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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
THE BENEFIT OF MAINTAINING AN ACTION DEPARTMENT
Newcastle, Ind., Plant of Jesse French & Sons Furnishes Splendid Evidence of the Value of a
Fully Equipped Action Department in the Modern Piano Factory—T. H. Nott in Charge
It is well known that very few piano manu-
facturers have ever thought it worth while to
go to the immense amount of trouble involved
in organizing and carrying through the manu-
facture of their own piano actions.
The illustrations which are shown herewith
give a very good idea of the size and importance
of the action department in the great Jesse
French piano factory at Newcastle, Ind. All
the piano actions which are used in the Jesse
French line are made in this department and
in addition thereto several very high-grade man-
ufacturers are obtaining their actions from this
same department.
In the Jesse French factory the actions are
made complete from the rough lumber upwards.
The lumber is air-dried in the yards right on
the premises and kiln-dried in the Jesse French
kilns. It is then taken to the great machine
room shown herewith, where it is machined and
then sent into the action assembling room,
where the complete mechanism is put together.
The Jesse French Co. has found it advisable
and efficient to use girls and women in most of
the processes incident to assembling and ad-
justing the actions. Feminine fingers appear
to be better than others in handling the small
parts.
The superintendent of the Jesse French ac-
tion department is Thomas H. Nott, who has
been in the business of action making for no
less than fifty years. He is an Englishman by
birth and came to this country twenty years ago
from London, where he had been in business
for himself for thirty years, manufacturing ac-
tions. He has been with the Jesse French Co.
for fifteen years.
With the very great difficulties which now
View of the Action Machine Room
SEPTEMBER 20, 1919
exist in respect to supplies the many dealers
who look to the Jesse French Co. for their
leader have reason to be grateful that this com-
pany maintains its own action department. Dur
The Action Manufacturing Department
ing the worst times the supply of pianos from
Jesse French factories has always been im-
mensely helped by the fact that the actions are
made at the same factory where the pianos are
assembled, thereby facilitating their output.
Part of the Action Assembling Room
interview with the Fairbanks Co. and at Chi-
cago will negotiate with supply concerns and
Agricultural Prosperity Bound to Benefit Piano Men—Starck Co. Sells Twenty-Five Instruments piano manufacturers.
A Mathushek piano forty-six years old is
to Music School—W. J. Dyer Seeking Pianos in New York—News of the Week
regarded by the members of the Northwestern
Music House as a prize. It is an old-fashioned
MINNEAPOLIS and ST. PAUL, September 15.— home. The new number is 23 South Eighth
square
of rosewood, has bandy legs and reminds
Fall activities in the retail trade have begun street. The third move will be made about Oc-
under auspicious circumstances and the general tober 1, when the new store at the corner of one of the Victorian age, or "befo' the war"
movement is quite satisfactory. As the farm- Nicollet avenue and Eighth street will be pos- times, but it has a clear ringing tone and with
tuning and some repairing will make an excel-
ers are assured of a fair price for their grain sessed by the Starck staff in Minneapolis.
lent
instrument. President Boland bought the
Bricklayers are on a strike in Minneapolis,
through the considerate and sympathetic action
instrument
from C. H. Achard, of Minneapolis,
leaving
the
Hurley-Moren-Frank
Co.
in
an
awful
of the United States Grain Corporation in fixing
who
bought
it forty-six years ago in Iowa. It is
a generous price for the light-weight wheat a mess. Mr. Frank canceled the building con-
to
be
used
in
advertising the Mathushek line.
tract
and
offered
to
employ
the
bricklayers
at
great load has been lifted off the minds of the
farmers and the grain interests. This action by the proposed scale of $1 an hour to continue at
Consult the universal Want Directory of
the grain corporation will add something like work. All assented to the plan and promised
The
Review. In it advertisements are inserted
$40,000,000 to the incomes of the farmers in to begin pushing mortar as soon as the union
free of charge for men who desire positions.
had
sanctioned
the
proposition.
the territory tributary to the Twin Cities and as
The members of the young infant in the piano
virtually all is clear profit, "treasure trove" as
one might say, it all will be in circulation in trade spent last week in Chicago and Cincin-
addition to numerous other millions, possibly nati to arrange for a steady supply of pianos
and other instruments that go to make up a
billions would be more correct.
W. H. Pontius, director of the Minneapolis modern music store stock. Unless there are
School of Music, announces what probably is more strikes their new store should be ready
the largest single purchase of pianos in the for occupancy October 15 at the outside.
W. J. Dyer, of W. J. Dyer & Bro., went to
Northwest. On behalf of his school he has just
purchased twenty-five pianos from the Min- New York last Friday to beg for pianos for the
neapolis branch of the P. A. Starck Piano Co. music hungry people of the Northwest. He
The Auto Grand
The instruments include 20 uprights of Styles was followed by A. L. Brown Saturday eve-
The
Krell Auto Grand
14 and 16 and 5 grand instruments of Style "S." ning, who went to secure small goods and band
The details of the purchase are confirmed by instruments of sundry kinds. The pilgrims sure-
The Krell Player
L. A. Dunaway, manager of the Minneapolis ly have both courage and faith to set out for
Quality product* that will enable the dealer to close
store, who naturally is pleased with his success- the metropolis on such a mission. Before has-
a quality basinets at a substantial profit.
tening Eastward Mr. Brown sold a self-playing
ful coup.
pipe
organ
for
$3,000,
the
purchaser
being
the
The Starck store was forced to move again
Write for Catalog
last week owing to the success of the, landlord Ludcke Theatre at St. Peter, Minn.
Webb R. Raudenbush, of Raudenbush & Sons,
in obtaining a long-time contract to the premises
THE WERNER INDUSTRIES CO.
which the company was occupying temporarily left last week for Springfield, O., and Chicago.
9th and Harriet Sts.,
CINCINNATI, O.
pending the rebuilding of the Nicollet avenue At the first-named stop he will have a long
TWIN CITY PIANO DEALERS BEGIN ACTIVE FALL TRADE
Krell
Duchess, Mervy n
Royal