Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE
MUSIC TRADE
UiKter
I
T is conceded that success in any walk of life depends largely
upon one's powers of persuasion. This is particularly true in
the domain of salesmanship. Nowadays it is realized that a man
cannot engage in the art of inducing people to buy without being
properly equipped with a thorough knowledge of the goods he is
selling and the use of convincing language to impress and set forth
such arguments as will win over the prospective buyer. In the
piano trade it has been demonstrated, time and time again, that the
valuable man—the man who wins out every time—is he who has
made a study of his profession both from the practical and psycho-
logical standpoints. This is the age of progress in all lines of effort,
and salesmanship is not exempt. Some very excellent work is being
done by the West Side Young Men's Christian Association of this
city in imparting technical knowledge of a number of trades. One
of the most successful educational branches this year is that de-
voted to salesmanship. The members of the class are instructed
how best to present the merits of any special line in simple, convinc-
ing language. In order to test their nerve power and knowledge
speakers are called upon to present their views, and they are bom-
barded with questions, riddled with jokes, jeered at and heckled at
every statement by members of the class. The instructor watches
developments carefully, and his marking is based on good Eng-
lish, phrase making, variety of sentences, humor, courtesy, definite-
ness, ease of manner and depth of thought. All sorts and condi-
tions of men constitute the class. Some of them are business men
who desire to add to their equipment along sales lines. Most of
the students, of course, are salesmen, prospective or actual, and all
the members are quite enthusiastic over their work. In this class
the Young Men's Christian Association is doing splendid work for
the ambitious New Yorkers, and it is a movement that business men
should heartily encourage. There is to-day a great dearth of sales-
men, and employes generally, possessing a proper knowledge of
their respective trades or businesses, and technical schools fill "a
long felt want." Germany is leading all countries in this work;
England is now falling into line, and our school authorities in New
York State are just waking up. It is about time. There is no rea-
son why the technical education of the rising generation should be
left to any private institution. It should be taken in hand by the
State authorities. It would prove far more helpful and beneficial
than many of the "fads and fancies" which are now being cultivated
in our high schools.
I
T would seem that the suggestion of a prominent public man
on one occasion to the effect that both State and National law-
making bodies should be prevented from meeting and enacting new
laws for a decade or two and the time thus gained be used for the
enforcement of laws at present on the statute books was not quite so
foolish as some politicians would have us think. From experiences
of piano men in all parts of the country and even in Canada it is
seen that a goodly part of the work of the lawmakers, paid by, and
supposedly the servants of, the people, consists of efforts, or at
least threats, to pass bills that are calculated to injure, if not en-
tirely kill, certain kinds of business, generally of a perfectly legiti-
mate nature. Whenever such a bill is presented pains are taken
to see that those most interested in having it killed are notified in
plenty of time to organize among themselves and raise a fund to
insure its defeat. In some cases the funds so raised are turned
over and the entire amount supposedly used for legal expenses,
while in other cases part of the money, usually a substantial amount.
is used for the frankly stated purpose of "fixing" certain influential
members of the legislature. The Connecticut Piano Dealers' As-
sociation had its birth through the organization of the dealers of
the State for the purpose of fighting legislation inimical to their
interests and only the fact that that body retains the services of a
competent and honest lawyer year in and year out, a man who is
constantly in touch with the doings of the State Legislature and in
REVIEW
TOWER.
a position to nip many grafting bills in the bud, prevents the piano
men of the State from being put to even heavier expense several
times annually for the purpose of fighting for their business rights.
The story of the Pennsylvania piano dealers and their fight against
a bill that if passed would practically mean the turning over
of pianos sold on instalments to landlords and hotel keepers is too
well known to require comment. That bill has been presented with
the convening of each new legislature and funds raised to fight it,
neither the fund nor the bill being heard from afterwards until the
next session of the lawmakers. Only the refusal of a Pittsburgh
piano house to be held up again and a consequent investigation
revealed the act that the legislature had tired of baiting the piano
men and that the reported drafting of the bill for presentation a
year or so ago was the product of the fertile brains of a set of
legal sharks who were looking for some easy money.
* * H
OW comes the report that the piano dealers of the Province
of Quebec have been called upon to fight the passage of a
bill just introduced in the legislature of the Province, which has
for its object the wiping out of the lien system of selling pianos,
which means that pianos will have to be sold for cash or not at all.
In other words, if the bill becomes a law about seventy-five per
cent., or more, of the piano business will be lost. Of course, the
piano men are going to fight. They have been organized and are
raising a fund for the purpose and the chances are that the bill will
be killed, or at least shelved until another session of the legislature,
as has been the case with the movement to repeal the bill preventing
landlords from seizing pianos for rent when served with notice to
the effect that the instruments had not been paid for. Meanwhile
public service corporations and other similar bodies who bleed the
public to pay dividends on watered stock and laugh at control are
protected to the fullest extent and are plied with favors by the same
lawmakers.
N
^T^HE power of music was tested in a singular way at a recent
±
track meet in Chicago. Two teams were about to meet each
other, and for weeks ahead the coaches had figured out every pos-
sibility of their runners. After a fortnight of the closest sort of
study it was conceded the meet would go to the team winning the
440-yard run. Both teams had good men in this event, but they
were of diametrically different styles. The runner of one team
was what is known as a good finisher—that is, he could go a greater
part of the distance at a fair speed, but won most of his races by
a terrific burst at the finish. The other was a man who went at a
killing pace all the way through the race, and usually tired his
opponents out to such an extent that, however carefully they might
have husbanded their strength, they had little left for the finish.
The coach of the team having the good finisher planned long and
carefully, and finally evolved a plan whereby to win the race. This
he confided only to his quarter-miler. The night of the meet came,
and, as was expected, the result hinged on the quarter-mile run,
one of the last events upon the programme. Shortly before the
race started the coach sauntered over to the leader of the band and
asked him to play the "Pilgrims' Chorus,'' a request which promptly
was favored by the leader. The piece was about half finished
when the men were sent to their marks for the 440-yard dash and
sent away over the long dash. The coach of the opposing team
noticed the pace was rather slow, and he shouted to his man to
increase his speed, but after a few fitful bursts the runner relapsed
into a fairly good pace, one which suited the runner of the opposing
team and allowed him to husband all his strength. The piece had
been completed by the time 300 yards of the race had been run, and
the band struck up a well-known ragtime piece, and at the first note
the "finisher" started a sprint which carried him to the front, in
which position he remained to the finish of the race. "You see, if
'music hath charms to sooth the savage breast,' it also has charm to
inspire athletic lungs," remarked the coach after the race.