Evening star., 1942-01-09
Capital Store Sales
y Per Cent Ahead
Of Year Ago
Sharp Gain Revealed
During Week Ended
January ;
BY EDWARD c. STONE.

BY EDWARD c. STONE.
Department store sales in Wash.
ington for the week ending las'
Saturday, January 3. revealed 6
sharp gain of 20 per cent over the
like period a year ago, the Fedora
Reserve Bank Of Richmond reported
today. The summary covered the
first two business days of 1912. in
dicating that trade uOt away to 9
fine start in the new year.
Sales in the fifth district aver.
aged 81 per cent better than last
year, were up 33 per cent in Balti-
more and 80 per cent in a group Of
other cities. the review said.
Cumulative sales in the Capita,
for the four weeks ended January
were 20 per cent above the similar
period a year ago. This was just
ahead of tho 10 per cent gain in the
fifth district. 18 per cent in Balti-
more and Is per cent in the other
cities.
sales in the Capital were As pei
cent behind sales in the previous
week, due to the occurrence OF three
pre- Christmas trading days in the
earlier week, the report stated.
Wholesale Trade Up Sharply.
Net sales Of 1873 wholesale firm.
IN the Fifth Federal Reserve Dis
trict in Novemlcr scored an aver
see gain of 23 per cent over the
corresponding month in l940 against
an average upturn in the previous
month of 80 per cent. the Rich
mon Reserve Bank reports. Auto
motive supplies and miscellaneous
lines revealed less spectacular ad-
vances than in the previous month
Shoe sales scared, heading the
list with a "A per cent jump, but
not quite up to the 48 per cent rise
In the previous month. Second
came paper and paper products
with a 40 per cent advance. No
vember sales of electrical goods
were a very close third, being up
SO per cent.
All other leading lines disclosed
substantial advances. Drugs and
.undries were 20 per cent ahead OF
November, 1910. Dry goods were in
19 per cent better demand. while
sales Of 81 grocery Arms were up is
per cent.
Hardware was in lively demand,
registering a 80 per cent upswing
Industrial supplies came IN for ~
per cent better sales than a year
ago, while tobacco products moved
up 81 per cent. Miscellaneous sales
by 81 wholesale firms were % per
cent heavier than a year ago, the
survey states.
The bank says higher prices were
an important factor in the total
sales, amounting to SIS ,304 900,
against 100000 a year ago.
Morris Plan Adds Director.
Edwin J. Walton. former export
sales manager of Curtiss Wright, and
now serving in the o. P. M. office for
he duration of the war. was elected
director in the Morris Plan Bank
Of Washington at the annual stock
holders meeting yesterday. While
living in New York he was director
Of the Morris Plan bank in that city
All other members Of the board were
reelected as follows:
Willard G. Barker. Edwin A
Mooers, W. Cameron Burton, Will
liam Clark Taylor. Paul B. Crome-
In. Robert J. Bulkley, Thomas c.
Boushall, Arthur j. Morris and Ralph
w. Pitman. The board organized at
once by re-electing these officers:
Willard G. Barker, president: Ell
wood G.. Childers, vice president;
V. Walton Rhine. assistant vice
president and assistant secretary
Edwin H. o. Stokes, assistant vice
president; G. Crawford Turnbull.
cashier and assistant secretary:
Louis K. Lynn, auditor; Samuel E.
Collegeman, Ferdinand E. Walter,
John E. Wilson, Joseph A. Carpenter,
Louis o. Hodges, jr., assistant
cashiers.
Record Traffic Held Certain.
Capital Transit streetcar and bus
traffic is expected to exceed all
former records during 1912. AS
automobile tires get thinner and
thinner, and more and more war
workers arrive in the Capital, the
transit companys transportation
facilities will be further taxed,
how much not even the company's s
officials can estimate at present.
Stockholders are awaiting the
coming year with great interest
New equipment and rising operat-
ing costs will be heavy drain. But
revenues are considered certain to
enter new ground.
Transit stock is now paving 81 a
year as dividends and selling close
70 18, an advance of better than
two points since the end of l94l.
Net earnings in l941 are under
stood to have been better than S.
share.
Financial District Comment.
Sixteen banks in the Fifth Fed
eral Reserve District were admitted
to the Federal Reserve System dur
ing 194l, the Richmond Reserve
Bank reports.
Alexandria, Va. has scheduled the
sale of s750,000 public improvement
bonds, due 1943-l977, for January 26.
John T. Baldwin of Alexander
Brown a. Sons has been elected
president of the Baltimore Security
Traders Association.
The annual meeting Of the First
Federal Savings and Loan Associa-
ton will take place Wednesday
January 81, President P. j. Schardt
announces.
The National City Bank will pay
semi-annual dividend of so cents
share on February to stock
holders of record January II.
Due to the appeal of Government
work. and especially to the draft
Washington banks had by far the
largest personnel turnover in l94l
in their history And the end is
not yet, bank officials said.
Today's Trading on Exchange.
Trading opened on the Washing
ton Stock Exchange today with a
sale of 10G~ shares of Washington
Gas Light common at It's, same as
yesterdays close.
Capital Traction SIS appeared on