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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
TWENTY-SECOND YEAR.
8MIW
EDWARD LYMAN BILL,
EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR.
J.
B. S P I L L A N E . MANAGING EDITOR.
EMILIE
Executive Staff :
FRANCES
BAUER,
THOS. CAMPBKLL-COPELAND
WALDO E. LADD
GEO. W. QUERIPEL
A. J. NICKLIN
P n D M Erery Sitnrday at 3 East Ulh Street, New You
SUBSCRIPTION (including postage). United States, Mexico
and Canada, $2.00 per year ; all other countries, $4.00.
ADVERTISEMENTS, $2.00 per inch, single column, per
insertion. On quarterly or yearly contracts a special discount
is allowed. Advertising Pages $50.00, opposite reading matter
$75-°°.
REMITTANCES, in other than currency form, should be
made payable to Edward Lyman Bill.
Entered at the New York Post Office as Second Class Matter.
NEW YORK, JAN. 19, 190L
TELEPHONE NUMBER, 1745-EIQHTEENTH STREET.
On the first Saturday of each month The
Review contains in its "Artists Department"
all the current musical news. This is effected
without in any way trespassing on the size or
service of the trade section of the paper. It has
a special circulation, and therefore augments
materially the value of The Review to adver-
tisers.
That is as it should be, for every one
than to any other, financial or industrial.
In other words, the report of this form of possessing intelligence knows that the con-
illness has actually taken precedence over ductor of a newspaper cannot personally
the news columns and whether or not this see every item that goes into his paper,
frightful condition of affairs really exists, and gleaning, as he does, news from every
we are informed that it does with unfailing section of the country, there are, in spite
of the closest oversight, items sent in to
regularity by the scare line reporters.
All of this has an effect upon business, him by correspondents and representatives
hence, every little ill that people have is in whom he has confidence, which may con-
duly considered a genuine case of grip; and tain offense to local parties.
We have been the victims of just this
it is through this kind of a magnifying
glass that the unhealthy conditions of sort of legal unfairness and have been put
the country are enlarged, and business to considerable expense; and there is haidly
a paper of importance but has suffered
correspondingly depreciated.
likewise
from the injustice of our present
People stay indoors nursing, too fre-
quently, imaginary ills and the result libel laws.
A case in point: Our contemporary the
is the selling departments of business
enterprises feel keenly that the regular de- "Music Trades," an ably conducted and
carefully edited publication, has been put
mand upon them has ceased.
According to reports there are millions to thousands of dollars expense to defend a
of grip cases in the country and surely suit brought by a resident of the West.
these people at the present time are not The offensive item came from the "Music
purchasers of other than druggist supplies. Trades" correspondent in a western city,
To our minds the worst enemy to business was published in good faith by the editor,
is grip, and the probability is that the con- and nearly two years after the item ap-
ditions will not brighten materially within pears he is compelled to stand an expen-
the zone of grip influence until the weather sive suit brought against him for alleged
becomes clearer and more settled, for there damages. It must have been a pachy-
dermic hide that was not penetrated for
is no enemy like sunlight to disease.
We are not going to dispute with the nearly two years. What sort of reason or
medical authorities regarding grip, but justice is there in occurrences of this kind
we shall interject our belief that a large for the newspaper man?
GRIP AND BUSINESS.
A MONG the many business houses there
is an evident feeling of disappoint-
ment regarding January trade, for there is
no denying the fact that retail trade in all
lines thus far in the new century has not
been up to expectations. Of course, there
are many reasons which may be named
that have been instrumental in bringing proportion of the cases of sickness which
about this state of affairs, chief among are ordinarily termed grip, are nothing
more than old-fashioned colds which we
which is the worn-out cry—stock-taking.
By a large number of firms the first part have experienced from childhood up. We
of January is usually given up to inven- have fallen into the grip habit, so that
tory and arranging matters for the new everything from a toothache to a case of
year; consequently in both the manufac- lockjaw is, according to the popular cry,
turing and retail departments there is a superinduced by grip.
The environment of our twentieth cen-
slowing up of energy which immediately
tury
lives is such as to make us more keen-
is felt in the lessening of the distribution
ly sensitive to atmospheric effects, and if
of wares.
There is, to our minds, another reason for there were less scare lines in the papers
the existing unsatisfactory condition of about grip and less talk about it, the grip
affairs which has been a tremendous factor habit would decrease and business would
in bringing about the depressing condi- materially improve.
If it can be shown that it is clearly the
intent of the editor to injure willfully and
persistently the reputation of anyone, then
of course he should be brought up with
a round turn; but when a news item is in-
serted plainly as news and not with the
intent of personal injury, it is unjust and
unfair to the newspaper fraternity to be
put to enormous legal expense to defend
that which amounts to practically free-
dom of the press.
Of course there are instances where free-
dom constitutes license, but to the credit
of the journalistic craft it may be said that
in most cases there is reasonable investiga-
tion and care taken in the serving up of
tions. That old enemy to humanity which
AMEND THE LIBEL LAWS.
news
matter, and every publisher whose
was imported from Russia some years ago \ 1 7 E have invariably taken the ground
record is clear, should be afforded an op-
and which was first designated as "La
that the libel law should afford the
Grippe," but which now is known as the newspaper some protection as well as the portunity of righting an alleged wrong be-
plain, everyday grip, has made its presence individual, and as it stands in New York fore action is brought against him.
In this industry we have seen firms per-
felt in almost every great city of the land, at the present time, it is all one-sided.
sistently
and continually maligned by a
and if we may judge by reports, its prev- The newspaper man is afforded absolutely
alence has reached an alarming stage in no protection. An innocent item appear- conductor of a trade publication. If it
many localities. In fact were we to draw ing in a newspaper may be the means of could be shown in open court that it was
a line through the heart of the Continent putting the proprietor to thousands of dol- the evident intention of the editor of such
from East to West hundreds of miles lars expense without an opportunity being paper to bring the name of the firm or
in width, it would be difficult indeed to first afforded him to make a retraction or firms into derision and disrepute, then
there is some cause for legitimate action.
find a spot within not visited by the grip. an explanation.
We trust to see the laws of libel righted
It has reached such a condition that
In some States no suit can be instituted
nowadays our attention is called by the against a newspaper without the offending so that the Empire State may do greater
scare head-lines in the various papers to publication being first afforded an oppor- justice in a legal way to the newspaper
man. At present it is a crying shame and
the grip conditions of the country rather tunity to retract the offensive statement.