Evening star., 1928-12-23
Real Mail Problem
Faced by Kriss Kringle
BY HARDEN COLFAX.

Kriss Kringle faces problem Monday
night beside which the traffic maze OF
boom city is as simple as kindergar-
ten puzzle.
If Prancer and his teammates pull
the load which Santa Claus and his as
sistants have prepared for them, they
will be very tired reindeer indeed by the
time sunrise Tuesday sends them gal
loping back to Wonderland for another
year.
And II advance reports received by the
Post Office Department are supported
by final figures, there will be many
thousand Of mail workers who will be
weary Tuesday.
All of which means, in simple terms,
that Christmas business has been heavy
throughout the United States Since
the first week of November, reports re-
ceived by Government departments here
which keep fingers on the pulse of COM
merce and industry, have indicated a
steady pressure of retail buying The
crest Of the Christmas trade came early
so that stocks were fairly well depleted
in the week just ended.
Judging from the increased volume of
mail, Christmas business this year is
about per cent heavier than last year
The December statistics on retail trade
to be issued next month by the Gov
ernment will afford more accurate in
dex for comparative purposes.
Preparations Extraordinary.
The Post Office Department made ex-
traordinary preparations to handle
Christmas mail, based on the rate of in
crease over the last three years In par
tNyaI las AAI 49, g.
date show.
If single regiment of 1000 men
were assigned to collect sort and de-
liver all of the extra mail intrusted to
the postal service this merry Yuletide
the task would not be completed for
three years II they worked eight hours
day every day in each yearA
An army of $1,000 extra employees has
been added by the Post Office Depart
ment for the Christmas rush. It is esti-
mated they will work 950,400 man days,
and that their wages will aggregate
$4,979,0 900. This calculation does not
include the railway mail service, with
its extra employees and additional cars
and cost of their transportation. Alto
gether the department expects the holi-
day business to cost more than $9,000,-
900 above ordinary expenditures. with
receipts, of course, correspondingly in
creased. A proportionate story will be
told by the express companies.
Tendencies which have marked the
last several years were accentuated in
Christmas trade this year-early shop
ping and mailing and purchase of more
substantial gifts. Retail merchants now
feel the stimulant of Santa Claus in
early November. Reports from mer-
chants also show decided tendency
of customers to favor advertised lines
of goods.
With one exception. each week from
the 1St of November to December is
has shown an increase over the week
Immediately preceding in the volume Of
trade as measured by check payments,
according to reports to the department
OF Commerce, and each of these weeks
has recorded larger volume than the
corresponding week of 1927. With the
average of 1923-1925 as 100 check pay
mentS reported for the week ended De-
cember is stood at 1909, contrasted
with 100 in the corresponding week
last year. The seasonal peak this year
was the week ended November "a; last
year the peak was one week later,
which emphasizes the growing tendency
to shop early.
Imports Driven Down.
Santa Claus will deliver more than
$225 100000 worth of toys this Christ
mas. Fully 95 per cent of these, in
value, will be of American manufacture:
imports are being driven downward
each year. Extensive advertising cam
paigns by makers Of substantial toys.
with flavor of educational value, and
by doll manufacturers have stimulated
business this year above previous rec
ords. Productions for the 1929 Christ
/ man rush already has started in the
toy, factories and the annual exhibition
Of the manufacturers will be held late
in January. After all. ct. Nicholas has
to do some longtime planning.
The Christmas savings clubs dis
tributed their record amount around