The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-05-13
Biby Tells Display Men Amer
lea Is Becoming Artistic.
Store Windows Advertise Town
As Well As the Stores.
THIS BIG DAY FOR AD ARTISTS
p. D. Lanham and A. p. Nc
KOun On Afternoon Program.
Prizes In the Window Contests
Announced Today.

That President Wilson, upon the
outbreak of the war, was afraid to call
more than 50O,O 900 men at first when
he should have called 100000, be-
cause of the effect be feared it would
have on the American people, was the
declaration made this morning by
| Bling Bang Bill'' Biby in his ad-
dress before the members of the Kan
SaS Association of Display Men at their
convention at the Elks' club. Biby de-
clared the national spirit had been al
lowed to decay to such an extent
| prior to the war that many children
and 10 years old did not know our own
| flag from that of a foreign nation
when it passed them. Biby said the
| information concerning the presidents
! hesitancy was impaired to him by a
| high government official some time
ago.
Use National COlors Often.
| He urged the display men to use the
national colors in window trimming at
every opportunity when an excuse
could be found for patriotic window
displays. He called attention to the
! fact that the ultimate object of the
window trimmer's work is to create
public sentiment and he appealed to
| them to assume the task of keeping
the thought of nationality before the
public.
| :'Unconsciously," he declared, ''the
!
tic tastes; they are inclining more and
more toward the beautiful" And in
| this connection he frowned upon the
| idea of merchants crowding their show
| windows. In the extreme east and ex-
| treme west, he said merchants have
| discovered the appealing force of at
| tractive and appropriate designs in
| backgrounds and sides, with the dis
play of only one or two articles in the
| center. The day of the screaming"
sign has gone, he asserted, and the
era of the small, neat and artistic
| window card is at hand.
/ Windows Advertise Town.
Biby recalled the days when he was
in the general merchandise business
| and used dry goods and shoe boxes in
| his window displays and compared
| those times with the present when
backgrounds and beautiful decorations
can be procured at nominal cost from
| companies that make a specially of
that work. The show window. he de-
| clared, advertises not only the store,
| but the town.
A telegram was received from A. E.
Butterworth, display manager of John
| Taylors, Kansas City, who was sched-
uled to give a talk on drapery this
morning, that he could not be present.
The meeting was late in getting start
ed and Biby's address was the fea
ture of the morning.
! This afternoon P. o. Lanham gave a
| talk on advertising followed by an ad-
dress by A. P. McKoun, of the Pei
| letters Stores company, and president
of the Retail Merchants association.
At o'clock the display men went in
| a body to the Novelty, where they saw
slides depicting window displays that
won prizes in the international as
! sociation.
Window Contest a Feature.
A feature of the convention has
been the contest in which prizes were
awarded for the best window displays
! of certain lines of goods The display
men trimmed the windows in their
own stores, photographed them and
| entered the photos in the contest. No
entries were made by Topeka men.
morning, are: Glass l. women's
ready-to-wear clothing. or millinery,
or combination of both, first prize. E.
Leo Harris. Wichita: second. p. H.
Shultz. Wichita; third, c. F. Richard
son. Salina; fourth, 7. X. Ebert. Salina.
Glass 2, mems clothing: First, A.
C. Donnerfeld, Salina; second, ]. H.
Everetts, Wichita.
Class 3. mems furnishings: First
and second. Harry w. Foley, Wichita.
Glass 4, shoes: First, E. Leo Har-
ris. Wichita; second, J. K. Ebert, Sa-
lima.
Glass .. underwear, hosiery or com
bination of both: First and second.
Harry W. Foley, Wichita.
Glass 6, first, E. Leo Harris, Wich-
ita; SECOND, c. F. Richardson, Salina ;
third. F. E Osgood. Arkansas City.
Glass :, sweepstakes, best six
photos First, E. Leo Harris, Wich-
ita: second, c. H. Harvey Rhodes,
Chanute; third. r. X. Ebert. Salina.
Glass S, show cards: First, A. c.
Donnerfield, Salina; second, R. S.
Grifee, SaIina; t.zird, Clarence \.
Pierson, Lawrence.
The convention will end tonight
with a banquet and entertainment at
the Chamber of Commerce banquet
irooms at 6:15 and a dance at Stein
/ at n-PlCcl