hardly
able to buy anything at all, to pay
75 cents or sl for single pair c'
stockings. | would be willing to
make u small bet that If q woman
felt her IlabituaI call TO shop, and
Ind but dollar, she would pass
that Il. at the stocking counter.
ssome ladies' take very strongly
to white goods and keep an i'm
moderate quantity On hand but y
is not very expensive taste
Those, however, who indulge u =
multitude Of hats. ~ some Of them
do, have TO pay heaxils for then
faneies Yon voiiId not think 9
dozen hats 4 small number Ior q
lady 10 buy in a single aeasol'
We'll. hive known women g
purchase thirty will'lu 'i'ss '''''e'