Classic Mode

Music Trade Review

Issue: 1893 Vol. 18 N. 16

Page 3 Text:

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW.
tnent ever recorded in the annals of the music
trade. It is certainly a magnificent endorsement
of his ability as a man and as a financier. Only a
short time ago we remarked, editorially, that the
low, fawning, hypocritical, would-be music trade
journalist who attacked Mr. Peck and his
methods because Mr. Peck was forced to suc-
cumb, temporarily, to unforeseen difficulties;
that his accuser was worse than a Benedict
Arnold. Mr. Peck's solution of his difficulties
shows conclusive evidence of his great executive
powers. Referring to the bitter attacks made
upon him, it only shows how little such men
know of trade conditions, and how low their
grade of intelligence is when they attack the
very principles which they pretend to uphold.
In other words, by their howl they are really
injuring the credit of the entire music trade.
Poor fools! they have neither wit, brains, in-
telligence nor experience to deal intelligently
upon the great commercial and trade conditions
with which we are constantly confronted. T H E
MUSIC TRADE REVIEW and one other paper took
the correct, honorable and reasonable view of
the affairs of Messrs. Hardman, Peck & Co.
The end has proven that our predictious were
correct.
that almost within sight of the City Hall of the
greatest American metropolis that such scenes
could be enacted as took place in the Gravesend
district, where Colonel Alexander S. Bacon,
Secretary of the Webster Piano Co., was set
upon by the thugs and heelers while he was
serving legal papers upon the Satrap of Coney
Island. Colonel Bacon was not only assaulted
while doing his legal duty, but was badly
bruised, his clothing torn, and he was locked
up over night in a vile place at Gravesend. If
one member of the piano trade is to be treated
in this manner, we well might ask, whose turn
will it be next ? But the people, the rightful
masters, have emphasized their dislike to such
methods, and it now remains for the law to take
its course in punishment of the offenders.
The election, viewed from a national stand-
point, certainly bespeaks a reaction not only
against free trade—but dissatisfaction with men
and methods at Washington—the conclusion
that safety and wisdom does not lie along the
lines of the obstructionists. No doubt the hard
times have filled their part, but deeper than
this temporary discontent was a settled con-
viction based upon the wrangling and blunders
of Congress.
WHEN TO STOP ADVERTISING.
English trade journal once requested a
number of its largest advertisers to give
their opinions concerning the best time to stop
advertising, and the following replies were
received :
When the population ceases to multiply and
the generations that crowd on after you and
never heard of you, stop coming on.
When you have convinced everybody whose
life will touch yours that you have better goods
and lower prices than they can get anywhere
else.
When you perceive it to be the rule that men
who never advertise are outstripping their
neighbors in the same line of business.
When men stop making fortunes right in
your sight solely through the discreet use of
the mighty agent.
When you can forget the words of the shrewd-
est and most successful business men concern-
ing the main cause of their prosperity.
When every man has become so thoroughly
a creature of habit that he will certainly buy
this year where he bought last year.
When younger and fresher houses in your
line cease starting up and using the newspapers
in telling the people how much better they can
do for them than you can.
When you would rather have your own way
and fail than take advice and win.
When nobody else thinks it pays to advertise.
GEORGE P. BENT,
name of George P. Bent is inseparably
associated with the " Crown " pianos and
organs. Mr. Bent is one of the enterprising
men of the piano industry who have within a few
years built up a phenomenal trade.
This
business has not been solely developed by Mr.
Bent's well-known business ability, but by pro-
ducing instruments of a grade which popular-
ized them with the trade. It was only in 1889
that he began to manufacture pianos ; since
that time the output has shown a remarkable
increase, each year, over the preceding one. He
has a large and well appointed factory at 323 to
" The Shoninger pianos are among the niobt
333 South Canal street, Chicago, where he has
popular of the many fine pianos manufactured
a total floor space of eighty-one thousand square
in this country, and deservedly so, for in tone
feet. Mr. Bent's energies are devoted entirely
quality, in excellence of construction, and in
to the extension of his wholesale business. He
beauty of designs they have no superior. The
makes no att&npt to cater to retail trade. During
mammoth and complete factories in New Haven,
the Columbian Exposition, the magnificent
Conn., constitute one of the great industries of
booth of George P. Bent was greatly admired by
that prominent manufacturing centre. The
visiting thousands; also the pianos and organs
New York warerooms, No. 96 5th avenue, and
within received their full share of admiration.
the
Chicago branch, No. 225 State Street, of this
One point which we desire to emphasize in this
celebrated
factory, are under direct control of the
particular is, that thirty-two state and foreign
parent
house.
buildings on the Fair grounds selected the
'' Crown '' instruments for their parlors and
MR. E. H. JONES, who recently moved to Des
reception rooms. Seventy-one " C r o w n " in- Moines from Lacoma, has purchased the plant
struments, fifty pianos and twenty-one organs, of the Begiebing-Buttell Piano Company and
were in constant use in the numerous build- the Des Moines Piano Company, and will at
ings on the Fair grounds during the six once commence the manufacture of pianos. He
months of the Exposition. The official recog- will have associated with him Messrs. Adam
nition which Mr. Bent's products received at the Buttell and Hugo Begiebing, members of the
old firm, and they will employ from 12 to 15
hands of the judicial experts was very gratify- men.
ing to him, indeed. A medal and diploma was
MR. F. L. CLARK, who made himself such a
awarded him by the Board of Judges in the
favorite with visitors to the J. & C. Fischer
Liberal Art's Department. Verily, it seems that Booth at the World's Fair, is now connected
in 1893 the " Crown " goods have received their with the Piercy Company, Troy, N. Y., as sales-
highest triumph. Mr. Bent, however, being a man. Mr. Clark is not only a good salesman,
young man, we will, undoubtedly, be called but has a practical knowledge of the pianoforte,
upon to record the still further advances of this having a long experience as tuner. The Fischer
interests up the State will not be neglected
hustling Chicagoan.
while Mr. Clark is around.
THE ELECTION.
Tuesday's elections proved, beyond
argument, that the people of this great
State are not inclined as yet to accept ring can-
didates who are thrust upon them. In New
York State, particularly, it was a triumph of
the better element and good morals over politi-
cal corruption. It seems impossible to believe
SHONINGER IN THE WEST.
SHORT- time ago we had considerable to
say regarding the personnel of the Shon-
inger Company, and what they have accom-
plished in a business sense. We would refer
now, particularly, to the vast and growing con-
stituency of the Shoninger Company throughout
the West. Under the able management of Mr.
Joseph Shoninger, this branch of their business,
each year, has shown a remarkable increase.
Mr. Joseph Shoninger has made a record which
entitles him to the foremost position in the
managerial affairs of the Shoninger concern.
He has taken hold of the Western branch, and
has made a brilliant success of it; his popular-
ity there is boundless. The following, which
appeared in a recent issue of the Chicago Tribune,
will give a comprehensive idea of the position
of the Shoninger firm on the matter of awards :
" PIANOS AT THE FAIR. "
" There has been considerable interest aroused
of late over the beautiful display of pianos at
the World's Fair, owing particularly to the dis-
cussion regarding awards. Of course, a good
deal of bitterness has been aroused, as is in-
evitable in a contest of such nature, and some
of the well-known manufacturers decided to
avoid the scramble for diplomas and enter their
products solely for exhibition, announcing at
the outset that they did not desire competition
under the circumstances. One of the most
beautiful exhibits is that of the famous B. Shon-
inger Company, manufacturers of the Shoninger
grand and upright pianos, an exhibit that must
necessarily have received high honors had it
been entered for competition, but at the very
start the company decided to simply exhibit
their handsome instruments. They had received
high awards at the Centennial, at Paris, and at
Rotterdam, and were content with the universal
praise of the music-loving public.

Page 4 Text:

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW.
THE: AFFAIRS
RANFT AT
Of HARDMAN,
WASHINGTON.
{Continuedfrom
page 3.)
P£CK & CO.
MR. RANFT,
Yes,
sir.
f\T) Extraordinary Settlement.—"P?ey UL/i 11 MR. PAYNE. And the price is no greater to
the manufacturer, and the domestic manufacture
pay Oi} of the goods has increased ?
Dollar of J ^ i r lr/d?bt MR. RANFT. I do not think so.
MR. PAYNE. Mr. Dolge claims that it has.
—Jl?i5 U/ltl? ii
MR. RANFT. I deny that it has.
Detailed
MR. PAYNE. YOU do not accept any state-
ment unless it suits your purpose ?
the great house of Hardman, Peck
& Co. was forced to succumb—tempor-
arily, to conditions—the like of which has
never before existed in this country, we stated
that it was a matter of general trade regret.
Their triumphant and extraordinary settlement
we can emphasize as a matter of trade congrat-
ulation. It is one of those settlements which
shows the great faith placed in the executive
ability of the head of this remarkable firm. Mr.
Peck made the statement to us Wednesday of
this week, which is as follows :
" I have concluded arrangements whereby the
firm of Hardman, Peck & Co. will pay one
hundred cents on every dollar of our indebted-
ness, with interest from the date of maturity of
each note. Two banks, the Mercantile National
and the Second National, representing the
approximate indebtedness of two hundred
thousand dollars, and Messrs. Lehman &
Krauss, representing the amount which approx-
imates one hundred and fifty thousand dollars,
were made, under the deed of assignment, pre-
ferred creditors. These parties relinquished
voluntarily their preferred position until the
merchandise creditors have been paid. Messrs.
Lehman & Krauss will leave the amount of
their claim in the business until all outstanding
claims shall have been paid."
This, we believe, is certainly one of the great-
est settlements ever reached in an assignment
case ; certainly the most remarkable which has
ever been brought to our notice. It shows con-
clusive evidence of the confidence reposed in Mr.
Peck's ability as a manager and financier, when
the moneyed creditors have voluntarily relin-
quished their preferred claims. Such a settle-
ment is a credit to the piano trade as a whole,
and will serve to strengthen the credit of indi-
vidual firms. It is understood from Mr. Peck
that the branches of the house in Chicago, St.
Louis and Philadelphia will, in the near future,
be doing business as before.
has succeeded firm of Larison
& Plotts, Washington, N. J., who did business
under name of Gem Orgau Co.
WM. LARISON
Jos. WEEKS, dealer in pianos and organs,
Amherst, Nova Scotia, died recently of typhoid
fever here.
AMANDA WOLF, 18 years old, of Hoboken,
N. J., has been arrested charged with stealing a
$300 watch and chain from Mrs Chas. S. Fischer,
New York, wife of the piano manufacturer.
THE
MATAWAN PIANO KEY CO. has started
at Matawan, N. J.
J. G. SMITH has purchased H. M. Sebastian's
stock of pianos, Chenoa, 111., and will run them
in connection with his photograph gallery.
FLOYD'S music store, Parker, Pa., has been
destroyed by fire.
& HAMLIN PIANO & ORGAN CO. have
sued John H. Biller, Louisville, Ky., for $67.20,
balance due on an organ.
MASON
MR. RANFT.
Not at all.
If we can not
get
these goods under woolens not otherwise speci-
fied, I would beg the Committee to have these
goods put in under the head of underfelts or
as woolens under another schedule.
MR. PAYNE. They are a high grade of manu-
facture, involving a great deal of labor cost ?
MR. RANFT. I do not know.
MR. PAYNE. Mr. Dolge claims that too.
MR. RANFT. You are right there. He claims
everything. That is all I have to ask, to get a
separate heading for underfelts, and to take it
out of the ready-made clothing schedule, where
it does not belong.
THE CHAIRMAN. The manufacturer is getting
his wool cheaper ?
MR. RANFT. Yes ; I think it is lower.
THE CHAIRMAN. And the consumer has not
got any benefit ?
MR. RANFT. Not under the McKinley bill.
*
*
*
*
*
*
Of course the reader knows that the Chairman
(of the Committee) is Representative Wm. L.
Wilson, and that Representatives John H. Gear
and Sereno E. Payne are fellow members of the
Committee.
If any statement or testimony was formally
offered by Alfred Dolge I have not been able to
discover it in the volume under consideration.
Failing to secure an interview with any member
of the Committee, I called upon their clerk, and
think him to be correct in his surmise that any
information from Mr. Dolge, implied in the
foregoing dialogue, was gathered outside the
precincts of the Committee Room at the Capitol.
This is the rattle of small arms in the skir-
mish preliminary to the general engagement
which will be on shortly after the opening of
the regular session of Congress next month.
Nothing further of especial note for the
Music Trade is apparent, upon a perusal of
the well-prepared index of this document, if we
except what appears on page 494 in reference
to
" MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS."
MUSICIANS' MUTUAL BENEFIT ASSOCIATION,
NATIONAL LEAGUE OF MUSICIANS,
ST. LOUIS, MO., September 14, 1893.
SIR: I would respectfully call your attention
to inclosed resolution which places the profes-
sional musicians of the United States on record
as opposed to that clause in the McKinley bill,
which puts musicians on the free list but com-
pels them to pay duty on the tools they need,
to compete with the free pauper musical labor
of Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia and the
Polynesian Islands.
Hoping this will have some weight with the
Committee in allowing musicians to be free to
equip themselves with proper instruments to
compete with free imported musical labor.
I remain, very respectfully,
OWEN MILLER, President.
SEC. 88, No. 6.—Whereas the McKinley bill
places a high tariff upon musical instruments,
that are necessary to the musician as tools are
to the mechanic : and
Whereas, while the mechanic is protected by
the alien contract-labor law against free trade in
mechanics, while the musician is denied the
protection of this law, and free trade in musi-
cians continues unchecked ; therefore
Resolved, that the National League of Musi-
cians use every endeavor, through political
action, to secure the repeal of that portion of
the McKinley bill which places a duty upon
musical instruments and supplies.
*
*
*
*
*
*
On page 470 of the same book appears a
letter dated "New York, September 22, 1893,"
over the name of "A. Frankenfield." The
communication relates principally to watches,
clocks, silverware, jewelry, etc., but the excerpt
following is perfectly self-explanatory.
" We import music boxes. They paid for-
merly 25 percent, duty; were raised by McKinley
tariff to 45 per cent. Music boxes are not made
in this county at all ; never were made here.
They bring joy and pleasure to the working
classes as the piano does in richer houses. That
pleasure should not be refused them."
WM. E. MCARTHUR.
CHOPIN IN POLAND,
the great composer and pianist,
Chopin, was a young man whose name
was just beginning to be well known, he was
traveling through Poland with a friend and was
one day snow-bound. Some good-natured
peasants succeeded in getting his carriage out
of a great snow-drift and piloting the travelers
to the post-house, where they were to change
horses.
As they entered the little parlor of the house
Chopin flew to the piano, and, striking a few
chords, exclaimed joyfully, "Santa Cecilia, the
piano is in tune! " and seated himself at the
instrument. As he sat there improvising, the
peasants stole in and stood watching him with
mingled amazement and delight.
'' We shall see whether they are lovers of
music," said Chopin softly to his friend, and
thereupon began to play his fantasia on Polish
airs. The peasants stood in rapt silence, their
eyes fastened on the pianist's flying fingers, and
their faces irradiated with pleasure. Suddenly
the postmaster announced, "The horses are
ready ! "
Chopin sprang up, but a dozen voices cried :
"Finish that wonderful piece; finish i t ! "
And the postmaster, who had heard only a few
bars, said, pleadingly, "I'll give you courier,
horses, everything you want, if you will remain
just a little while ! "
The fantasia was finished, and at last the
pianist was allowed. to depart, though with
many expressions of sorrow from the enraptured
group. Years afterwards, when all Paris fell
under the charm of his marvelous spell, Chopin
often recalled the tribute paid to him by the
peasants in that Polish inn.— Youth's Companion.
EX-SHERIFF FELTS will soon open a piano
and organ salesroom in Hudson, N. Y.
WM. ACKERMAN, music dealer on Winter
street, Marion, O., was married a few days ago
to Miss Pauline A. Blaich.
F. W. BAUMER & Co., dealers in pianos,
organs and musical goods, have made numerous
improvements to their place, at 1310 Market
street, Wheeling, W. Va.
GEO. W. HERBERT, of 18 E. 17th street, has
recently been appointed New York representa-
tive for the celebrated Erard Harp. There could
not be a better selection.

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