The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1883-12-04
THE BUYING MANIA.
Observations of a Floor Walker on
Women Who Buy for the
Sake of Buying.

Shopping" said au experienced floor
walker, ''is, 10 q cons.d =rable extent, q habit,
and 1 know many Instance in which 1t has
grown into q passion. The remark Is often
made that women come Into these large gen.
eral stores aud compel our saleswomen to show
them whole lines OF goods out of pure wanton-
ness / do not think that such Is generally
the cnse The purchasers are seized with the
buying mania, that is all, and IL they happen
TO DO out of ready money, they feel Obliged to
make believe buy. l know these custoines
tolefably well and can pick them right out II
l can only gets sight Of them In the doorway.
They will enter sort of cast down, but
brighten right as soon as they get their
cyes on the goods. The sight seems to act on
them somewhat rs q cocktail operates on a
man; IT'S a regular morning stimulus Women
haven't the bead 70 stand against a genuine
mark down, andi II they can't buy themselves,
they arc bound % see other people buy.
"a man who's, wife deals pretty largely
hero told me last summer that she had bought
seventeen dress patterns in two months, aud
had only had three of them medo up He
enid tho habit rail- In bis wife's family. Her
sister, 1t seems, had about two dozen pair of
now shoes Of all kinda on hand Last winter,
and oily stopped buying when her husband
told her q yarn about a woman being sent to
q private asylum for doing such things A
dozen pair is not very strong, but two dozen
beats even Napoleon Ill, who bad only
twenty pair Of boots when he was trapped at
Sedan.
Tho worst cases among those who have
the buying mazda we'll developed are the
specialists. A woman usel to come I'm here
who would buy six dozen handkerchioss at
once, aud even repeat the act On the follow
Ing day. I un jcrstand that snc is an er-
cellent Indy, who is greatly beloved by her
husband He once cd twelve gross
of htndkei chiefs, purchased by her, at
auction, and his wife did not miss
tlicn. II Is lucky that lie is a very wealthy
man. As for the stocking rnge, they all have
it Gloves used to bs the great articles for a
run, but stockings of all varieties arc now tho
craze. This has been the case for a ! ng time,
but thisy year It is stronger than ever. do
not think tho average woman is ever so
entirely happy as when she is buying those
articles. The trade runs in streaks on stock
ings when we marked down those Isle thread,
~silk-finished stockings from W to As cents this
house was stormed. We have about 800 vari-
cites Of those goods, varying from - cents 10
$3.50 a pair. There is a grade at sl2, but we
sell few at that price. The affection for
stockings is very general among women. The
rich buy three or -FOUR dozen OF a half-dozeu
varieties, but 1 have known plenty of women
who were hardly able 10 buy anything at all
to pay 10 cents or 81 for a single pair Of stock
ings- 1 would DO willing TO make a small
bet that If a woman felt her habitual call to
shop, and had but a dollar, she would pass
that amount in at the stocking counter.
'Some ladies TAKE very strongly TO white
goods and keep an immoderate quantity OIL
sInnd, but II is not a very expensive taste.
Thoss, however, who indulge in a multitude
Of hats, rs some of them do, nave TO pay
heavily for their fancies. You would not
think a dozen hats a small number for a lady
to buy In a single season. Well, l have
known women to purchase thirty within that
time. All women who have the buying
habit indulge in some leading article. 1t Ia
only when they cannot afford that particular
thing that they tako the thread and needle
business.
(Which are the most extravaganza The
lace buyers, by all odds. If you could con.
trive to look over some Of the collections Of
laces in private hands, you wouli be sur
prise1 There are women In New York who
have laces to a larger amour than the
average dealer is able to keep In stock Fans
also are a rage. l know a lady who has
forty fans, hut somehow she doesn't manage
to keep herself cool with tbem."