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THE
MUJIC TKADE
VOL LXVI1. No. 19
Published Every Saturday by Edward Lyman Bill, Inc., at 373 4th Ave., New York. Nov. 9, 1918
Single Coplea 10 Cents
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Reconstruction
R
EADERS of The Review are, or should be, aware that at no time have we swerved from the consistent
belief that the war must end, in due time, with the complete defeat and ultimate surrender of the
Central Powers.
The Allied nations have had their Bull Runs. They have had their Chancellorsvilles. But they
have now also won their Gettysburg and their Winchester. Appomattox looms in sight.
The end is in sight. There is no doubt of this. The end is not indeed now; but it is definitely in sight.
We must face, and face immediately, problems of demobilization, problems of transition, problems of world-
reconstruction.
American piano men cannot, if they will, escape from their share of the burden. We shall have great
and important problems to handle. The quality of intelligence we bring to bear upon these subjects will measure
our success during the years of post-war business; will measure, in a word, the future security as well as
prosperity of the musical instrument industry.
It is not possible to give advice that shall be accurate alike in principle and in detail. But it is possible
and necessary to point out two fundamentals.
In the first place, the extreme shortage of labor will suddenly, at some time within the measurable future,
cease to exist. With its cessation will come a readjustment of wages. With this also will come a parallel
disappearance of the shortage in material. We may look then for a sudden drop in the cost of manufacturing.
But if we are wise we shall hold on to the one great advantage which has remained with us during all
these exciting and abnormal times; we shall, in short, keep the sane and safe prices and terms we have been
literally forced to adopt and make our own.
We shall not say that the seller's market will continue to exist. It will not, in fact; but the sane business
conditions under which we have been able to market pianos and player-pianos during this year may and should
be retained. It is only going to be a matter of a little courage. The day of ridiculous prices and insane terms
has passed—for the time being. We can keep it away forever if we like.
But this is not all. The great problems of financing the war will not disappear with victory. They will
remain to occupy our attention for some years; indirectly indeed for a generation. We shall have to develop,
among other things, a great export trade, for the better balancing of our foreign commercial relations. We shall
likewise, in concert with our Allies, have to keep the enemy under bonds for good behavior; and this will mean
that we shall have to prevent his economic penetration of ourselves as well as of other countries during future
years. It was his commercial penetration which gave him the foundation on which to build his dream of world-
dominion.
The share of our industry in this work of developing American overseas trade will, if we wish it, be very
large. At the present moment it is the value of the piano as an overseas exchange for needed imports which
has mostly focused upon us the favorable attention of the Government.
It is no exaggeration at all to say that the whole world, when victory is won, will need and demand pianos.
American piano makers will have their opportunity then.
We cannot, and we will not, compete with the Teuton in his cheap and worthless export trade. But we
can, and we will, beat him at his own game. We can, and we will, produce, by our quantity methods, instruments
approaching his in price and so far excelling in quality as to put effective competition out of the question.
But all this, which we shall actually need in the immediately coming days—will depend upon governmental
co-operation and upon associated action by us all in connection with the Government. Now is the time to lay
our plans. We see before us glorious days. If we are wise we shall begin now to work for their realization.