Evening star., 1932-04-18
CHAIN STORE SALE
'REPORTS ANALyZED
March Totals Were Above
i February, but Below
q ses-
1891 Figures.
BY EDWARD c. STONE.

Merrill, Lynch " Co, 50 chaln store
companies including two mail order
concerns show total sales for March,
1882, of S247,812,759, compared with
$3.50, ,30525 in March, 1881. a de-
crease of H. go per cent. The two mail
order concerns show total sales for
March of $33,053,060 against SAL ,053,
$50 in March, 1881, a decrease of 19.48
per cent Excluding the two mail or
der companies SO chain store COM
panies show sales for March. 1882, of
$2l4, ,699, against S239 PSI 1865 in
March, 1881, a decrease of 1923 per
Gent
The compilation shows that SO chain
store companies and two mail order
concerns reported total sales of S247,-
812,759 for March, 1882, compared with
S2l3, 1853, ,668 for February and $2l0.-
293,994 for January. The increase in
March was 1925 per cent over Febru-
airy and 1874 per cent over January.
Sales for February showed an increase
OF .36 per cent over January.
While there were 81 business days in
March and only 25 in each of the two
preceding months, nevertheless figured
on the basis of average sales per day
sales of 38 companies showed an in
crease in March of 764 per cent over
February and Gil per cent over Janu-
ary. This would seem to indicate that
the seasonal increase in the sales of
chain store companies is being main
tanned.
Two Brokerage Firms Merge.
The stock ticker announced today
that G. NJ. P. Murphy & Co. and the
Baltimore firm of ]. S. Wilson, jr., &
Co, have consolidated Offices in the
Monumental City. Two partners in the
Wilson firm, j. S. Wilson, jr, and
Baetjer, will become general partners
in @. M. P. Murphy G. Co. and the
Baltimore Office of the latter firm will
move to the present Offices of the Wilson
concern on the street floor of the CAL
vert Building
: The firm of j. S. Wilson, jr., & Co.
was founded in 1902, and has been one
of the more active investment firms in
Baltimore since that time. G. NJ. P
Murphy & Co. opened an Office in Bal
timore in 1889 and through the present
merger greatly expands its brokerage
Facilities in that city.
4, The consolidation has nothing to do
with the G. M. P. Murphy Washington
uff1ce, of which Charles Carroll Morgan
and A. Chester Flather are managers.
Weather Mars Trade Status
The April review of the National
Association Of Credit Men, just received
ny Tic w SDdU6S Indb
sales and collections have recently been
retarded by bad weather in many parts
of the country. OF the LOG cities re-
porting. so per cent note sales as fair"
while the other report selling conditions
as SLOW" Flint, Mich is the only city
in the United States reporting sales as
good" this being the best news con-
tained in the review.
+. Minnesota finds improvement in
: trends, with marked improvement in
sales in many lines and improved con-
fidence. Oklahoma finds "collections
and sales tightening up a bit in Okla
homa City,, while Tulsa reports a strong
indication Of improvement in collections
and sales" Indiana believes that there
appears to be slight improvement in
collections in Terre Haute and sales
have improved somewhat although fac
tories are still below normal in opera
tions.
Correspondents in the New York
area which includes the whole metro
polit.n district report sales and collec-
tons fair generally with slight pick
up In some sections.
Rapid Changes in Officials.
No one would have believed at the
time of the last convention of the Dis
.trict Bankers Association that there
Washington within a comparatively
short time. Yet such is the case.
Harry @. Meem was elected presi-
dent of the Washington Loan and Trust
Co, John A. Eckert took the helm of
the North Capitol Savings Bank, Frank
j. Kaufman was advanced to the
presidence of the International Ex-
change Bank, Rolfe E. Boiling was
placed in charge of the Liberty Ma
tional and Ord Preston now occupies
the presidents chair in the Union
Trust Co.
Much regret is heard in the financial
district over the retirement of Edward
~. SteIlWagen, who is now chairman
OF the Union Trust board of directors.
For three decades he has been a lead
ing figure among local bankers and
was an active business man in the
city long before he organized the trust
company. For years he was a bitter
opponent Of the service charge on
checking accounts, claiming that it
placed penalty on man for being
poor. He believed that every small de-
posltor always hoped to build up his
balance to substantial sum and be-
come big depositor, and should re-
ceive all possible announcement in
such laudable efforts.
Today's Trading on Exchange.
The weeks trading on the Washing
tpn Stock Exchange opened with 81 .O0G
potomac Electric Power 6s, selling at
sIo6l2.
Two 81 900 sales in Anacostia & Po-
toinac r. r. 5s were recorded, one at
5ll2 and the other at 5l24. A BABY
washington Gas IS, series B, changed
hands at 101.
Bond trading closed with ST 500 and
$500 Capital Traction SIS selling at 551a
and $1,000 changing hands at SIS.
In the stock division. 10 shares Of
Capital Traction came out on the board
at 1872. new low. and a single share
of Potomac Electric Power per cent
preferred brought 1924
Heard in Financial District.
Several local brokers went. down to
the Capitol today 10 hear the testimony
by President Richard Whitney Of the
New York Stock Exchange on short
selling. Great interest was manifested
in the list of "short-sellerS.r
Wholesale prices declined less than
o.5 per cent in March as compared
with February, the Bureau of Labor
Statistics reports The weighted index
stood at $50. 76.0 in March, 1891. AS
compared with year ago the drop in
percentage amounts to more than 13
per cent.
Premium income of stock fire insur
ance companies in 1891 amounted to
s78e ,889,64 and, compared with s90l,-
51l.2l4 in 1880, showed a decrease Of
1873 per cent The 1880 volume COM
pared to 81, ,005 ,S39 ,o68 in 1929, the nigh
record
The New York City bank stock market
during the past week rallied sharply
after establishing a new low record for
the current year, according to records
compiled by Holt, Rose & Troster.
Henry T. Ewald of Detroit, president
of the Campbell Co., has been
elected chairman of the board Of direc-
tors of the American Association Of
Advertising Agencies.