The Washington herald., 1907-12-15
By FREDERIC ]. HASKIN.

During the coming ten days more
money VIII be spent in American stores
than has been spent in any ten weeks
during the year now past For. despite
the fact that newspapers and mer-
chants have for some time been plead
ing with the prospective shopper 10
come early. but at her leisure. and so
save herself and the weary clerks from
the usual holiday rush, not one thOus-
andeth part Of the Christmas buying has
yet been done. Many have to wait until
that season when the stores viii keep
open in the evenings for their convent
eace, but the majority wait simply be-
cause there is more zest and inspiration
in shopping during the days that crowd
closest on the day Of glad-giving.
Already jewelers., stationers. confec-
TONERS. toy sellers. and the managers Of
department stores have increased their
forces over fifty per cent. and on the
three days Immediately preceding Christ
mas ten per cent more may be added
During the coming rush the average
large department store viii wrap from
1000 to 60000 packages a day. For the
ten days preceding Christmas last year
one New York firm averaged 2e.O0O pack
ages a day delivered. while 40.000 a day
were carried away By thoughtful Gus
toners. One store ran over 400 delivery
wagons night ana day last season. for.
despite the fact that the women's clubs.
the child labor organizations, and the
Consumers League have been earnestly
begging that shopping be done early ard
that ali small packages be carried home
by the purchasers, the delivery business
annually threatens congestion al Christ
mas time One Eastern firm made a rec
ord few Chris:mases ago, and has kept
it since They advertised that all goods
bought az their store on Christmas eve
would be delivered before o'clock Christ
mas morning. The force. greatly aug
mented, worked ali night and by the
stated hour 1C0o)G packages had beer
safely given into the hands Of the con-
signees.
On the Saturday Immediately preceding
/ Christmas last year one and a half mill
lion people visited the NeY York stores.
making a record for that city Of the
most voluminous and lucrative trade for
one day in all its history. one thousand
FIVE hundred extra clerks were called in
I 20 help in the rush. and the amount of
money that changed hands was incalcula-
/ bic. The infection spread from Fifth
! avenue and Riverside down into Little
/ Italy and Little Egypt. and even invaded
1 the Ghetto. where the Jews purchased
literally, and placing Christmas on their
social calendar exchanged gifts and greet
I ings after the fashion OF their Gentle
I neighbors. Three years before this his
/ toric Saturday there was a notable
/ Christmas eve rush on one New York
Z department store. -Four hundred and
( seventy-dve thousand people managed TO
/ get in, and when, in desperation, the
manager finally had the doors closed.
there were thousands on the outside
clamoring 20 reach the bargains
/ Styles and fads run through Christmas
gifts as they do though clothes. OF aTCh.-
/ lecture. or foods. The present tendency
4 is toward more. substantial things. Even
/ the toys that once We're made merely
/ with a view 20 their being for temporary
/ amusement and sudden. destruction. are
now of a rather practical nature Auto
mobiles that work with pedals. Teddy
/ bears that cannot be broken. and minia-
I ture furniture find their way 70 children
/ during the season The grOwn-ups are
/ growing more practical, TOO. in regard 20
! one another. and when one department
\ store sold last Christmas season 1,00-
/ pianos. among other things. IL merely
4 proved this 20 be an age Of common sense
J and practicabiity.
! Dolls VIII be bought this year IN great
er numbers than ever before. The deal
ers have purchased them in numbers ag-
/ gregating two times the present popula-
/ ton Of the country. showing that some
| favored little lady viii have a large and
varied family offered for her immediate
adoption ali IN the glad rush of Christmas
\ Day. Twenty years ago there were only
4 four kinds OF dolls. To-day there are 40t
! kinds, and with the increase Of the num-
/ bers comes an increase in durability
! Yet somehow or other they must disap-
! pear, for each Christmas brings a larger
I supply than ever before Even the Teddy
/ Bear cannot crowd the doll from the
arms Of the little mother OF to-day any
more than II could have done a decade
/ ago. and only one-fOurth as many Teddy
| Bears Will be sold.
/ Christmas trees to the number Of many
millions will be brought i#-the coming
week New York viii use over a million
and nearly two-thirds Of all those on the
market viii come from Maine. Millions
I viii be used. and yet the Christmas tree
/ industry is not over thirty years old
/ AS a nation America cared little for
] Christmas trees until within the past halt
/ century. The Pennsylvania Dutch had
/ the custom OF setting up green tree.
I for a century or so before * became a
! fashion among Us. New England was the
/ first 10 take II up after these Pennsyl-
/ vanians. but IL Is due 10 our great for
1 eign population that the custom has at
I tained TO its present wide popularity
/ More than one little foreign born mite
/ down on New YOrks East Side has been
known TO make a pathetic festival with
a bit Of withered bough stuck in a bot
tie as a substitute for the tree she knew
in her home land
Five million trees come down from
Maine every year, Offering employment to
thousands OF persons who would other
wise be idle, and for the six weeks pre-
ceding Christmas trainloads Of these bal
sam frs rumble southwark from the worn
fields Of Maine that have revived under
this new industry. Two decades ago an
abandoned farm of 3.O00 acres could
have been bought In Maine for 500 Now
such a farm nets so and So an acre FROM
/ Christmas trees alone. Each acre viii
produce $500 trees; they are delivered
/ in large cities at a total cost % a Few
/ cents. and retail from 20 cents TO s. each.
1 Other Christmas greens must be bought
galaX, holly, and smilaX for wreaths
and gaTlands. Two hundred and Fifty