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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW.
we think the business end of the proposi-
tion should be looked to from now on."
I clip the following from the American
Netvsman: "Every store ought to get a
thorough cleaning, painting, and general
repairing at least once a year. This is the
time to do it. Then take a vacation and
you will find yourself a new man with a
new store."
Not a bad idea. If many of our music
trade men took this to heart, neat and at-
tractive piano warerooms would be the rule
and not the exception, as is the case in
many of the towns and even some of the
leading cities throughout the country.
Sir Arthur Sullivan is a short-necked,
thick-set, beetle-browed man with curly
black hair, mustache and side whiskers,
and is somewhat stilted as to manner. He
is one-and-fifty years of age, and has been
composing during five-and-thirty of them.
In his song-writing, which is extensive, his
popularity has been greater perhaps than
that of an) T other English composer. In
addition to his ballads he has composed
some of the best known of modern hymns.
His oratorios, too, have been uniformly
successful; but he is perhaps best known
to fame as the joint author with Gilbert of
that long line of comic operas cut of which
thay made about $450,000 apiece. His
enemies say thac he is rarely civil to any-
body who has not a handle to his name, yet
withal he is not utterly destitute of humor,
and he can tell a good story on occasion.
He has hitherto failed to marry, but he has
been decorated with degrees and orders
innumerable. He was improved into a
knight some few years since, and, having
amassed a comfortable competence, passes
a pleasant life, and is tolerably popular.
A German composer and savant has fig-
ured out that it requires more force to
sound a note gently on a piano than to lift
the lid of a kettle. He says that the mini-
mum pressure of the finger playing pianis-
simo, is equal to n o grams—a quarter of a
pound. Few kettle lids weigh more than
r
two ounces.
"
*
The German's calculations are easy to
verify if one takes a small handful of coins
and piles them on a key of the piano. When
a sufficient quantity is piled on to make a
note sound they may then be weighed, and
these figures will be found to be true.
If the pianist is plaj'ing fortissimo, a
much greater force is needed. At times a
force of six pounds is thrown upon a single
key to produce a solitary effect. With
chords the force is generally spread over
the various notes sounded simultaneously,
though a greater output of force is un-
doubtedly expended. This is what gives
pianists the wonderful strength in their
fingers that is often commented on. A
story used to be told of Paderewski that he
could crack a pane of French plate glass
half an inch thick merely by placing one
hand upon it, as if upon a piano keyboard.
and striking it sharply with his middle
finger.
Chopin's last study in C minor has a pas-
sage which takes two minutes and five sec-
onds to play. The total pressure brought
to bear on this, it is estimated, is equal to
three full tons. The average "tonnage"
of an hour's piano playing of Chopin's
music varies-from twelve to eighty-four
tons.
*
I had an interesting discussion recently
with an advertising man upon the question
of personal organs or circulars versus legit-
imate advertisements in the trade papers,
and he expressed himself so vigorously on
the subject that I think it worthy of re-
counting. He said: "The manufacturer
who depends upon circulars—be they in the
form of a paper or a four or two-page leaf-
let—as a means for business-bringing may
not be a mistaken man, but it is noticeable
that the mistaken men use these mediums
exclusively.
"The wide-awake, progressive and live
business man must admit that a three-inch
advertisement in a good trade paper has
more value than barrels of so-called circu-
lars. In fact, hundreds of successful busi-
ness men will concede that this is the only
key to success.
" I t is true a catalogue well written and
printed is a necessity, and in many cases is
as important a factor in trade as are the
goods themselves, but the catalogue must
be supplemented by advertising in trade
papers, so that it may secure a profitable
distribution.
"Experience has demonstrated that the
sending through the mail of any printed
matter unasked for, unless it be something
unique and of unusual merit, has seldom
brought in adequate returns. The waste-
paper basket could tell its story in this con-
nection—a story which should prove a for-
midable warning to those who depend sole-
ly upon that means of building up trade."
T
HIS department is edited by Bishop &
Imirie, Patent Attorneys, 605 and 607
Seventh street, Washington, D. C. All re-
quests for information should be addressed
to them and will be answered through these
columns free of charge.
545,963. Key Attachment for Stringed
Instruments. J. H. Ling, Detroit, Mich.
A small device to be attached to the neck
of the instrument and provided with a se-
ries of damper plates operated by keys.
The depression of the damper plates ena-
bles an unskilled person to form chords and
play accompaniments.
546,133. Music Sheet for Mechanical In-
struments. P. Ehrlich, Gohlis, Germany.
Patented in Germany Nov. 8, 1892; Eng-
land, May 29, 1893, and Austria-Hungary,
Aug. 1, 1893. The tongues struck up from
the sheet are folded over backward until
^ * \ \ *'
they meet the sheet; when they are soldered
so as to present a solid projection. The
sharp tongues or points which are objec-
tionable in packing are avoided and a
stronger sheet is provided.
546,157. Harmonica. S. Jesselson, New
York, N. Y., assignor to B. Illfelder & Co.,
same place. A reversible casing in one po-
sition covers the blow holes so as to pre-
vent access of dust thereto, and in the
other position permits the use of the in-
strument by exposing the blow holes. The
harmonica'is so constructed as to have a
sliding movement in the casing.
546,174. Metallophone-Zither. F. Men-
zenhauer, Jersey City, N. J. A combina-
tion of the zither and metallophone. The
bars of the metallophone are struck by a
bar in one hand, while an accompaniment
is produced by passing the thumb of the
other hand over the properly tuned strings.
THE KREI.L PIANO CO , Cincinnati, have
under consideration the enlargement of
their factory.
GKO. B. SHEARER, the well known dealer
of Oneonta, N. Y., is in town.
ONE of the best appointed and most mod-
ern music houses in the West is that of
Barnard, Walker & Clewells, of that place,
90 say9 the Hints of Dubuque, la.