Baturday Half-Holiday,

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXXIV, Issue 12748, 20 April 1909, Page 7

Baturday Half-Holiday,

TO THB BDITOB.

Sir, — In your contemporary of Monday I notice a letter liom Messrs H. I. Jones and Co. re Saturday half-boliday, in which they quote Nelson as an object lesson unfavourable to Saturday closing, and pro-v mise at some futare date to give us further evidence from Sleepy Hollow on the subject. I believe it is trus that a recenl arrival in the form of a storekeeper, who rfaid something to th,is effect, and started with a great flourish of trumpets, and as we all know a section of the public always give a new nan a start (frequently a Yankee start), and for the first year or so he gets, rid of a lot of goods, and soon piles up a lot of book debts, but in a year or two he gets to the level of legitimate trade^ which is much smaller but safer from a cash point of view. I have it on good authority that most of the large and old-established storekeepers and drapers much prefer Saturday. When the polling day comes I shall vote for Saturday because it would benefit a large number of shop hands who are now deprived of the opportunity of enjoying Saturday sports, or getting to the country from Saturday till Monday. As for the supposed loss of trade that is all imaginary; there is a certain volume of business to be done, and it will be done no matter what day the half-holiday is held. If my memory serves me right last year when this subject was on the tapis Messrs £t. I. Jones and Co. opposed Saturday for the reason that people bought magazines and newspapers on Saturday, and they would give up reading if they had to buy them onT any other day. Can you, sir, imagine a greater \ absurdity? I think it quite likclv that Messrs Jones and Co. will have no difficulty in showing a loss of trade last year in Nelson or any, and every town in the Dominion. This is all owing to general depression and scarcity of money and a large number of unemployed. The advantages of Saturday for the half-holi-day, inasmuch as it effects a large number of shop-assistants, is so great that I hope a generous public will vote for it in so substantial a way as to banish the present silly system of nearly one-half tho business places being closed on Saturday afternoon- and the other part being open to the detriment of many and advantage to none. — I am, etc., V SHOPKEEPER. Wanganui, April 20, 1909.