Evening star., 1932-07-16

HUGE SUMS SPENT
FOR ADJUSTMENTS
National Bill for Recreation
Equals Cost of Gov.
ernment.
Special Dispatch to The Star.

Special Dispatch to The Star
NEW YORK, July 16.-Perhaps be-
cause 1t is 50 hard to find in their
work, Americans spend a lot Of money
for fun. In the gay year 1929 the out
lay Of individual consumers in the
United States for recreation of all
kinds amounted to $3.50, 900 900, and
every year since 1925 1t has run over
- 000, 900 ,000-sbout as much as 1t
costs to operate the Federal Govern
ment, says the current issue Of the
Business Week
Whether 1881 and 1892 will show
return to the simpler and less costly
pleasures of life Is impossible to say
At this stage. but 1921 did not reveal
any extraordinary recession in total
recreational expenditures, and the up
ward trend was promptly resumed.
Commercial Recreation.
The outstanding feature of the pic
ture of pleasure expenditure by the
American consumer is the dominant
and relatively increasing Importance of
the commercial or professional kinds Of
recreation, as contrasted with the pri-
vate, personal or individual varieties.
Americans are apparently vicarious
sportsmen, preferring to pay and see
and to participate as spectators rather
than to indulge actively themselves.
Between 1919 and 1929 expenditures
on private recreation, including all
those activities in which the individual
did anything himself besides pay an
admission fee, hardly doubled, while
those pleasures commercially dispensed
increased about four times. and since
1925 have involved more than twice as
much money as the other kind. An
other striking thing is that outlay on
private recreation apparently drops
more sharply in depressions than that
on the commercial variety.
Theatrical amusements are, Of course.
the most important general class. and
show the largest increase next to radio.
But the legitimate and vaudeville thea
ter have shown relatively little gain,
whereas the money spent on movies has
multiplied about eight times over the
period and even increased continuously
in depression years. In 1880 almost the
entire population. excluding infants.
apparently attended the movies once
weekly.
Golf Is the most important of the
personal" sports. 1t is estimated that
there are over 1000, 900 golf players in
the United States. using $500 golf
courses, $4,000 caddies $4,000 walters,
cooks. lockerroom boys and other as
sistapts to nun up their high scores
paying over s300,000,0C0 for equipment
and club dues lin prosperous years.
Next to theaters, among the amuse-
ments that affect the commercial mar
ket for recreation radio and foreign
travel are the largest single items In
earlier years foreign travel expenditures
were far ahead of radio, but in 1929
they were about equal.
Base Ball Holds Own.
As against the radio, the decline In
other musical recreation. both by
phonograph and seH-production, is
striking.
throughout the period. but foot ball
has gained on 1t rapidly. rising from
about $4,000, 900, or third as much
as base ball in 1929 to s74000 900 In
1880 twice as much as was spent on
commercial base ball-an interesting
sidelight on the economic aspects of the
progress of higher education in Amer
lea But in recent years both base ball
and foot ball appear to be relatively
poor competitors with dancing and
night club entertainment, on which in
1929 Americans spent twice as much
as on both combined.