Smyrna times., 1931-06-17

seeker but when the Del-Mar-Va
Association was organized five
years ago the Peninsula was prac-
tically unknown. Naturally, the
principal purpose of the Associa-
tion was to advertise and publicize
Del-Mar-Va and to call the atten-
ton of the rest Of the world to the
many natural resources and al
most unlimited attractions within
our boundaries. During the first
two years many thousands of dol
lars were spent in spac buying.
Rigid adherence to facts and un-
broken endeavor to place this ma
terial has won for Del-Mar-Va a
place of unusual prominence in the
publicity world Almost stimuli
taneously, Registered Service In
ternational, an organization which
for years has routed and directed
tourists traffic, inaugurated a
monthly magazine for distribution
among tourists in which Del-Mar-
Va trails are not only advocated as
the logical and shortest route be-
tween the far North and South but
Del-Mar-Va is actually carried on
the cover page of this monthly
magazine as a feature IN the
Coastal Way" These two forms
of recognition mean that practi-
cally every authentic tourist
agency and automobile club will
route their far north to far south
traffic through Del-Mar-Va and the
Importance of this will be recog-
nized when it is said that author
tiles on tourist traffic predict that
on the most conservative basis this
traffic will add an additional twen-
ty million dollars in value because
Of this recognition.
Tourist Traffic
The value of tourist traffic, aside
from those outstanding authorities
who have given it serious study
appears to be something mythical
to the average citizen and there is
perhaps no more forceful way of
driving home its real value than to
mention that no less authority
than Rober Babson states that to-
day the value on all tourist traffic
may be conservatively fixed at sew
en- and one-half billions of dollars
annually. Mr.. Babson states that
four billions of this total is ex-
pended in the United States. The
I tourist dollar is not a nebulous, in
tangible coin dropped into the till
of a gas station and then disap-
| pearing. To strictly agricultur-
al area where income was predicat-
ed upon unknown factors and con-
troIled by the seasons, the tourist
dollar means new, steady and lu-
crative source of revenue. It is
money in a fluid state. Delevop-
ment of the tourist traffic through
I the Del-Mar-Va Peninsula has in
/ creased the markets for Del-Mar-
Va products every month in the
year that such products are avail
able. It has been healthy slim
ulant for the sale of Del-Mar-Va
commodities from seafood to sweet
potatoes. 1t has opened for the
Peninsula the largest single saw
| ings account the Peninsula has yet
known and upon which every bus
mess enterprise of the fourteen
counties has been able to draw
Especially during some Of the rec
ent periods when the markets fol
Peninsula commodities have been
affected by low prices, this tourist
traffic business has bridged the
gap, stimulated community morale
and aroused business enterprise
Everyone, from the small individ-
ual farmer down at the point OF
one of the Peninsula necks, the
watermen raking in the seaside
shoals for clans, the small store
keeper at the cross roads and the
little wayside restaurant have felt
their own little business touched
by the magic wand of this new
money. / wish to offer two Incl
dents showing how this new bust
ness affects all of US; A party Of
five fishermen early this season
passed through one of our smaller
towns on the way to their fishing
reservations. The party was little
hazy about the route and stopped
in a drug store for information
Before they left this place of bust
ness they had spent $500 for sup
plies, tobacco and other thing:
which they lacked or which they
thought they would need. A small
hotel on the Peninsula, not resorf
hotel, which keeps an accurate
record of its operations, financial!
and otherwise, found that in 1885,
it spent $4,000 for foodstuffs anC
of this $4,000 40 per cent was re
quired to feed visitors from othel
states. The money represented b.
this 40 per cent was spent exclu
sively among the nearby farmers
and storekeepers for the purchas'
of everything from vegetables t
seafood. Our own experience sine
1925 should impress our citizens
with the value of the tourist traffi'