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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
"MADE IN DETROIT" WEEK.
D. S. JOHNSTON'S WILL FILED.
APOLLO FOR PEARSON PIANO HOUSE.
Piano Houses Give Over Show Windows to Dis-
plays of Local Manufacturers.
Prominent Pacific Coast Piano Man Leaves Es-
tate Valued at $175,000, Bulk of Which
Goes to Family Being Equally Divided.
Important Agency Change Just Announced in
Indianapolis—Will
Handle
Both
Apollo
Player-Piano and Autograph Music Rolls.
(Special to The Review.)
DETROIT, MICH., September 2.—The show win-
dows of the piano stores of Detroit will not have
pianos or any other musical goods in them next
week. The seven days beginning September 8 will
be "Made in Detroit' week, and merchants of all
classes on the principal streets have been induced
by the Board of Commerce to relinquish their
window space for a week to manufacturers for the
exhibition of industrial goods in the process of
making. More than 500 Detroit manufacturers
have applied for space.
Grinnell Bros, have two large show windows,
but have relinquished only one of them, intending
to use the other for their own manufacturing ex-
hibit. Workingmen will be brought from the Grin-
nell factory with unfinished pianos, and will dem-
onstrate the setting up of piano actions, stringing
and polishing cases.
(Special to The Review.)
TACOMA, WASH., August 29.—D. S. Johnston,
PROTEST AGAINST^CARELESSNESS.
H. W. Hill, in Behalf of National Piano Manu-
facturers' Association Writes to Steamship
Companies Regarding Damage to Pianos
Through Rough Handling.
Herbert W. Hill, secretary of the National Piano
Manufacturers' Association, has written a strong
Interests of F. G. Jones in the Schiller Piano
letter of protest to the steamship companies against
House, Decatur, III., Will Hereafter Bear the
the careless manner in which pianos are handled.
Name of Emerson—The Pianos Handled.
It is pointed out that piano houses doing an export
business have learned to take special care in their
(Special to The Review.)
DECATUR, I I I . , September 1.—The Schiller Piano packing, but that instances are known where pianos
House will after this week be known as the have been dropped or otherwise handled so roughly
Emerson Piano House, and under the manage- that heavy metal parts have been broken. The
ment of Henry I. Spayd, the Emerson, Lindeman letter also informed the steamship companies that
& Sons, Schiller and Sdhomacker pianos will be unless greater safety can be insured to piano ship-
pers the export trade in that line will be mate-
handled.
It appears that in settling up the estate of F. G. rially reduced, ordinary risks of foreign trade being
Jones, head of the Schiller Piano Co., Oregon, 111., .sufficiently great without having added to them
it was found advisable to dispose of his interests the carelessness of steamship employes.
in the local store, and the Emerson people, who
are also interested in this house, took it over.
DIES IN AUTO^ ACCIDENT.
Mrs. Jennie Schendel, wife of Otto W. Schendel,
PIANO MEN PLANJTO TEST AD LAW. who handles Bjur Bros.' and other makes of
pianos in Titus, la., lost her life recently in an
Milwaukee Dealers to Take Action on Advertis-
automobile accident. Mrs. Schendel actively as-
ing of Heller Piano Co. and Growing Out of
sisted her husband in his business.
Purchase of Part of the Flanner Stock.
NOW THE EMERSON PIANO HOUSE.
MILWAUKEE,
(Special to The Review.)
WIS., September 2.—Milwaukee
piano dealers have their plans all made for bring-
ing a test case under the new Wisconsin reform
advertising law, and they are only awaiting for ths
return to Milwaukee of the chairman of the special
committee of the Merchants and Manufacturers'
Association which looks after such matters which
arise in this city. The particular case involved is
the series of advertisements run in the Milwaukee
papers by the Heller Piano Co. regarding its sale
of the bankrupt Flanner stock, which it purchased
at the trustee's sale, and which was referred to in
The Review last week.
OPTIMISTIC REGARDING OUTLOOK.
William Dalliba Dutton Returns to Headquar-
ters at Hardman Mouse After Enjoyable Va-
cation Spent in Maine.
William Dal'liba Dutton, treasurer of Hardman,
Peck & Co., 433 Fifth avenue, New York, returned
to his desk Tuesday after a six weeks' stay in
the Maine woods. Mr. Dutton resumed work with
his customary energy and vigor, and is optimistic
in .his predictions for the coming fall's business.
Incidentally, Mr. Dutton is feeing congratulated by
his many friends on his narrow escape from par-
ticipation in the terrible catastrophe on the New
Haven road, which took place eanly Tuesday
morning. Mr. Dutton had contemplated return-
ing to New York on the Bar Harbor express,
which was in the wreck, but fortunately changed
his mind Monday, and returned to New York sev-
eral hours earlier than planned.
(Special to The Review.)
INDIANAPOLIS, IND., September 2.—The Pearson
president of Eilers Music House, and one of the Piano House, of Indianapolis, has taken on the
most prominent piano men on the Pacific Coast, complete Apollo player-piano line of the Melville
who died recently, left an estate valued at about Clark Piano Co., of Chicago, as well as a full line
$175,000. Mr. Johnston's will has been filed for of Autograph rolls, and will have the agency in In-
probate, and his widow is named as executrix. dianapolis and adjacent territory. The Pearson
The estate, with the exception of a specified Piano House is one of the oldest and best-known
amount to cover pledges to various religious in- institutions of its kind in the State. It is to be
stitutions, is to be distributed among the memibers congratulated upon securing the Apollo agency in
of the fami'ly. After the fixed bequests, the bal- what is conceded to be one of the strongest Apollo
ance of the estate is to be divided equally between territories in the country.
the widow, two sons and two daughters.
PIANO DEALER_FILES PETITION.
Neal M. Beebe, of Schenectady, N. Y.,
Trouble—Has Liabilities of $29,780.
in
Neal M. Beebe, a music dealer of Schenectady,
N. Y., filed a petition of bankruptcy in the United
States District Court recently, s'howing (liabilities
at $29,780, of which $23,186 as secured by notes
and mortgages, and assets of $14,000 in real estate.
The majority of the fifty-one creditors are resi-
dents of Schenectady.
FIRE CAUSESJIEAVY DAMAGE.
Fire in a building on Main street, near Third
street, Walla Walla, Wash., caused damage esti-
mated at $30,000 to the stocks of the Stanley Music
House and the W. H. Myers Sporting Goods
House. The loss is partly covered by insurance.
HOUSTON DEALER^ MAY ORGANIZE.
Following a movement started by J. W. Carter,
president of the J. W. Carter Music Co., Houston,
Tex., piano dealers of that city are seriously con-
sidering the organization of a local association, and
have written to Robert N. Watkin, State com-
missioner for Texas of the National Association
of Piano Merchants, for suggestions regarding the
organization and the drafting of a constitution
and bv-laws.
SELLING PIANOS ON SMALL TIME PAYMENTS RUINOUS.
Hinders Development of Retail Business on a Healthy Scale, Says a Prominent Detroit Dealer
,
to The Review—Lack of Success Always Due to This Form of Poor Management.
(Special to The Review.)
DETROIT, MICH., September 2.—In spite of the
rolls constitute the third, a player-piano being of
no great utility unless a good sized library of music
fact that Detroit has a population of more than 200,- rolls is maintained with it. As most of the dealers
000, there are only twelve piano stores of large or have abandoned all sorts of library schemes and
even fair size in the city. In the last dozen years nowadays are selling rolls outright, with no ex-
about thirty have begun business and have since re- change privileges, the cost of rolls must be taken
tired, either through failure or simply because the into consideration with regard to its effect on the
business did not pay. Inquiry among the old timers ability of the buyer to keep up payments on his
in the business as to the cause for this 'lack of suc- piano.
cess elicited the unanimous opinion, "Poor man-
"'In addition to running themselves out of busi-
agement." Questions regarding what was believed ness, the dealers who sell players or pianos on toe
to be the principal feature of the poor management small payments spoil sales for the merchants who
brought an almost identical answer, "Selling on are trying to do business on a profitable basis.
payments smaller than the value of the instrument Their quotation of such prices inculcates the idea
will warrant."
into the heads of not only the public at large, but
"Players out on contracts calling for only five of good business men in other lines of trade, that
dollars a month seem to be quite common here," player-pianos can be sold on such terms. I had a
said one of the most prominent members of the case only a day or two ago of an offer for a first-
Detroit Music Trades Association. "That means class player from a business acquaintance. The
sixty dollars a year, giving a life of a dozen years instrument was a repossession, having been sold
to a contract on even an ordinary priced player. to a woman who got it from me by misrepresenta-
Consequently there is not enough income from the tion. My friend said he would like the player, and,
sale to pay the expenses of it. Such piano selling provided I would put it in first-class condition, he
would break any house. It is one of the greatest would take it on five-dollar payments. I wrote him
telling why I was obliged to decline. I learned
evils of the day, if not the greatest.
"Such payments might do on cheap pianos, but that he had received offers from several other
on players the payments ought to be at least three houses of players on five dollars a month. He pur-
times as large as on pianos of the same grade, for chased from one of them. Undoubtedly he will
make all payments promptly. But, nevertheless,
there are practically three sales. The piano itself
is one sale; the player action is another, and the that sale was made at a loss."
WINTER & CO.
220 SOUTHERN BOULEVARD, NEW YORK
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Superior Pianos
Manufacturers of
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