Evening star., 1939-11-26
Christmas
Buying Rush
Begins Here
Early Thanksgiving
Over, Stores Add
To Clerical Force

Washington merchants yesterday
began to jubilate over droves of early
Christmas shoppers apparently un-
leashed by President Roosevelt's
juggling of Thanksgiving dates.
These days after Thanksgiving
are just like the kickoff of a football
game" said one of their representa-
tives. There's something in the
national psychology that forbids a
man or woman to buy Christmas
gift until Thanksgiving is done
Without now we're off"
One big downtown department
store estimated that on the day after
Turkey Thursday its sales were 80
per cent greater than on the day
before the holiday.
Hundreds of extra clerks, hired
several weeks ago for training, were
swung into action Friday and yes
terday-dispensing pink giraffes for
Juniors sock, lace handkerchiefs for
Aunt Clara, and a conservative blue
necktie for Uncle Arthur.
Last-Minute Jam Eased.
Arthur j. Sundlun, president of
the District Merchants and Manu-
facturers Association, declared that
forwarding of the Thanksgiving date
has helped save the city from an un-
pleasant industrial tangle in the last
Yule days.
THE old custom which prevailed
In this country of universally post
poning Christmas shopping until a
week before the holiday threw a
serious overload on the entire indus
trial machinery" he recalled. 1t is
expected that shopping will now
reach its height about December 10
and trail off after December IT,
Men never have been educated to
do their buying before the last three
days, and it's a good thing the
Thanksgiving Christmas period
was kept long this year, or the ladies
might have been jolted out of good
early-shopping habits they have ac-
quired, according to E. D. Shaw, sec
retary of the merchants association.
Mr.. Sundlun maintained that lots
of time to buy presents helps to
strengthen the. institution of the
American family.
The holiday season is period
when families gather together and
enjoy the beauties of the Christmas
season." he observed. Much of this
joy is lessened if the days just
before Christmas must be broken by
hectic rushing from store to store.
Little Mailing Done.
Over at the City Post Office Post
master Vincent c. Burke announced
that even if everybody has begun
buying Christmas gifts, scarcely any
one has seen fit to send them
through the mails.
$50 far we're perfectly normal,
he declared But we hope that
with Thanksgiving over, Washing
tonians will consider December Il
or IA as the deadline for distant
addresses and December 18 for locaI
mailings.'
At the 10-cent stores heavy pur-
chases of wrapping material ano
string furnished prospect that his
hope will be fulfilled.
To make certain that the Yuletide
rush stays within legal limits, con-
ference has been called for tomor-
row morning in the Office of Police
Supt. Ernest w. Brown. Plans will
be made for detailing officers of the
traffic squad and detective bureau
to the downtown section.
Apparently more enthusiastic
every day about the Thanksgiving
shift is the National Retail Dry
Goods Association, which is said tc
have presented the original request
for the change to President Roose-
welt. 1t was authoritatively learned
yesterday that the association is
now conducting a Nation wide COM
parative survey of States giving
thanks under the old system anc
States which gave it under the new
1t was said that the association
expects to prove its assertion thai
the longer Christmas shopping
period will give employment to &
million men.