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THE MUSIC TRADE
REVIEW
PUBLISHED BY EDWARD LYMAN BILL, I n c .
President, C. L. Bill, 373 Fourth Ave., New York; Vice-President, J. B. Spillane,
373 Fourth Ave., New York; Second Vice-President, J. Raymond Bill, 373 Fourth Ave.,
New York; Secretary and Treasurer, August J. Timpe, 373 Fourth Ave., New York.
J. B. SPILLANE, Editor
J. RAYMOND BILL, Associate Editor
AUGUST J. TIMPE
Business Manager
Executive and Reportorial Staff:
B. BRITTAIN WILSON, CARLETON CHACE, L. M. ROBINSON, WILSON D. BUSH, V. D. WALSH,
WM. BRAID WHITE (Technical Editor), E. B. MUNCH, A. J. NICKLIN, L. E. BOWERS
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Telephone, Main 6950.
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Lyman Bill, Inc.
Departments conducted by an expert wherein all ques-
PlilVPP PijtllA
t ; o n s o f a technical nature relating to the tuning, regu-
IlonilPtmonfc Iating and repairing
B of pianos and player-pianos are
d e a U w ; t h | w i u b
paper. We also publish a number of reliable technical works, information concerning
which will be cheerfully given upon request.
Exposition Honors Won by The Review
Grand Prix
Paris Exposition, 1900 Silver Medal. . .Charleston Exposition, 1902
Diploma.. .•.Pan-American Exposition, 1901 Gold Medal
St. Louis Exposition, 1904
Cold Medal. .Lewis-Clark Exposition, 1905.
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NEW YORK, DECEMBER 23, 1916
REVIEW
builder and artist; his salesmen will become consulting engineers
at the service of the manufacturer. The dealer will deem it his
special privilege to interest himself in the educational and polit-
ical affairs of his district, using every influence for the popular-
izing of music in general and the piano in particular. The adver-
tising manager will appeal to his public in the constructive terms
of the educator, ever urging them on to a bigger, broader and
better to-morrow. And the resultant demand of an enlightened
and interested people will inspire the piano manufacturer—now
the artist-artisan—fire his imagination, strengthen his will to
do and cause him. perhaps for the first time, to realize the worth-
while-ness of it all."
IANO merchants throughout New York State should be
P
able to record an increasing business among working peo-
ple, provided they are going after trade energetically, for, in
addition to the enormous records established last month along
various lines of industry and statistics, November established
another in the form of a record-breaking manufacturing activity
in this State. The total number of workers employed and the
aggregate of wages paid was greater than in any other month
since such records have been kept, that is to say, since June,
1914. Thus these records coincide practically with the duration
of the war. From October to November this year the number
of employes increased 2 per cent, and the aggregate of wages 4
per cent. Seven of the eleven industrial groups comprised in
the records had more employes and paid out more wages than
in October. In two groups only were there decreases in both
employes and wages. The maximum decrease in any group for
either employes or wages was 2 per cent. The figures of the
Bureau of Statistics and Information of the State Industrial
Commission include returns from 1,500 representative firms with
employes exceeding half a million in number and a weekly pay-
roll of over $3,000,000.
EARTY co-operation from business men in its efforts to
H
maintain proper standards of commercial morality in Amer-
ican business is acknowledged by the Federal Trade Commission
in its annual report recently sent to Congress.
Although the Commission has been organized less than two
years, it had received up to June 30 last 246 applications for the
issuance of complaints against corporations and firms accused
EMBERS of the music trade are displaying- keen interest
of unfair practices. A total of 107 of these applications were
in the work being accomplished by. the piano technicians
disposed of, some concerns being ordered to discontinue the prac-
who are meeting twice a month in Chicago. The open discus-
tices complained of, others voluntarily agreeing to drop unbusi-
sion of technical problems is something novel and certainly most
educational. The work of this body emphasizes anew the im- nesslike methods. In some cases no violation of law was found.
Promotion of the greatest business efficiency is declared by
portance of the movement now so general in the retail field that
the Commission to be the object of its efforts. Its aim has been
an active campaign should be maintained to the end that the
to understand and make allowance for the difficulty of the prob-
piano and its. importance should be more widely known.
lem submitted, to see both sides of every case and to protect
With the technical conference in Chicago developing ideas
among the manufacturing forces, and the Bureau for the Ad- men in legitimate effort, while keeping the channels of competi-
tion open to all, so that the man of small capital may engage
vancement of Music bringing its batteries to bear in the retail
in business in competition with powerful rivals.
field, it goes without saying that the piano is destined to become
The Trade Commission's work has included also economic
better known, and the constructive and merchandizing ends of
and special investigations. What the Commission considers
the business established upon a more progressive basis. As
its most important economic inquiry was into the subject of co-
Frank E. Morton remarked in the Holiday issue of The Review:
"The great need of the trade to-day is the interest of the public operation in export trade. This report recommended to Con-
gress that American manufacturers be permitted to form export
in tonal progress. Interest is contagious. The contagion there-
combinations. The Webb Bill providing for that, having the
fore must spread from a thoroughly infected center, and that
endorsement of the Administration, is now pending in Congress.
center is the piano factory. A live and constructive interest in
It should receive the heartiest support of the trade.
the finished product is the sum total of the live and constructive
interest in all its component parts, and a complete understand-
ing of their functions and limitations."
HE probable developments growing out of the proposal by
The piano technicians who convene in Chicago include su-
Germany to end the European War has been one of the most
perintendents and factory technicians, and the aim is to collab-
discussed topics in the commercial world the past week, and
orate upon the results of individual research and general prac-
while the stock market was temporarily unsettled by this an-
tice, which is followed by a collective experimental research upon
nouncement, owing to the great number of concerns engaged in
such lines as the members may indicate.
the production of munitions, the fact remains that the funda-
The result logically of all this will be the placing of the
mental condition of business throughout the country remains
absolutely sound. The United States is enjoying unparalleled
manufacturing of pianos upon a strictly scientific basis, and
the product primarily upon an art basis. As Mr. Morton per-
prosperity, and has a foreign trade which breaks all records,
with total gold holdings which are larger than any country ever
tinently remarked:
held before. It is a short sighted view to believe that the pros-
"The supply man will view his material of felt, wood, steel,
perity of this country is wholly dependent upon the business
brass, ivory, varnish or glue as a vital component of a treasured
that has been created by the conditions of world war, and it is
art product, and will strive to anticipate the needs of tone
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