Music Trade Review

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THE
MUSIC TRADE
REVIEVA/
Presidential Campaign Will Not Have
Harmful Effect on Fall Business.
Leading Piano Merchants, Throughout the Country, Write The Review That
Business Will Triumph Over Politics and That the Presidential Campaign Will
Not Have the Customary Deterrent Effect on the Trade of the Country—The
Letters Are Couched Along Optimistic Lines and Show a Spirit That Can-
not Fail to Win Success—Piano Manufacturers Will Be Encouraged at
the Trend Revealed in These Communications, Which Have Been
Selected From a Large Number Received, as Manifesting the
Feeling Prevailing Among Piano Merchants Everywhere.
With the object of ascertaining to what extent the Presidential campaign is likely to disturb business in the
piano trade field this fall, the following communication was sent from this office to a number of piano merchants
throughout the country asking for a few clean cut statements concerning the effect of politics upon business and
whai should be done to counteract the slackening energy which becomes apparent every Presidential year. The
letter read in part as follows:
"I am deeply interested, as doubtless you are in counteracting any influence caused through the
coming political contest for Presidential honors. I, therefore, believe that any expressions of views
from leading members of the trade upon this important subject will be of interest and will help to set
the trade mind thinking along right channels. I do not believe that changing political conditions
should bring about depression in business. I affirm that by permitting ourselves to believe that busi-
ness will be dull we naturally drift into a pessimistic position and consequently slacken our business
energies. What we need most is good business optimism—the kind of optimism which does not
balk at shadows—the kind of optimism that looks the things of this world in the face—no matter
whether it be a Presidential year or an off crop year. We always face something which may be
distorted so that it will affect business; but, it is dangerous to cultivate business pessimism."
The answers which we reproduce are of more than ordinary interest because they emphasize the fact that
business is rapidly being divorced from politics. Indeed, these letters from widely separated sections, are in-
dicative of business conditions for the coming season that a few campaigns back would have been considered a
little short of marvelous. It is stimulative and helpful to the industry to receive and transmit the views of men
who are in a position to study the conditions at close range and therefore qualified to speak authoritatively on the
subject under discussion. The communications are, on the whole, most encouraging, and should act as an in-
spiration to piano manufacturers and merchants alike to go ahead and do business and let politics and the tariff
take care of themselves.
KIESELHORST PIANO CO. (E. A. Kieselhorst),
St. Louis, Mo.
Large dividends are paid on time and thought
invested in discovering the good in all things.
Paradoxical as it may seem, one can easily be-
come an "aggressive-conservative" optimist. As
such he will never permit anything to stand in the
way of gradually planting his banner or standard
higher up; in other words, advancing his interests
in a timely, methodical manner.
Changing political conditions should not bring
about a depression in business. In my opinion it
doesn't make any difference who is elected in No-
vember. Our vast population of 90,000,000 people,
which is rapidly increasing, must be fed, clothed,
housed, transported, educated, amused, etc., and the
more rapidly, money is kept circulating by purchas-
ing the necessities, comforts and pleasures of life
the more prosperous will be general business con-
ditions.
Touching on our particular industry, if the re-
tail piano merchant will simply say, "Nix on poli-
tics," and keep his mind centered on evolving a
line of newspaper and other advertising that will
create a desire in the minds of the readers to own
a piano or player-piano, and then keep his sales-
men "speeded up" in satisfying their desires, the
piano manufacturers can easily utilize their fac-
tories' full capacity.
While I am a firm believer in a reasonable pro-
tective tariff, my faith in the ability of the people
of the United States to overcome any and all ob-
stacles and excel in practically .everything is so
great that I would not be surprised if we would
"win out big," even if the present overly high
tariff wall were pulled dowtv entirely.
After all, most of the discontent, ill feeling and
"drag" in the world is caused by looking for trou-
ble that very seldom happens. The anaemic com-
mercial and political "ghost-hunters" are amusing
pigmies to the full-grown, red blooded, evenly-bal-
anced optimists. One should never interfere with
any liberal views he may have. It might consti-
pate his brain.
YEAGER PIANO CO. ( H . W . Yeager), Hart-
ford, Conn.
Did you ever hear a man in business say, "Well,
next year is presidential year, and business will be
dull"? Well, neighbor, if you have, just take an-
other good look and you will see the cobwebs hang-
ing around his door. Go further, and analyze this
man in business, and you will find rust, dry rot and
business depression permeate his entire feeble
efforts.
There is a difference between a business man
and a man in business.
Business depressions come more from a lack of
confidence in ourselves and in others than actual
reasons of shortage of production, or over-produc-
tion. The cost of living commodities creeps higher
each succeeding year, largely through combinations
in restraint of common trade and natural distribu-
tion. Again, from the lack of knowledge, general-
ly, of our young men reared on the farms to
analyze the soil of their farms to learn just what
the soil needs to neutralize and produce paying
crops, thereby creating discontent among this class
of former sturdy producers, who drift to the cities
for better remuneration for their labor.
We should have more free endowed agricul-
tural colleges to educate the young men for the
farms.
The might of the people prevails. The silent
vote, which always decides the fat*e or future of
any great economic or political question, will be
cast this fall, as it has in the past, in the interests
of the people. The real causes of the high cost of
living are apparent to this great army of silent
voters. Both political parties recognize this, and
seem to be in a race to determine which shall have
the privilege to remove the causes.
Business men are steady and hold the pendulum
of the business of this country. "The swing is
upward." Business men are optimistic, and optim-
ism means volume of business. The presidential
bugaboo is passing.
E.
F. DROOP & SONS CO. ( E . H. Droop),
Washington, D. C.
Being a citizen of the District of Columbia—the
home of the Federal Government—I am a man
without a vote, and therefore am precluded from
participating actively in politics as long as I re-
main a resident of the District.
However, that does not deter me from taking a
live interest in the great questions of the day, and
in following the recommendations and actions of
the several political parties.
In former years, before the existence of the civil
(Continued on page 10.)