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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
TWENTY-FIRST YEAR.
•EDWARD LYMAN BILL-
Editor and Proprietor
PUBLISHED EVERY SATURDAY
3 East 14th St., New York
SUBSCRIPTION (Including: postage), United State*,
Mexico and Canada, S-a.so per year; all other countries,
(-toe.
ADVERTISEMENTS, fa.oo per inch, single column, per
insertion. On quarterly or yearly contracts a special dis-
count is allowed. Advertising Pages $so.<—• opposite read
ing matter $75.00.
REMITTANCES, Jn other than current/ form, should
be made payable to Edward Lyman Bill.
1
Entered at At Wt» York Pott Office
NEW YORK, JUNE 9, 1900.
TELEPHONE NUMBER,
I745--EIOHTEENTH STREET
THK KEYNOTE.
The first week of each month, The Review will
contain a supplement embodying the literary
and musical features which have heretofore
appeared in The Keynote. This amalgamation
will b« effected without in any way trespassing
on our regular news service. The Review wil!
continue to remain, as before, essentially a
trade paper.
FOR LEGITIMATE BUSINESS.
T^HIS trade has not been entirely exempt
from what we may term fake con-
cerns, all of which must die an early death,
for Governor Roosevelt has signed an act
which is to take effect September i, in-
tended to put an end to the conducting of
business under fictitious names, designa-
tions and titles. The law provides that no
person or persons shall hereafter conduct
or transact business in New York State
under any designation, name or style,
corporate or otherwise, other than the real
name or names of the individual or indi-
viduals conducting or transacting such
business, unless same person or persons
shall file in the office of the clerk of the
county or countries in which such person
or persons conduct or transact such busi-
ness, a certificate setting forth the name
under which such business is, or is to be,
conducted, and the true OT real name or
names of the person or persons conducting
or transacting the same, with the post of-
fice address or addresses of said person or
persons.
This move is in line with others which
have killed the fake piano sales that have
been from time to time advertised igi the
daily papere.
TRADE CONDITIONS.
THHE reports of the condition of trade
which have reached '\ he Review of-
fices during the past week from all parts
of the land have been more optimistic
than those of the week previous. There
are certain localities, which, owing to
stakes; are completely demoralized as far
as business is concerned, but the consum-
ing power of the American people has suf-
fered little diminution. Labor troubles
have not increased very recently, and on
the other hand crop prospects are excel-
lent. There is not the least cause to doubt
the ability of retail piano merchants to
push out their entire stock now on hand at
fairly renumerative prices.
During the past week among the callers
at our office, we have counted dealers from
no less than ten States in the Union and
interviews with than have demonstrated
the existence of a fixed belief on their part
of excellent business conditions through-
out the year, the presidential election not-
withstanding. Although we have passed
the first week in June, yet there is no sign
of summer stagnation at the various fac-
tories.
tion of the compliment paid us, we must
correct the statement by saying that The
Review exhibit at Paris consists solely of
the weekly copies of The Review for one
year only—that of 1899. These are hand-
somely bound in Russia and gold in two
volumes, numbering upwards of 2,200
pages. We could divine no more fitting man-
ner in which to emphasize the importance
of this industry than by placing on exhibit
our product for one year. The volumes of
The Review which are ttms placed on exhi-
bition give nearly every American piano
manufacturer a representation at Paris.
This is following out a plan which has
been pursued by this institution for many
years. It has been the practice to send
The Review to United States Consulates
throughout the world, and while our for-
EXPOSITION THOUGHTS.
eign circulation is necessarily limited, yet
I T would to the onlooker seem that rows there are subscribers enough in practically
and exhibitions are wedded with such every country, which enables us to make
indissolubility that it is almost impossible the assertion that The Review encircles
to divorce them. Prom present indica- the globe.
tions, the Paris Exposition is not going to
NO EASY ROAD.
vary materially from those that have gone
before in this particular. Commissioner IN two prominent cities of the Union—
New York and Philadelphia — those
General Peck has been severely criticised
in many quarters and has found it neces- vast emporiums which in the vernacular
sary to reply explicitly to certain charges are termed department stores are becom-
which have been made.
ing distributing factors in the piano world
The Commissioner says that there are and naturally the discussion along lines of
many disappointed exhibitors who could the department store as a future piano dis-
not be accommodated with the size or loca- tributing center will be one of more or less
tion of space desired, and naturally com- interest.
plaints have been the outcome. He affirms
While recently discussing this matter
that all matters connected with the Amer- with an old time department store mer-
ican department of the exposition have been chant he remarked: "It does not neces-
administered with the greatest care and sarily follow that because Wanamaker and
economy, consistent with the important one or two others may make a success of
result which was sought to be obtained, handling pianos that others will enter the
and that every courtesy has been extended field for it is a fact that too many busi-
the manufacturers.
ness men expect entirely too much from
Mr. J. C. Henderson, manager of the a department in too short a time; and, in
Ann Arbor Organ Co., who has just re- my opinion, the piano department will
turned from Paris, remarked in The Re- not pay in a limited period. But there is
view offices last Saturday, that the import- no question that a store that is doing a
ance of the American music trade industry good general business—a store that has
would be little appreciated by Europeans people coming its way—can make a suc-
from ihe fact that practically the entire cess of any department it may chose to
representation was embodied in one cor- add, provided of course that the depart-
poration, the Baldwin and allied interests; 1 ment receives proper management. But
that outside of this, the meagre space al- it requires time, perseverance and a deter-
lotted to Mr. Ludwig, gave the sightseer a mination to succeed even to the extent of
hopelessly inadequate impression of the losing money, and sometimes lots of it,
magnitude of the music trade industries of before the department is brought to a
paying basis. In our business we have
this continent.
Mr. Abbott of Presto, who. is now in always had departments that do not pay a
Paris, writes to his publication an inter- profit. We have lost money in our boot
esting letter in which he refers to "a and shoe department. It makes money
case in which there is exhibited copies of for us now. We are losing money to-day
The Music Trade Review, showing files of in our wall paper department, but it will
the paper from the first year of its publi- pay some day, and it goes to maintain the
organization of our store."
cation."
While desirous of showing our apprecia-
There is a moral in this for the regular