Music Trade Review

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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
EDWARD LYMAN BILL
Editor and Proprietor.
PUBLISHED
EVERY
SATURDAY
3 East 14th St.. New York
SUBSCRIPTION (including postage) United States and
Canada, $3.00 per year; Foreign Countries, $4.00.
ADVERTISEMENTS, $3.00 per inch, single column, per
Insertion. On quarterly or yearly contracts a special dis-
count is allowed.
REMITTANCES, in other than currency form, should
be made payable to Edward Lyman BilL
unttred at the New York Post Office as Second Class Matter.
NEW YORK, FEBRUARY 27, 1897.
TELEPHONE NUMBER 1745. — EIGHTEENTH STREET.
The first week of each month, The Review
will contain a supplement embodying the liter
ary and musical features which have heretofore
appeared in The Keynote. This amalgamation
will be effected without in any way trespassing
on our regular news service. The Review will
continue to remain, as before, essentially a trade
paper.
The Trade Directory, which is a feature of
The Review each month, is complete. In it ap-
pears the names and addresses of all firms en-
gaged in the manufacture of musical instruments
and the allied trades. The Review is sent to
the United States Consulates throughout the
world, and is on file in the reading rooms of the
principal hotels in America.
HPHE matter of credit giving seeins to be
1 one of the many "live" problems which
manufacturers are quietly trying to solve
these days. Each one has his own pana-
cea—this can readily be conceived after a
few minutes conversation—and in this
diversity of opinion is the great weakness,
for lack of united action prevents the ac-
complishment of desired reforms.
Talking with one of our leading manu-
facturers on this subject this week he said,
"It seems to me that while we have pro-
gressed during the last twenty-five years in
our methods of manufacture, sale, and
transportation, the methods of credit giv-
ing, judged by the losses from bad debts
and inadequate laws, have stood still if not
actually retrograded."
This pessimistic view is not exaggerated.
The majority of business men, and this of
course includes the majority of manufac-
turers in the music trade, have been
bound down apparently by custom and
habit in the dispensation of credit, and re-
forms of a definite or stable character have
been and will be impossible unless action
is taken through representative organiza-
tions, such as for instance the American
Piano Manufacturers' Association. One
man or several cannot put into force cer-
tain needed changes in our credit system ;
to accomplish anything in this line an un-
derstanding must exist between the par- have been engaged for the purpose, and
the exhibits will include everything in the
ties chiefly concerned.
It is well known that the credit system range of musical instruments — actions,
in this country has been very loose for the felts,machinery used in construction,music
past few years and this as much as any- publishing, studio furniture, band instru-
thing else has tended to depress business. ments, automatic musical instruments,
It was James G. Cannon, vice-president of music plates, paper and ink, newly
the Fourth National Bank of this city, we patented inventions, technical practice
believe, who, in the course of an address machines—in fact, everything used by a
last fall said, " It is not more currency that musician from a tuning fork to a grand
is needed, but a better and more compre- pipe organ.
hensive knowledge of whom to trust." In
This plan is pretentious and broad
this sentence he expressed a truism—for enough in scope; the only thing that may
trust, confidence, security make prosperity. work against its success is the not over-
In our opinion the Manufacturers' Asso- prosperous condition of the country.
On several occasions The Review has
ciation has it in its power to counteract to a
great extent the existing abuses in the suggested the holding of a music trades
credit system and thus thwart the schemes exposition in this city on some such plan
and devices of unscrupulous debtors. as above proposed, and we aie pleased to
There is also room for action in the matter see the matter now taken up in connection
of " dating "—one of the evils which have with the Music Teachers' Convention.
arisen as the natural result of our com- The majority of industries now hold an
petitive system—also in influencing the annual "show" and why not the piano
passage of a national or uniform bank- trade ? Every one held in this city this
ruptcy law, which is unanimously de- year has been a financial success, and it
manded by every progressive business body seems to us that a display of musical
throughout the country. This measure instruments would attract big crowds. We
affects the interests of debtor and creditoi hope the undertaking will be a success.
alike. It benefits the honest debtor who
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pays a hundred cents on the dollar, and
It is announced that President-elect Mc-
effectively interferes with the plans of the
Kinley will at once after his inauguration
man whose trade it is to invite credit with
call a special session of Congress for the
the object of paying twenty-five cents or
purpose of having the tariff readjusted,
less on the dollar.
and a new law passed. In fact he has gone
These vital questions shoi^ld receive the so far as to announce that office seekers
unstinted support and consideration of and politicians in general will have to stand
business organizations such as the Ameri- aloof until the new tariff measure becomes
can Piano Manufacturers' Association. In a law. Mr. McKinley's views are entirely
this way the Association's influence in the in line with the general demands of the
commercial world would be unquestionably business men of this country. We want
augmented. It would have a new useful- the tariff question out of the way at once.
ness, a worthy mission—it would be a safe- We want no further cause for uncertainty,
guard not only to the manufacturers, but to and Mr. McKinley is quite right in placing
the honest and progressive dealer, and an the tariff right in front of the procession.
enemy to the unprincipled dealer and In this move he has the unanimous sup-
sharper.
port of every business man irrespective of
That something is wrong with our credit political belief.
system is obvious, for failures are not con-
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fined to periods of depression; they appar-
The bill for the incorporation of the
ently continue with only a slight decrease International American Bank—which was
in ratio during - periods of the greatest favorably reported by the House Com-
prosperity.
mittee on Banking and Currency this
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In connection with the annual conven-
tion of the National Music Teachers' Asso-
ciation to be held at the Grand Central
Palace, this city, from the 24th to the
28th of June, it is proposed to hold a
music trades exposition. H. W. Greene,
who has this matter in charge, states that
three floors of the Grand Central Palace,
embracing 155,000 square feet of space,
week—is of the utmost importance to all
manufacturers interested in the enlarge-
ment of our export trade. As is well known
the absence of such an institution has
compelled merchants in Southern countries
to make letters of exchange payable in
Europe. With the establishment of the
new bank this will be obviated.
The International American Bank, the
capital of which will be $5,000,000, proposes
to maintain eight branches in the United