Evening star., 1936-04-12
Volume 1873 Per Cent Ahead
of Comparable Pre-Easter
Total Year Ago.
CHIEF OF CONVENTION
TRANSPORTATION NAMED
A. Scott Offutt, Vice President of
City Bank, to Head Committee
of D. c. Association.
BY EDWARD c. STONE.

the Easter holiday shopping season
with striking gains over the same
period last year. in fact, they enjoyed
one of the best Spring business ad-
Vances in several years. In a review
of business in 81 leading cities. the
Department of Commerce reported
that despite adverse weather condi-
tions sales in Capital stores during the
past week were Sc per cent better than
in the previous week, 39.1 per cent
ahead of the corresponding week last
year and 1873 per cent over the COM
parable pre-Easter week in 1885.
Bank clearings back up the trade
survey figures. Clearings here were up
299 per cent over the previous week
and scared So per cent above the mark
in the same week year ago. In addi-
ton to this surprising increase in the
number of Cancelled checks, the report
showed that while the value of build
ing permits in the city declined 35 per
cent from the preceding week, permit
values were more than % per cent
higher than in the corresponding 1885
week
While shoppers swarmed the stores,
cold, wet weather slowed up tourist
traffic, as evidenced by visitors at the
Smithsonian Institution, where regis
trations were 43219 for the past week,
27,305 for the previous week and 80, ,299
in the same 1885 week. Since the re-
port was compiled, there has been a
frn 0f ~.
Capital, hotels reporting very heavy
business.
Commerce Department reports from
the rest of the fifth district were also
most encouraging. Richmond and
Norfolk reported retail sales far ahead
Of last year. So did Baltimore. Whole
sale trade responded to gains in the
retail field. Charleston, S. c., reported
a notable pickup in cotton receipts
and in cotton exports. The survey N
toto was one of the best in weeks.
Offutt Transportation Chief.
A. Scott Offutt, vice president of the
City Bank, has been appointed chair
man of the Transportation Commit
tee for the coming convention of the
District Bankers Association by Pres
ldent Charles H. Doing, it was an
nounced yesterday. The vice chair
man will be James A, Soper, vice pres
ident and cashier of the Lincoln Ma
tional Bank.
Assisting them will be Bruce Baird,
vice president and trust officer, Ma
tional Savings d Trust Co.; S. Wilson
Earnshaw, treasurer, East Washington
Savings Bank; Robert H. Lacey
cashier, Columbia National; w. L..
Koontz, vice president, Anacostia
Bank; T. Hunton Leith, cashier, Sc
curity Savings & Commercial; Richard
A. Norris, assistant cashier, Lincoln
National, and James C. Dulin, jr.,
treasurer, American Security & Trust
Co.
This committee will cooperate with
James B. Edmunds, general agent of
the Chesapeake & Ohio, in arranging
for a special train to carry the dele
gates and guests. This year the spe-
cial will leave Washington at $50 in
the afternoon in order to arrive at
the Greenbrier Hotel the same evening,
obviating night on the sleepers and
an early morning arrival at White
Sulphur. Dinner will be served on the
train and it is believed the innovation
will be very popular.
President Doing reports rapid prog
reSs in all preliminary plans. The
Transportation Committee has g. great
deal of work to do as it deals with
reservations, tickets, baggage, ETC.,
sometimes being called the Finance
Committee of the Convention"
During the first quarter of 1896,
assets Of the Acacia Mutual Life In
surance Co. increased to $62 1000 900
and total insurance in force made a
net gain of more than ST, 100000, Pres
ident William Montgomery announced
yesterday. He added:
"As an index of generally improving
economic conditions in Washington
and throughout the country, the con-
servation record is especially 'signifi-
cant. During the first quarter, Acacia
registered % per cent improvement
in conservation, which means that the
rate of lapsation declined by that per-
centage. At the same time, there was
further 10 per cent reduction in the
volume of policy loans. 1t is note
worthy that Acacias policy loans now
are down to the 1929-or predepression
level.
1T is impossible to overestimate the
Importance of these two induces
namely; conservation and policy loans
in any study of basic economic con-
dltions locally and nationally. They
bespeak an unquestionably brighter
business outlook generally"
Trading Quiet on Exchange.
Trading on the Washington Stock
Exchange, following the Friday holi-
day, opened yesterday with $1,000
Washington Gas IS, series B, selling
at l0l. The next sale was a $500
transfer in the same issue at 1001k.
There were three sales in Capital Trac-
tion IS. $1,000 moving at 901s and
$4,000 more at 90H.
On the stock side, Potomac Electric
Power So per cent preferred came out
at 1872 on three small lot sales and a
single share of Washington Railway g.
Electric preferred registered ITO. The
sale In Railway & Electric common
stock, made earlier in the week, has
been Cancelled.
The Northern Liberty Building As
sociation has declared a dividend of
s per cent, officers stated yesterday.
o