Music Trade Review

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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
locked. Before this piano Mrs. M. D.
Cooke stood every school morning for
twelve years and led the singing. To her
it recalls many bright recollections and
the same is true of many others.
Often the instrument was moved over
to the old opera house, which stood on
the Square, to be used for various enter-
tainments. It was kept in the Churchill
school until 1888, when it was transferred
to the new High School building. Here it
has spent a very active life, and since the
school has become so large it has received
an additional amount of usage. The in-
strument is still in good condition, espe-
cially when we consider its long continued
service, the number of times it has been
moved and lifted, the number of marbles,
papers, erasers and sticks which have been
placed within it, these things furnishing
immense delight to the small boy on seeing
them removed.
We must also consider the different
temperament of the individuals who have
played it. Probably very few pianos have
endured thirty-two years of harder service
than this High school piano. J. B. Rob-
erts says: " It must have been an ex-
tremely well built instrument to have with-
stood the racket of so many years."
Now it behooves us to consider the judg-
ment used in its purchase and we can but
imagine the care used in selecting it. The
piano itself was most excellently con-
structed, for it has done six times what it
was guaranteed to do.
In its active life it has seen the High
school grow from a few scholars to a mem-
bership of 500, and we hope it may long
continue to see our numbers increase. By
its quiet influence it has conferred a vast
amount of good upon the school, and from
it we derive much of our pleasure. In fact,
we do not imagine how dependent we are
upon it. Many persons have sung around
it, but where are the singers now? No one
can tell, but we may all view the piano
with a personal pride and if all do their
duty as well as it has, the High school will
always be proud of its pupils.
Anent Ludwig Pianos.
Of late Mr. W. F. Conkling, local man-
ager for the celebrated Ludwig pianos has
been considerably annoyed by the state-
ments of salesmen for competitors that
the Ludwig piano could be purchased at
any of the New York department stores
at a cut rate consistent with the practices
of such stores.
While confident that this was not the
case owing to the high quality of the Lud-
wig Mr. Conkling determined to have some
proof of the injustice of such falsehoods
and yesterday received a prompt and de-
cisive response to his inquiry to the head
office of the Ludwig Company as follows:
"We hasten to answer your favor and
state that your competitors must be ex-
ceedingly hard up for something to say when
such untruthful statements are made, al-
though we cannot see why it would be in
any way detrimental to our pianos or how
it would affect their quality if we did sell
to department stores, particularly when
houses like Knabe, Chickering, Vose, Hal-
let & Davis, and others do not hesitate to
do so.
"However, you can positively say for us
that we do not sell to any department
store, nor thought of doing so if for no
other reason, simply becaiise we have all
we can do to supply our regular trade.
"We are shipping regularly over sixty
pianos each week and have not been able
so far to catch up with orders, but will
ship your numerous orders just as fast as
possible."—Newburg, N. Y., Register.
44
The Making of a flerchant."
In an article of the current issue of
vSaturday Evening Post, entitled "The
Making of a Merchant," Mr. H. N. Higin-
botham places among the fundamental
requirements to business success, char-
acter, integrity, and a fair "business head."
Mr. Higinbotham's individual conviction
is that the only way in which a retail busi-
ness can be conducted on lines absolutely
consistent with his capital is on the cash
basis. "For this reason," says Mr. Higin-
botham, " I would not advise any young
man to make a venture in retail trade on
credit lines. It is too much like working
in the dark. Almost inevitably the ac-
counts grow beyond your control, and the
business structure expands at the top while
the foundations weaken.
"In certain communities conditions seem
to be such that it is practically impossible
for the young merchant to introduce the
strictly cash method of doing business. In
this event he has but one hope of success
—that is, to watch his accounts with a
zealous vigilance that never relaxes, and to
act with promptness and decision in the
matter of credits and collections. This
may require a high order of business and
moral courage, but he must be able to do
it if he would avoid wreck.
" I n his dealings with his creditors, the
wholesalers, let the young merchant keep
firmly to the rule of incurring no obligation
that he cannot with certainty meet in sixty
days. Too much emphasis cannot be
placed on his connections with the whole-
sale house or houses from which he obtains
his goods. At the very beginning of his
venture let him go to the credit man of the
wholesale establishment and state his case
without reservation.
"So thorough and searching are the
means employed by the big wholesale
houses to obtain an accurate knowledge of
the standing and affairs of their debtors
that it is practically hopeless for the latter
to attempt any concealment of unfavorable
conditions. Again, the credit men of the
wholesale houses are the keenest men in
the business, and their judgment of human
nature is quick and shrewd. Then it
should be constantly held in mind that the
honesty of a patron seeking credit is half
the battle, and that their confidence is won
by an ingenuous statement of affairs that
does not spare the one who is asking for
credit."
M. H. Rice has opened a piano store on
Rose street, New Rochelle, : N. Y,
J. Harry and Guy Estey, the two sons
of General Julius J. Estey, president of
the Estey Organ Co., have just sailed for
Europe on a combined business and pleas-
ure trip.
The Chicago Democrat has started a
voting contest to decide as to the popular-
ity of the different local cycling clubs.
The prize offered is a handsome $500
Kingsbury piano.
C. L. Barber, of Bellows Falls, V t , is
making alterations in his residence for the
purpose of opening a music store.
The display of Ludwig pianos made by
the Arcade Music Store, at the Elks' Fair
in Springfield, O., has attracted much at-
tention.
E. J. Price & Co. held a formal opening
of their new music store, No. 106 S. Clinton
street, Iowa City, la., on June 12th. They
are displaying a fine line of Steinway,
Knabe, Baldwin, Needham, Sterling, El-
lington, Hamilton, Valley Gem pianos, and
Hamilton and Monarch organs.
The foreign trade of the Packard Organ
Co. continues to be unusually brisk. Large
shipments were made last week to different
parts of Europe, including fifteen Packard
organs to their agent in Hamburg, Ger.
The engagement is announced of Miss
Evelyn Childs Mason, daughter of J. R.
Mason of the Sterling Co., Derby, Conn.,
to Mr. Lucius B. Terrill, one of Ansonia's
(Conn.) enterprising business men.
The Rudolph Wurlitzer Co. ,of Cincinnati,
have been appointed sole wholesale agents
for the Columbia Phonograph Co. 's goods
in that territory.
P. F. Turner, who has been engaged in
the manufacture of gut strings in this city,
has moved to Chicago, where he intends to
locate his manufactory.
The establishment of H. C. Wilson &
Sons, Sherbrooke, Can., has recently been
enlarged and renovated. They now oc-
cupy eleven thousand square feet of
space.
A small fire last week in the boiler-room
of the American Felt Co. 's mill No. 2, at
Dolgeville, did damage to the amount of
$300.
Edward G. Schleicher, of Schleicher &
Sons, piano manufacturers, was married
last week to Miss L. E. Weglin, at the
home of the bride's parents, Stamford,
Conn.
The Will A. Watkin Music Co. of Dallas,
Tex., are great believers in variety in ad-
vertising. Their announcements in some of
the local papers, the Beau Monde, especial-
ly, bearing on "the vacation period" as
affecting pianos, are as well constructed as
they are timely.