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THE NEW YORK
PUBLIC LIBRARY!
VOL XXIV. No.
Published Every Saturday, at 3 East Fourteenth Street. New York, March 13,1897.
IN THE WEST.
Smith <5c Nixon Affairs.
TRADE ITEMS FROM THE CITY 1!Y THE LAKE.
The much tangled Smith & Nixon affairs
came up again for hearing before Judge
McNeill at Cincinnati on Monday last.
The experts' report which was presented
shows an amount of carelessness in busi-
ness transactions that is appalling. Over
three hundred pianos are missing and un-
accounted for. All the branch houses con-
ducted business at a steady loss. Accom-
modation paper was in abundance as there
was $456,535.94 of that paper outstanding.
The report amply confirms previous opin-
ions of the Smith & Nixon business meth-
ods. A proposition was made in open
court by Kramer & Kramer to wind up the
affairs of the company by buying $200,000
worth of claims for $50,000 and the offer
is under consideration.
Chicago, March 10, 1897.
Estey & Camp affairs still seem to occu-
py considerable space in the trade papers.
There is nothing definite worth reporting.
Rumors, however, are plentiful as to the
future of the business, but rumors are not
news. A meeting of those interested will
be held this week.
The W. W. Kimball Co. are receiving
congratulations on the tribute paid their
products by President McKinley in select-
ing one of their grands for the White
House. The President evidently knows a
good thing.
• F. H. Owen, treasurer of the McPhail
Piano Co., Boston, was in town on his way
West the closing days of last week. He is
a "hustler" and going to make a big rec-
ord for the McPhail or I am mistaken.
A. G. Cone, of the W. W. Kimball Co.,
is, according to recent letters, enjoying
himself during his sojourn in Arizona.
The new addition to the Steger factory
at Steger, 111., is completed and John V.
Steger has now over 250,000 square feet of
working space. This will give him ample
facilities to cater to the demand for his ex-
cellent instruments, which is bound to be
accentuated this year. The entire equip-
ment of the factory is of the latest and
best. It is also protected against fire.
W. F. Boothe, of the Gibson and Sommer
Cos., was a recent visitor to this city and
was entertained at an impromptu reception
in the private parlors of the warerooms of
William Carpenter Camp on Thursday
last.
Messrs. Boothe, Bush and Peiper
were among the participants in a charming
program. Mr. Boothe surprised some of
his Western friends by his masterly play-
ing on the violin.
The differences between Strich & Zeidler
of your city, and the Bush & Gerts Co.,
relative to an infringement of a S. & Z.case
design may be said to be amicably adjusted.
C. H. W. Foster reached Chicago on
Saturday and attended the annual meeting
of the C. F. vSummy Co., which was held
Monday afternoon.
E. V. Church of the John Church Co.
has returned from his trip to Washington.
E. S. Con way of the W. W. Kimball Co.
has not returned from the capital up to
the time of writing.
$3.00 PER YEAK
SINGLE COPIES, 10 CENTS
Mr. Daniels Explains.
In a brief talk with Mr. W. P. Daniels,
at the Mason & Hamlin warerooms yester-
day, that gentleman reported general busi-
ness to be good. Asked for late items of
news he said, "There's nothing special
outside of the fact that we have granted
permission to Sieveking to play the Weber
piano at the Metropolitan Permanent Or-
chestra concerts, on Sunday, to-morrow
night; but on that occasion only. I men-
tion it because the conditions under which
he will play there are not mentioned on the
programs. Doubtless it is an error of
omission, but it has been brought to our
notice, and this explanation is necessary to
justify what would otherwise seem to be a
breach of contract on the part of Sieveking."
The Piano Trade in St. Louis.
An Old Stewart Piano
HAS TURNED UP OUT JN PORTSMOUTH, OHIO.
C. J. King, proprietor of the Hotel Saf-
ford, Portsmouth, O., has on exhibition at
the hotel office a curiosity in the way of an
old piano, says the Portsmouth, O.,
Press. Mr. King says that it is probably
theoldest piano in this country. It is the pro-
perty of his wife and came into the posses-
sion of her family away back in the closing
years of the eighteenth century when it was
purchased of the family of Gov. John
Sevier, of Tennessee, for the great-great-
grandmother of Mrs. King. The piano was
made for Gov. Sevier by J. Stewart of
Baltimore, the Governor presenting it to
his wife. It is a quaint old instrument
finely finished off in mahogany and doubt-
less could tell many a romantic tale of the
olden times if perchance it were gifted
with the power of speech.
The piano is very low, and has seven
legs. The keyboard is smaller than that of
the pianos of to-day, covering only five
octaves.
Mr. King is not quite accurate about
dates evidently, for Stewart did not locate
in Baltimore until 1812, where he carried
on business until 1819 subsequently set-
tling in Boston, where he was associated in
business with Osborn and afterwards with
Jonas Chickering. This old Stewart piano
is certainly a valuable relic of the early
days of piano making.
vSt. Louis, Mo., dealers in pianos do an
aggregate business of $350,000 to $400,000
a year, says the Chronicle of that city.
They handle the leading pianos of the
world, and a poor or worthless instrument
is not to be found in stock. The trade is
divided among sixteen dealers, of whom
the two leading firms control large factor-
ies elsewhere, and one firm manufactures
pianos in St. Louis. The larger firms ex-
tend their trade in every direction, and
report business growing, as the unvarying
excellence of their goods becomes known.
Thirteen dealers have a local trade of
splendid proportions, in addition to their
general music store patronage. The lead-
ing piano house has nourishing branch es-
tablishments at Nashville and Memphis,
Tenn. ; Birmingham, Ala.; Little Rock,
Ark.; and Dallas, Tex.
Boothe on the Road.
The new" factory and warerooms of the
Sebastian Sommer and Gibson Cos., 207
East Forty-ninth street, are now in full
swing, and goods to fill recent orders are
being shipped right along.
Mr. W. F.
Boothe, of the company, is making a busi-
ness trip to the far West. So far he has
met with gratifying success. Numerous
formidable lists of orders received from
him at the factory testify to the energy and
zeal he is putting into the business and the
strength of the arguments he is using in
advocacy of the firm's products.