BUSY DAY IN CITY

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22593, 24 December 1938, Page 16

BUSY DAY IN CITY

* LATE CHRISTMAS SHOPPING GAY BUT ORDERLY CROWDS HEAVY RAILWAY TRAFFIC Thousands of people filled the shops and streets of Christchurch Yesterday afternoon and evening, making their almost last-minute purchases or simply enjoying the exhilaration of mixing with large and cheerful crowds. Opinions differ as to whether the crowd was larger than last year or not; but most observers agree that there was more motor traffic than in previous years. Yet there was only one accident throughout the day, and that was not serious; a woman was knocked off her bicycle and suffered from slight concussion. Otherwise the late Christmas shopping night passed without any mishaps. The police were more than satisfied with the behaviour of the crowd. “It v/as very orderly and well behaved; we could not have wished for anything better,” was the reply made to inquiries at the Central Police Station last evening. There were no complaints about pickpockets, whose activities in Auckland were reported recently. The view was expressed by the police that it was rather the races than the Christmas season that had attracted them to Auckland. Hard Work for Shop Assistants, The opportunity to leave the purchase of Christmas presents till this morning must have made the crowds in the shops smaller than they would have been if the late shopping night had immediately preceded Christmas Day. Nevertheless staffs were taxed to their utmost in coping with the steady flow of trade. In many shops purchasers had to wait for a long time and then show considerable determination before they could make their purchases. It was a harassing time for shop assistants, working at full speed from morning till night. But late Christmas shoppers are good-natured and not difficult to please, according to replies to inquiries, and they were mainly satisfied to be able to secure their purchases without being too discriminating. On the whole there were not many signs that last night was very different from the usual Friday night. The crowd, however, seemed more carefree, and showed it; and the occasional sound of fireworks reminded people that small boys were celebrating Christmas. The streets were more untidy than usual, being littered with scraps of paper and ornamental Christmas wrappings in the busy part of the city. By 11 p.m. these were practically Ibe only signs of unusual activity; the crowd had dispersed very quickly. Increased Travel Shopping was not the only cause of activity. At the railway station it was reported that passenger traffic was very heavy, more so than last year. Yesterday morning the steamer express brought 980 passengers from the north, and the daylight steamer brought 980 more. There was a busy air about the station, with 980 passengers expected again to-day, and more than 1200 expected by the regular steamer express and the Maunganui, both of which will arrive to-morrow morning, on the first occasion since 1906 that two passenger vessels have travelled between Wellington and Christchurch at the same time. An interesting point is that there is much more rail travel to the south from Christchurch this year than other years. It is found to be considerably greater than the travel to the north. Reading for Christmas But many people were in the city yesterday neither to shop nor travel. An exceedingly busy day was reported at the Canterbury Public Library by the librarian (Mr E. J. Bell). More than 1000 books were issued from the circulating department yesterday as compared with the usual 600 or 700 on other Fridays. Mr Bell considered that people mistrusted the weather and were laying In stocks of books for Christmas in case rain should make outings impossible. Lighter fiction predominated in the books issued, he said, although there was a fair proportion of travel and biography. Subscriptions to the library were coming in larger numbers than in other years. The reference department, however, was quiet, and in the children’s library many members were handing in their cards before leaving for the holidays. The crowds who attended the pictures were another feature of the day, large queues extending out on to the street in front of the theatres before the various sessions.