Presto

February 5, 1920.
will be known to man and our place high among the
leaders in America's industrial world." (Applause.)
Conservation of Resources.
Mr. Anderson's talk on conservation of the ma-
terials that enter into piano making touched on coal,
iron and timber. He spoke of forest-fire preven-
tive measures and of timber planting. In the open-
ing he said:
"Having spent the bigger part of my life in work
in which wood and iron constituted the large and
important part of the material, and while the sources
of these materials always seemed interesting to me,
I nevertheless was in blissful ignorance of the tre-
mendous importance which should be attached to
the conservation of these resources.
"This subject of conservation, especially of for-
ests, is so vast that it staggers both intellect and
imagination, and now I am almost sorry to have
to confess that since President Gibson appointed
me on this committee, the blissfulness of my ignor-
ance has vanished, and, while the ignorance has not
materially diminished, a feeling of helplessness and
distress has taken its place."
AUTO DE LUXE PLAYER
ACTION AT THE SHOW
W. C. Heaton Back in New York in Time to Super-
intend Great Display.
\Villiam C. Heaton returned to New York in time
for the convention and Music Show, after an ex-
tensive trip, during which he called on the major
part of the manufacturers using the Auto De Luxe
Player Action. Indications point to a continuance
of the conditions of 1919 during the coming year,
as he found all manufacturers with orders on hand
enough to practically take up the entire 1920 output
of their factories.
Mr. Heaton was very active in arranging the De
Luxe display at the Music Show and was successful
in providing several features which proved a decided
innovation in music show display.
The Auto De Luxe Welte Mignon Reproducing
Action was featured by direct comparison concerts
and booth arrangements made so that large audi-
ences were enabled to take advantage of this fea-
ture.
KOHLER INDUSTRIES HOLD
ANNUAL SALES CONFERENCE
Representatives from All Over the World Attend
Successful Meeting in New York.
On Thursday of last week the sales departmental
heads of the Kohler Industries, New York, from
all over the world were entertained at a dinner given
by the company. The events of the past year and
promises of the coming
year were discussed at
length. R. W. Law T rence presided at the meeting
and gave an interesting talk of the great things
which have been surmounted during the past year
not only by the Kohler Industries in particular but
by the New York piano manufacturers in general.
During the course of the meeting Mr. Lawrence
called upon various officials and department heads
and frankly invited brickbats as well as bouquets.
Walter S. Gannon, Pacific Coast representative of
Kohler Industries, was called upon to speak of the
company's relations with its dealers and responded.
J. O. Campbell, telling of his many years in pur-
chasing activities, gave it as his opinion that the
peak of high prices is yet to be reached. Mr. Hart-
pence, European representative, told of conditions
in England and elsewhere abroad.
T. J. MERCER TO GULBRANSEN'S.
T. J. Mercer, managing editor of the Music Trade
Indicator, has resigned from that paper's service,
effective at the last of February, and on March 1
will join the forces of the Gulbransen-Dickinson
Company, Chicago. R. E. Davis will be the new
member of the Indicator's staff. Mr. Mercer is to
be congratulated upon his new connection with so
great a playerpiano manufacturing industry as the
Gulbransen-Dickinson Company.. He is a man of
unquestionable ability and he will prove a valuable
acquisition to an already powerful organization.
G. M. BURDUE'S PLANS.
It-is the purpose of George M. Burdue, for many
years identified with the A. B. Chase Co., to go
into business for himself in Cleveland, O. He
severed his connection with the A. B. Chase Co. on
January 1 and it was announced some days later.
Mr. Burdue raised himself from the ranks in the
industry at Norwalk, O., starting as stenographer
and becoming successively traveling salesman, ad-
vertising manager, sales manager and general
manager.
PRESTO
11
CHAMBER INCLUDES ALL
INTERESTS^OF MUSIC TRADES
At Meeting of the Growing Joint Organization President Aldcroftt Outlines
Bigger Achievements for the Future of Trade and Industry.
The short history but big achievements of the
Music Industries Chamber of Commerce was the
theme of President R. B. Aldcroftt when he opened
the meeting of that organization today (Thursday,
February 5) at the Hotel Commodore in New York.
The plain purposes of the Chamber and its potency
to effect them were made more interesting in the
telling by Mr. Aldcroftt. The Chamber, he said, was
"the logical outgrowth of the wisdom and intelli-
gence of the thinking men in our industry, who,
like all leaders in any sound and important trade,
value organization and co-operation in these times
of intensified manufacturing conditions and ever-
changing margins of profit. They saw also that
organization creates a perspective of the whole
trade conditions, which is bound to create and main-
tain powers of adjustment and expansion not pos-
sible in separate or individual effort."
The following are constituent or division mem-
bers of the Music Industries Chamber of Commerce:
The National Piano Manufacturers' Association,
The National Association of Music Merchants, The
Association of Music Publishers, The National Mu-
sic Roll Manufacturers' Association, The National
Association of Piano Tuners, The National Musical
Merchandise Association, The National Piano Trav-
elers' Association, The National Association of
Talking Machine Jobb'ers, The Musical Supply As-
sociation of America, The Band Instrument Manu-
facturers' Association, and The Organ Builders'
Association of America. The list shows the broad
scope of the organization, which was designed at
its creation to embrace all the trades and industries
in any way associated with the manufacture or sale
of musical goods.
The Retiring Officers.
The years since its creation have proved the
potency of the Music Industries Chamber of Com-
merce. It follows that in a time of unprecedented
developments in the music industry and trade, in all
their phases the Chamber will serve a useful pur-
pose for 1920. The following are the officers of
the Chamber who served for the term just closed.
President—R. B. Aldcroft, 138 Willow avenue,
New York.
Vice-Presidents—James F. Bowers, Chicago, 111.,
and Wm. J. Keeley, 653 West 51st street, New
York.
Secretary—J. Harry Shale, Norwalk, Ohio.
Treasurer—John G. Corley, Richmond, Va.
Assistant Secretary and Treasurer—Herbert W.
Hill, 105 West 40th street, New York.
General Counsel and Manager—George W.
Pound.
The Bureaus.
The various bureaus of the Music Industries
Chamber of Commerce are as follows:
Bureau for the Advancement of Music, Director—
C. M. Tremaine. New York City; Western Repre-
sentative—Mrs. Anne F. Oberndorfer, Chicago, 111.
Credit and Finance—Herbert W. Hill, New York
City.
Better Business—C. L. Dennis, Milwaukee.
Publicity—Alexander McDonald, New York City.
Piano Manufacturers—Herbert W. Hill, New
York City.
Piano Merchants—C. L. Dennis, Milwaukee.
Piano Travelers—Chas. J. Cunningham, New
York City.
Piano Tuners—W. F. McClellan, Vincennes, Ind.
Music Roll Manufacturers—Thos. Kavanaugh,
Chicago, 111.
Functions of the Chamber.
President Aldcroftt in an able presentation of the
functions of the organization and the relation of the
units to the main body outlined the comprehensive
character of the work which lies ahead of the Cham-
ber. He regretted that all the music interests were
not members of the body.
"One grave and serious absence from our mem-
bership is such that special attention should be paid
to it at this time, and great emphasis laid upon the
fact of the absence itself and actual reasons therefor.
I refer to the failure of the supply manufacturers
and jobbers to properly and effectually organize and
become an important and working division member
of the Chamber," the president said.
"Here we have manufacturers of lumber articles,
backs, cases, sound boards, etc., plates, keys, ac-
tions, pneumatic actions, hardware, strings, etc.,
whose total annual overturn derived from the manu-
facture and sale of pianos alone may be estimated
at from $40,000,000 to $60,000,000; and yet the manu-
facturers of these supplies have manifested no united
interest or concern in this Chamber, the success of
which is their success and the efforts of which are
being directed precisely as much to increase their
trade and their profits as those of the piano manu-
facturers.''
Rapid Growth Now.
Mr. Aldcroftt explained the slow growth of the
Chamber in the years immediately following its for-
mation. It was slow, he said, in the sense that the
constituent bodies have been exceedingly tenacious
of their own prestige and success—and very properly
so. But the growth has been rapid within the past
two years because "having the skeleton machinery
of a trade organization, and having accomplished
with it very practical and beneficial results, it was
seen that there lay before us the task of making a
perfected and complete trade organization, compre-
hensive both in its membership and in its machinery
and possessing the quality of giving to all the mem-
bership a highly efficient trade service. To this task
ypur Board of Directors has been assiduously de-
voting itself. In the last analysis, service is what
we must give. It is the essence of all trade or-
ganizations."
The Bureau for the Advancement of Music Mr.
Aldcroftt considered the fundamental service of the
Chamber. "Had the Chamber done no other work
than establish and operate the Bureau for the Ad-
vancement of Music, its existence would have been
vastly justified. I believe we can all safely agree
with this,"' he said.
In treating of organization needs President Ald-
croftt referred to his report to the Board of Direc-
tors last September in which he pointed out certain
deficiencies in our machinery for doing the work
and recalled certain recommendations made looking
to a broadening of the organization. Chief among
the activities he said were:
Services of Chamber.
"The increased scope and support for the Bureau
for the Advancement of Music; the establishment
of a Statistical and Comparison Bureau, and also an
Export Bureau; the enlargement of the Trade Ser-
vice Department, so well begun by the merchants'
association; the actual incorporation into our or-
ganization of the personnel and work of the Better
Business Bureau; the establishment of a periodical
Trade Bulletin for circulation among the trade; the
establishment of an Industrial Bureau for the pur-
pose of handling the all-important questions of in-
dustrial relations and manufacturing standardization
and classification.
For a General Director.
"In approaching a solution of the question of how
the Chamber can be so placed on a footing as to
give its members the service outlined in part as
above, your Board of Directors have concluded that
the employment of a skilled and competent director
or manager is essential and that such employment
would leave your general counsel free to devote
his attention to purely legal matters in the same
highly successful manner which has accompanied
his work heretofore.
"The engagement of such a person is receiving
the careful consideration of your Board of Direc-
tors. Not the least of the duties and work lying
ahead of your Board and of the secretary or man-
ager is that of convincing the numerous factors of
our industry of the transcendant importance of
such an organization as ours, of the necessity of it
at this time and in the future, and of the invaluable
service it can and will render to them."
The Talking Machine Member.
The advent of the members representing the talk-
ing machine trade, President Aldcroftt said, was "a
most significant and far-reaching accession to our
membership. It is a great pleasure for me to wel-
come them on your behalf and to promise them the
service and co-operation in the important matters
in which we shall all be interested. We hope that
they will be strongly inspired to organize a talking
machine division and thus assure their proper and
important share in the work of the Chamber."
Treating the interesting question of taxes the
president said:
"Our industry is not only subject to the customary
income and other taxes placed upon all persons and
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