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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
he is nursing and which will die an early
death becaiise of inherited organic ail-
ments. "Thesinsof the father," etc.—so
it goes.
It is a harmless and may perhaps be an
enjoyable pastime to theorize and philoso-
- ^ . E D W A R D L.YMAN B I L L 4 = ^ -
Editor and Proprietor.
phize about what should happen if the
moon was turned into green cheese, or if
PUBLISHED EVERY SATURDAY
Old Sol should decide to take a vacation
3 East I4th St., New York
and the world turn upside down; and it
SUBSCRIPTION (including postage) United States and
may be a pleasant amusement—at all
Canada, $3-00 per year; Foreign Countries, $4.00.
ADVERTISEMENTS, $3.00 per inch, single column, per
events it fills space—to indulge in hypothe-
tBMrtion. On quarterly or yearly contracts a special dis-
count is allowed.
ses about syndicates and trusts in the
REMITTANCES, in other than currency form, should
to wade payabU to Edward Lyman BilL
piano trade.
It is, however, the veriest verbiage and
Mmtartdmt th* Nmo Y»rk Pltst Offic* as Second-Class Mmttm.
evokes the ridicule of sensible, thinking
NEW YORK, NOVEHBER 13, 1897.
men.
TELEPHONE NUHBER. 1745.-EIQHTEENTM STREET.
The Little Pinklet editor is on record as
the pronounced foe of that co-operation
THE KEYNOTE.
The first week of each month, The Review which can best advance the interests of
wHI contain a supplement embodying the liter* the music trade—the National Associa-
ary and musical features which have heretofore tion of Piano Manufacturers. He has used
appeared in The Keynote. This amalgamation
will be effected without in any way trespassing influence, personal and otherwise, to pre-
on our regular news service. The Review will vent and disrupt the organization in ways
continue to remain, as before, essentially a trade
that are reprehensible. He has belittled
paper.
the efforts of local associations wherever
THE TRADE DIRECTORY.
and whenever organized—in Chicago when
The Trade Directory, which is a feature of
The Review each month, is complete. In it ap- the association was a live force, in Boston,
pear the names and addresses of all firms en- Philadelphia and elsewhere it is the same
gaged in the manufacture of musical Instruments to-day. Instead of aiding the interests of
and the allied trades. The Review is sent to
the United States Consulates throughout the manufacturers whose money he has pocket-
world, and is on file in the reading rooms of the ed, and no small share of which he is still re-
principal hotels in America.
ceiving, he hies himself to an eminence
builded on air called "Egotism" and like
INDIVIDUALISM vs. CO-OPERATION
the Prophet Jeremiah of Biblical fame pro-
NDER the caption " S y n d i c a t e claims in a minor key (music Gregorian)
Thoughts " the editor of the Little that evil days are upon the trade, and un-
Pinklet, in his last issue, indulges in some less we follow "the way and the light"
remarkable theorizing which would be pointed out by the dictator we are lost. He
amusing were it not written apparently in forgets or cares to know not that the emi-
a serious vein.
nence on which he stands has been pricked
Like some of our yellow journals which and that it was the eminence that com-
set themselves higher than the law, and manded respect and not the man.
venture to dictate how to run private,
As we stated last week, this syndicate or
municipal, State and national affairs, he trust talk has received no serious consider-
starts out with the preconceived idea that ation from any one firm in the trade. It
the members of the music trade industry simply had its origin with the Little Pink-
are incapable of managing their own busi- let editor. It is very probable around the
ness, that they lack the necessary gray first of the year some changes will occur
matter to that end, and as they are running in this city in the personnel of leading
their affairs to-day, ruination is sure to firms, bnt it will not be in the nature of a
result.
trust or syndicate. It will be on the ste-
Of course, the Little Pinklet editor is the reotyped lines of enlargement of capital, and
Moses who will lead benighted manufac- other changes which may be necessary for
turers from bondage and darkness into the better government and advancement
Utopia. Animated by an altruistic spirit, of their business.
copied from Eugene Debs, no doubt, he
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broadly proclaims that individual effort
EXTENSION OF OUR COMMERCE.
should be relegated to oblivion, as far as
Letters have been reaching President
the music trade is concerned, and co-opera-
McKinley
from business organizations
tion under the form of a syndicate or trust
in all the prominent cities of the
should take its place.
This is the " great idea," the " Franken- United States requesting him in his mes-
stein," to which he has given birth, which sage to call attention to the matter of the
U
establishment of a department of the
government, to be called the Department
of Commerce and Industry, which shall
gather information with a view to the sys-
tematic extension of our commerce with
the South and Central American States
and other foreign countries, collecting and
tabulating statistics regarding the various
industries and making reports and recom-
mendations as a basis of intelligent action
in the interest of such industries and their
employees,the statistical and other bureaus,
now a part of the Treasury, State and other
departments, properly coming within the
scope of a department of commerce and in-
dustry, to be transferred to this depart-
ment, which shall also include a tariff
bureau or commission to investigate and
report on future contemplated changes in
tariff schedules. The President is re-
quested to recommend to Congress legisla-
tion to accomplish the object. A committee
has been in communication with most of
the national, State and municipal business
organizations throughout the country, and
the responses, unanimously favorable, it is
stated, justify the league in saying that
the business men of the country are prac-
tically a unit in the demand for the new
department. Correspondence will be pre-
sented to the proper congressional com-
mittee upon the opening session.
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HOW TO KILL THE RATTLE-BOX.
How best to advance the sale of pianos
of established reputation as opposed to the
cheap "rattle-boxes," which have been
largely in demand for the past few years, is
being much discussed these days. Sales-
men all admit that would-be purchasers
are showing an inclination to consider
"quality" while formerly the cry was
"price."
Talking of this matter a few days ago with
a manager of one of the prominent Fifth
avenue houses he said, "Price, of course,
is a most important element in winning
trade, but the class of people who desire
to buy pianos are not foolish enough to ex-
pect to get good goods at low prices. It
seems to me that if salesmen show the de-
sirable instrument side by side with the
cheap trash and explain where the differ-
ence lies most customers will pay the high-
er price, thus getting an instrument that
will give satisfaction and make a friend,
where the cheap product would have made
an enemy. If the better instruments are
always shown first, followed zvhen necessary
by the cheaper product with the remark,
" Here is something that costs less but we
cannot guarantee it as satisfactory," the
salesman is doing his duty to his con-