Music Trade Review

Issue: 1912 Vol. 54 N. 6

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE
MUSIC TRADE
REVIEW
finance which extends credit to nations and governments is a
force for international peace and morality whose importance
grows daily.
"The great financial houses of the world are merely the
federation of the lesser forces of your body multiplied; they are
the wholesalers and credit men. the retailors in the fields of
credit; they hold the pursestrings of the world, and, as war is
merely a matter of dollars, pounds, talers, francs, rubles and liri,
EDWARD LYMAN BILL - Editor and Proprietor the time is coming when the credit givers of the world will
make the world lords sheathe their swords, muffle their drums
J. BVSPILLANE, Managing Editor
and transform the hosts of war into the armies of peace.
"It is no small honor to be a part of a system which can and
Executive and Reportorlal Staff :
will accomplish these things.
GLAD. HENDERSON, EUGBNI C. MAYKX, H. E. JAMASON, B. BRITTAIN WILSON. W. H. DYKES,
A. J. NICKLIN,
AUGUST J. TIMPE,
W M . B. WHITE,
L. E. BOWERS.
"Credit as a means to public good, to honest and economic
BOSTON OFFICE:
CHICAGO OFFICE:
E. P. VAN HARLINGEN, 37 South Wabash Ave.
administration of public affairs, has vast potentialities in it if we
JOHN H. WILSON, 824 Washington St.
Telephone, Central 414.
Telephone, Main 6950.
will only apply the same standard to public as to private busi-
Room 806.
PHILADELPHIA:
MINNEAPOLIS and ST. PAUL:
ST. LOUIS:
ness. The Spaniard says: 'Money makes the dog dance.'
R. W. KAUFFMAN.
ADOLF EDSTEN.
CLYDE JENNINGS
Why not make the dog dance to our music? Moral bankrupts
SAN FRANCISCO: S. H. GRAY, 88 First Street.
CINCINNATI, O.: JACOB W. WALTERS.
are as dangerous in administration as in business; why not
BALTIMORE, MD.: A. ROBERT FRENCH.
eliminate them?
LONDON, ENGLAND: 1 Gresham Buildings, Basinghall St., E. C.
"We have need to educate the average man in the true
Published Every Saturday at 1 Madison Avenue, New York
meaning and philosophy of credit; we must teach him that waste
Entered at the New York Post Office as Second Class Matter.
and dishonesty travel in the same coach; he must be shown the
SUBSCRIPTION, (including postage), United States and Mexico, $2.00 per year; Can
unromantic
truth that every dollar of the government's money,
ada, $3.50; all other countries, $400.
ADVERTISEMENTS, $2.50 per inch, single column, per insertion.
On quarterly or
whether
spent
righteously or wasted riotously, comes out of the
yearly contracts a special discount is allowed. Advertising Pages, $76.00.
REMITTANCES,
in other than currency forms, should be made payable to Edward
pocket of the man who pays last—the man at the bottom—the
Lyman Bill.
man of the tenements—the consuming Atlas upon whose back
Piann anil
Departments conducted by an expert wherein all ques-
our whole economic fabric rests.
j T i a i l U U1IU
t i o n s o f a technical nature relating to the tuning, reg-
T«M»hni4*al n o n a n t m o n t c
ulating and repairing of pianos and player-pianos are
"This man is a voter, and when he gets it firmly fixed in his
l t X U l l l l a l VKyal IlllCllto. ^ ea \ t y,-^ w jfi b e found in another section of this
paper. We also publish a number of reliable technical works, information concerning
head
that the wasted dollar comes out of his dinner-pail, and
which will be cheerfully given upon request.
out of his baby's mouth, he w r ill begin to keep a sharper eye out
Exposition Honors Won by The Review
for the government's cash and credit both ; and lie will soon acquire
Grand Prix
Paris Exposition, 1900
Silver Medal.. .Charleston Exposition, 1902
Diploma — Pan-American Exposition, 1901
Gold Medal
St. Louis Exposition, 1904
the
habit of looking for men to manage his millions in Bradstreet
Gold Medal
Lewis-Clark Exposition, 1905
and not in Queen Street.
LONG DISTANCE TELEPHONES-NUMBERS 4677 and 4678 GRAMERCY
"We need a credit club for our political and administrative
Connecting all Departments.
affa'rs as much as we do for our business concerns. If we demand
Cable address •• **Elbill, N e w York."
brains, capacity and integrity in business, why should we be satis-
NEW YORK, FEBRUARY 10, 1912.
fied with tongues, lungs and wind in politics ?
"Fitzgerald, translating the Persian philosopher and tentmaker,
makes old Omar say:
" 'Ah take the cash and let the credit go
EDITORIAL
Nor heed the rumble of the distant drum.'
"Our contemporary Fitzgeralds translate freely as the dead
HE question of efficiency and scientific management in the ones; they have the same concern for cash and contempt for credit;
industrial domain is being accorded an increasing considera-
but it is up to us to make them hear and heed the rumble of the
tion by all interested in manufacturing problems and is destined
distant drum, for it means the mustering of forces very much con-
to form a very important feature of our industrial progress. Dur-
cerned for the cash and credit of this community."
ing the past year a great impetus has been given to this movement
through the hearings before the Interstate Commerce Commis-
TRANGE, is it not, that the worm will turn at last!
sion, when the shippers protested against proposed increases in
Strange, is it not, that an alleged trade newspaper can con-
freight rates by the railroads, and the argument that economy
tinue to abuse manufacturers without some kind of retaliation!
should be practised by the great transportation companies through
No, that is not strange—the strangest part is how in any in-
the inauguration of a policy of scientific management and efficiency dustry men have been permitted to exist whose chief aim in a
has resulted in a mass of discussions appearing in all the leading
journalistic enterprise is to abuse and malign members of that
papers and periodicals. This continued agitation has produced
industry.
good results, and to-day proprietors "and managers of great indus-
How any sensible man can figure that a trade or profession
trial plants throughout the country, including just a few in the can be built up through abuse of a most virulent kind is beyond
music trade industry, have been prescribing such remedies as the ordinary human conception.
elimination of lost motion in all departments, increasing output
Just so long as an institution is permitted to exist which
at a minimum of cost, efficiency in financing and general account-
exudes a noxious poison, just so long some one in the industry
ing, in selling and in business administration.
will be liable to infection. The slimy, crawling specimens of hu-
manity who slavishly yield to the immoral domination of a con-
N speaking of the bearing of credit upon civilization at a re- scienceless chief are just as guilty as the man who directs the
machinery.
cent meeting of the Boston Credit Men's Association,
No question about that and all sympathy on a bread and butter
Joseph Smith, of the Boston Herald, showed how men must be
plea is wasted. Breaking stones on the street would indeed be
taught to understand the true meaning and philosophy of credit.
an honorable employment compared with the sneaking, abusive,
The business of extending and withholding credit to mer-
piratical outfit which has so long disgraced a profession and an
chants throughout this land is an important factor in that sys-
industry.
tem and civilization which keep the world moving upward
To have won the eternal enmity of such an outfit is indeed
and onward. Credit—whether applied to individuals or states—
an honor, for it shows that one is diametrically opposed to such
makes for morality; it makes honesty compulsory, since any
methods.
other policy spells lack of credit and ultimate ruin. He said:
It shows a clean line of demarcation between honor and dis-
"Credit forms the policy or habit of honesty; habit is second
honor.
nature, and all morals are merely continuous habits. The high
REVIEW
T
S
I
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE
MUSIC TRADE
REVIEW
The Passing of the Puzzle Contests
T
HE subjoined announcement, which was printed in The Music
Trade Review of last week, has been read far and wide
with exceeding interest, and perhaps at this time it might be fitting
to briefly review the history of the prize-puzzle-contest-coupon
schemes.
Story & Clark Piano Co.
Wish to Announce
that the use of puzzle and similar advertising, the issuance of
purchasing coupons or letters gii'ing credit on the purchase
price of the pianos has been abused by some houses by not
carrying out the promises made and it has been decided that
the Story & Clark Piano Co. put itself on record as discouraging
this form of advertising.
This company will not publish any puzzle or similar adver-
tisement or issue any coupons in any form or letters giving
credits.
This announcement -will appear simultaneously this morn-
ing and evening in the 23 cities where our stores arc located.
Story &? Clark Piano Co.
1106 Hennepin Avenue, Minneapolis,
Minn.
It was something over two years ago when this plan was an-
nounced as "the best ever" for the development of the piano busi-
ness.
We, however, alone of all the music trade papers, took a posi-
tive stand that it was "the worst ever" and that if this plan were
persisted in generally it would undermine the piano business
through completely destroying the confidence of the public in piano
values.
Plainly it was placing the piano business on the lowest kind of
a plane through the adoption of unmercantile, unbusinesslike and
unethical methods.
The stamp of deception and misrepresentation was too obvious
in all of the business announcements of these puzzle schemes to
capture the public. After careful consideration we concluded that
it was one of the most destructive of evils and should be attacked by
the trade press, for only by strong resistance could it be coun-
teracted.
At that time we carried advertisers who had fallen into the
coupon habit, who quite naturally would resent our activity along
anti-guessing contest lines, but that condition did not make the
slightest difference in the attitude of this paper.
We commenced a series of argumentative articles strictly im-
personal.
We did not abuse an individual or corporation—in fact, we
did not mention a single name in our onslaught upon the puzzle-
guessing scheme.
We attached it as a principle and fought it along those lines.
Some of the papers scoffed at us—ridiculed our position, and
the people whose interests were being hit by our arguments did not
hesitate to abuse us roundly by saying that it was an unwarrantable
interference on our part with their business plans. Some went even
further.
However, all of this criticism did not in the slightest degree
swerve us from what we believed to be our duty as a constructive
trade newspaper.
Our articles aroused the entire country, and it was a frequent
occurrence to receive from dealers a dozen advertisements repro-
ducing some part of our editorials from as many different sections
of the country weekly.
Thus a consistent campaign was launched and the battle for
trade honor was begun in dead earnest.
Every other trade paper sidestepped on this proposition.
We did not criticise the editors for their position.
If they were afraid to jeopardize their interests by taking a
position which they knew would create strong opposition—why, that
was their affair.
Still the puzzle campaign was continued and developed into a
perfect maelstrom of activity and misrepresentation. It seriously
reflected upon the entire piano business and had the tendency to
discredit it in the eyes of the public.
By and by the Dealers' Association came to the rescue, and
the men who had vast business interests in the retail field did not
hesitate to attack the schemes in the strongest possible manner in
the convention councils*
Thus, a strong rebuttal force was created which steadily grew,
and then the Government was finally drawn in, and with the united
efforts of the Dealers' Association, the United States Government
and one trade paper the whole scheme finally collapsed.
Before its collapse one of the chief beneficiaries under the
guessing contest system had planned a big campaign with a certain
dealer in a Western State. It was all arranged. Details had been
threshed out. Down he went to pull off a great guessing contest
scheme. When the dealer remarked to him: "I have been read-
ing the editorials in The Music Trade Review and I have concluded
that the puzzle guessing contest schemes are injurious to the trade
and I shall not enter into the plan as arranged with you," of course,
it could not be expected that this particular representative would
exhaust an extensive vocabulary in choice praise of The Music
Trade Review.
On the contrary, he said some things which were unprintable,
and from a good many sources these similar-criticisms regarding
this institution have reached us; but, after all, now the battle is
over and won, there is not one of these men who can point to a
personal attack which The Review has made upon them.
We have been urged hundreds of times to do this, but we
have adhered absolutely to our policy, and that was to treat our
puzzle contest campaign in a strictly impersonal manner attacking
it as a principle and leaving individuals out entirely.
We have believed that there were plenty of legitimate methods
which men could adopt to build up business in a satisfactory way
without resorting to the questionable schemes thoroughly inter-
woven with the puzzle contest plans.
It is, therefore, with a feeling akin to pride that we refer to
the course of The Review in this campaign, and no matter how
much the individuals whose work along these lines was curtailed
may blame us they cannot fail to admit that we were consistent
in our policy and that in the end right triumphed as it always
should!
And, incidentally, the strength of constructive trade journal-
ism is revealed in the demolition of the puzzle schemes, and down
in their hearts some men entertain a greater respect for journalism
than ever before, although they may not willingly admit it.
The Story & Clark Co. has been recognized as the leading
exponent of the guessing contest system. The strong financial
position of this house—its large manufacturing facilities and wide
distributing avenues through its own branches perhaps entitle it
to that position, and Mr. Edward H. Story, president of the Story
& Clark corporation, has been strongly criticized in association
councils and out and we have received many communications from
readers who have asked us to make a personal attack upon the
methods of this house.
This we have refused to do, not because we have had a long
and pleasant acquaintance with Mr. Story, but because a personal
attack is contrary to the fixed policy of this paper. We have disa-
greed with Mr. Story on. a principle, and what we have done has
been accomplished without resorting to personalities of any kind.
Edward H. Story is a strong, intelligent, resourceful business
man, and now that he has come out openly announcing the aban-
donment of this system which has brought down severe criticism
upon him from all parts of the country, there is no question in our
minds as to his ability to completely rehabilitate his business on any
lines that he lays down.
Mr. Story believes in doing business in bulk and he will do it.

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