Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-12-15
ARE COMING HERE TO BUY
SUCCESS ATTENDING EFFORTS
OF TRADE COMMITTEE.
Time of Railroad Fare Refund Ex-
tended Several Days-Washing-
ton Is Preferred to Baltimore.

| The local business men who have been
| engaged in the efforts of the retail trade
| committee of the Chamber of Commerce
to induce out-of-town shoppers to patron
| iza local stores very enthusiastic
over the results. The work of the COM
mittee in this connection or the cam
| paign for big Christmas trade among
the out-of-towners.' as it is called. is
said to he a distinct success thus far.
| 1t was given out at the headquarters of
! the committee last night that the adver-
| Using campaign had resulted in inquiries
| for refund booklets from fourteen states
and III towns and cities. Considering the
| short time in which this active campaign
| has been carried on this in itself is
matter of satisfaction to the local mer
chants.
! What is looked upon as one of the
| best features of this campaign is
that the shopping facilities of Washing
ton have awakened widespread interest.
Some interesting incidents are related
in connection with the work of the two
past weeks. One customer from Vir-
gnia town, who had purchased several
hundred dollars worth of goods, was
asked by the manager of the committee
why he had come to Washington to
| make his purchases. He said he had
been in the habit of going to Baltimore
whenever he had any out-of-town shop
| ping to do, but that the announcements
of the committee had interested him and
| he decided to ascertain what the stores
were like. He said that he was both sur
| prised and pleased, and that hereafter he
would patroniZe Was hington rather than
Baltimore. Another resident of Virginia
said that this plan of the Chamber of
| Commerce to refund fares had enabled
| her to buy her goods in Washington,
whereas she had been sending to the
| <.f hi Tho cai6
also that many of her neighbors would
| take advantage of the plan. Several
| shoppers from Annapolis said that they,
| like most Annapolis people, had been in
| the habit of going to Baltimore to do
| their shopping, but that with the induce
| ment of the railroad fare refunding they
would prefer to buy here.
Expense Is Justified.
To quote one of the merchants partici
pating in the plan. This result in itself
would have justified the expenses en-
| tailed
The people of the three surrounding
states" said he, ''have been informed that
Washington is somewhat more to them
than the capital of the country. They
have been made to know that this is a
| shopping center, and the best one avail
| able to them outside of New York. They
| have also been impressed with the idea
| that Washington merchants want their
business and are willing to offer extra
| ordinary inducements to get them as reg
ular customers.
amy considerable increase in the trade
of any city has not been built up with
| out continued effort, and the results so
| far indicate to me that it is only neces-
sary to continue the present methods of
advertising Washington to the country
/ OIL. IN, r1a.r 70 IN a h.
| ingtOn merchants many thousands of
new. permanent customers
| According to members of the committee
| who were at headquarters last night. a
| satisfactory volume of business has al
| ready been transacted, and large num-
| Der of railroad fares have been refunded.
| 1t was also stated that most of these
refunds were made to persons who had
been interested through the advertising
| and had come to Washington to do their
| Christmas shopping directly result of
| the committees inducements.
| Not a single case of dissatisfaction with
| the plan of the committee has been eX-
perienced, and every visitor who came
| to he adquarters for refund went away
pleased with the plan.
Interest Is Widespread.
| To illustrate the conviction that the
natural trade zone of Washington extend
| ed as far south as Norfolk and Lynch
| burg as lar west as cum Derland, as far
north as Frederick and Carlisle, Pa, and
as far east as Annapolis, the manager of
the committee stated that although the
| bulk of shoppers had come from the in
| termediate points, all of these places were
| represented on the books of the commit
| tee by the names of purchasers of consid-
cradle amounts of goods.
| 1t has been ascertained that in addition
to the purchasers who have claimed re-
| funds at the committees headquarters,
! there has been a large amount of bust
| ness done by out-of-town shoppers, who
| have not gone to the trouble of asking for
| their refunds A number of merchants
| report they have had direct results from
| the committees advertising and that in
| severals cases these purchasers have not
| presented refund books. but have been at
| tracted to Washington simply through the
| inducement of special bargains and by
| the attractions of the city.
! Yesterday was the last day of the two
weeks during which 1t was advertised tina t
| the committee would refund fares. 1t will
| be impossible. however. to close the rooms
/ for a few days. owing to the numerous
matters that have still to be attended to.
1t is expected that many shoppers will be
looking for the committees headquarters,
| even though the time limit has expired,
| and for these reasons the office of the
| committee will remain open for the next
/ two or three days.