The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-12-14
NEWS OF INTEREST TO OUR FEMININE READERS

of labor for their hands. Authentic records from the lives of clerks, deliv- cry boys and wagon drivers. show that as a result the season of Christmas festival and of charity for the lame, the halt and the blind reduces to ill- ness and exhaustion the young and faithful, who serve us, seen and un- seen.
 But the experience of half a de- cade proves that public opinion can be aroused to a realization of the un- necessary and inhuman nature of the eleventh hour rush. By joint effort Of editor and merchants the idea has been brought home to millions of GUS toners that they can benefit them selves and every one concerned 1T ping early in the season and early in the day. The call for sympathy for the overworked and exhausted salesgirls. and deliverymen has evok- ed a real response.
 Will you insert the enclosed card in, your advertisements from now un- til Christmas and send us clippings? It will take some space but 1t will help distribute the Christmas shop- ping over a longer period to your ~ad- vantage, besides tightening the bur den on your employees If you have already printed such appeals this year or in previous years we wish to thank you for your aid in reminding people to do their shopping early and for your help in making this practice more widespread:
 Sincerely yours,
 Theodore Roosevelt.
 Jacob Riis,
 X Edward Box. Editor of the Ladies
 Home Journal.
 A. Lincoln Filene. Wm. Filene's
 Sons Co., Boston,
 John Graham Brooks. President
 National Consumers League.
 Jane @Addams, Head Worker. Hull
 House. Chicago.
 Edward T. Devine, Editor of The
 Mrs. Florence Kelley. secretary. of the National Consumers League, which has membership of woman in every city in the country, pledged to work for the safeguarding of women and children in industry, says of early Christmas shopping:
 Never before in any, month of No- vember, has so large number or merchants notified their customers that the Christmas goods are at hand ready for inspection and purchase Never have so many Consumers lea gues mailed to their members appeals to shop early in the season, early in the week and early in the day. In some cities. postal cards carry print ed personal appeal. In others. cards
  bear the legend.
 Tt is an astonishing number of people who profit by this vast con- certed effort to abolish the Christmas cruelties The shoppers themselves find, now in the, stores good air and good will awaiting them with (sinis- ter thoughtD will grow less every day as Christmas approaches. The clerks are still unwearied by the jostling crowds, and can extend courtesy which will grow day by day more difficult if not more scant. These. however, are merely the visible part of the army of workers concerned. Unseen and alas, unremembered are the shipping and packing and wrap ping forces, the deliverymen,f the boys and. remotest of all from the gay holi- day throrigs of mid-December are the candy makers, toy makers, box mak- CTS. the innumerable workshop and work follows the belated- orders and careless delays of the shopping mul- titude.''
 It is, thexefore, very cheering to have items like the following in num- beTs & far too lsygs to su1tsa; 1ssa,nr mer. chant writes:y ".
 For a number of years along with other merchants in this city, we have been giving publicity. to, this idea in our regular advertisements, and 1t has not been without effect
 From Toledo:
 Although. Thanksgiving falls one week later than usual this year, we have been selling strictly holiday goods to an .appreciable extent dur ing the last three weeks of Novem- Der"
 From Washington, D. c.
 '"The shop early appeals have made a lot of difference in two years"
 From Pittsburgh:
 "Last year it was decided whether Or not we lost business the store would close at 6:30 in the evening. This was purely from desire to tighten the Christmas burden of the employees. We are pleased to say that we did this for the employees and that the people of Pittsburgh so sup ported our movement that our Decem- Der businee was even better than in years when we had been open even ings.''
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