Presto

April 10, 1920.
CALIFORNIA DEALERS
READY FOR SPRING
With the Good Old Climate Doing Business in
the Old Way the Piano Men Are Confi-
dent of Big Sales and Prepare
for Same.
In other ways besides those ordained by fashion's
decree, executed by the milliners, is the arrival of
a new season made evident in San Francisco «ind
California generally. Everywhere the piano dealers
are adding more decorative graces to their stores
or altering and extending departments to meet the
requirements of the expected big business of this
jear. The rainfall is below normal in some parts
of the state which is something which concerns the
crops and the piano-buying ability of the people liv-
ing on or off the ranches. In addition to that the
mtterological experts figure that the snow deposit
ir the mountains is below the average, and this to
those who know California, is a serious matter.
Water from melting snows make the streams that
generate electric power. You are stating a fact
when you say the piano stores of California are I t
by snow. A good snowfall in the California moun-
tains assures a sufficiency of power and light to in-
dustry and business there as well as provides effec-
tive backgrounds to "locations" for the makers c^
movie films. The San Francisco dealers, anyway,
are not making any woeful anticipations of electric
power and light limitations. It is possible they may
have to Hooverize later on, but they are not worry-
ing about it now, nor even planning any special
schemes for daylight saving.
All Set for Customer.
The California dealers have cheerful things to ap-
ply their thoughts to, and some of these are the
preparations for the customers who are to come
after the pianos, playerpianos and talking machines.
Drought conditions do not effect the .present busi-
ness which is reported in splendid shape in every
city in the state. No gloomy prognostications
about voltage economizing seemingly effects '.he
plans for the new season appearance projected by
nearly every store.
The Sutter St. annex of the Wiley B. Allen Co.. in
the hands of the decorators for a few weeks, is dec-
orated and furnished in a tasteful way. The entire
Wiley B. Allen store is now prepared for the spring
customer.
The new Heine building in San Francisco may be
said to be completed. Unlooked for building de-
lays prevented its completion before this time, but
outside of decorative work on ^ome of the floors
the building is ready for business. This week the
decorators will finish their work on the main floor
which will be devoted exclusively to the display of
grand pianos.
The new offices on the ninth floor of Sherman,
Clay & Co.'s building are ready for occupancy. Bo-
sides private offices for President Philip T. Clay
and F. V. Stephenson, secretary of Sherman, Clay
& Co., the office suite includes a directors' room.
CHICAGO ART INSTITUTE GETS
KIMBALL ART COLLECTION
Conservators of Estate of W. W. Kimball Consider
the Safety of Pictures and Other Objects.
A suite in the Chicago Art Institute will beco.ne
another means to keep the name of W. W. Kimball
green in the minds of Chicagoans. The collect'on
cf famous pictures, jades and other objects of art
acquired through many years of European and
oriental wanderings by W. W. Kimball, founder of
the W. W. Kimball Company, and his wife, ind de-
clared the most valuable in Chicago, perhaps in the
entire West, will find a secure place in the art build-
ing on Michigan avenue.
A petition was filed in the Probate Court last week,
which described Mrs. Kimball, the widow, as "feeble
minded.'' The conservators of the estate, John II.
Coulter and the Northern Trust Company, are afraid
tc keep the collection in the home. They have
made arrangements with the Art Institute and the*
paintings and the jades and the many other things
will soon be on display there. In all probability
they will become a permanent exhibit.
The collection of paintings by old masters is soul
by experts to be worth more than $2,000,000. That
of jade and other objects are said to be priceless.
The Kimballs always were reticent on the subj..:t
of the prices paid for articles^n their collection, but
it is known sums ranging from $100,000 to $200,000
were paid for some of the canvases. Rembrandt's
"Portrait of His Father" is reported to have co;t
f*RIE
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13
$110,000. The collection contains pictures by t'le
following famous painters: Sir Joshua Reynolds
Turner, Gainsborough, Thomas Lawrence, Millet,
Van Marck, Romney, Corot, Van Ruysdall, Hobberrui
and others.
MUSIC'S BIG PART IN
COMMUNITY WORK
REPUBLIC TRAVELERS BACK
FROM LONG ROAD TRIPS
Meeting in Washington Called by Franklin
K. Lane to Bring About Co-ordination Be-
tween the Various Organizations.
Four Active Music Roll Distributors Hold Joyous
Easter Convention in Atlantic City.
Several sales representatives of the Republic
Player Roll Corporation, New York, returned to
their homes to spend the Easter holidays. William
R. McAllister and E. J. Fitzgerald passed Easter at
Atlantic City where they were joined by L. O.
Rogers and F. W. Moran, also of the Republic
Player Roll Corporation. Mr. McAllister has just
returned from a trip through the West. Mr. Fitz-
gerald comes back to the home office after a trip
to the dealers in the East.
Player roll prospects according to these Republic
representatives tend to indicate an active summer.
It was general, in past years, for the player roll
business to suffer a lapse during the warm months,
but the Republic Player Roll Corporation has de-
cided that there will be no letup on their part in
furthering their player roll business during the com-
ing season.
Republic advertising will be issued in an enlarged
scope and will be distributed under the direction of
L. O. Rogers who will devote his efforts to seeing
that the advertising materials find their best possi-
ble use with the dealer. It is the intention of the
Republic Player Roll Corporation to use every
means in assisting the dealer in putting over the
Republic product; to form a further co-operation
between the manufacturer and distributor.
The results obtained from this closer co-operation
during the past few months have been exceedingly
gratifying and the Republic Player Roll Corpora-
tion has not felt any slacking up in business since
the tremendous holidav turnover.
SOME OF THE HUSTLERS
FOR THE SYMPHONOLA
Items About a Few of the Men Who Sell the Instru-
ments from Kankakee.
The April issue of "Symphonola News," pub-
lished by the Price & Teeple Piano Co. employes at
the factory in Kankakeej 111., had the following
interesting personal items under the head of "These
Men Sell Them":
W. D. Wood, who travels on the edge of the
Pacific ocean for us, got so full of pep from his last
visit to the factory that he wants the whole produc-
tion shipped to his territory.
Harry Griffith, who performs in a similar man-
ner on the edge of the Atlantic ocean, wants a few
himself for his customers.
Carlos J. Melendez has been sending in orders
lately from Mexico City by wireless.
A. Melendez is in Cuba at present. They don't
have prohibition there.
Albert F. Price intends to look them over in the
Southwest this month. He will come home and
kick because he can't get enough grands.
FENCE-TOPS NOW SHOW.
Karl R. Beedle, of the Beedle piano store, Keene,
N. H., writes to Gulbransen-Dickinson Company,
Chicago: "We are shut in here in New England
during the winter months, and we'll tell you that
last winter has been a remarkable one, with snow
seven and eight feet deep and zero temperature.
But the worst is now over, and we begin to cheer
up a bit; one evidence of spring is that we can see
the tops of the fences now in places. Not much
like midwinter when we tramped all day and came
home at nights with wet feet and no chance to get
a hot drink."
SET JUNE FOR MEETING.
A meeting of the executive committee of the
National Association of Music Merchants will be
held in Atlantic City in June. A definite date in that
month has not yet been set. The June meeting in
Atlantic City is in accordance with the rule to bring
the commitee together at a date midway between
the annual conventions of the organization.
C. M. Tremaine, director of the National Bureau
for the Advancement of Music, attended the Na-
tional Conference on Community Organization
called by Franklin K. Lane in Washington on March
20. Mr. Tremaine reports that great interest was
aroused. Representatives from over three hundred
community organizations were present and in the
course of the discussions it was brought out that
there were over six hundred such organizations in
the country.
As music should be and can be one of the greatest
fcrces in all community work the conference was
naturally of great interest to Mr. Tremaine, and he
believes the National Bureau can be of great help in
bringing music to the people through community
organizations.
The object of the conference was to bring about
some co-ordination between all these organizations
so that there would be a minimum of duplication and
a maximum of results. To this end a committee was
appointed to study the situation and to make rec-
ommendations to the conference when reconvened
?t a later date.
The great significant fact in connection with the
conference was the unanimous opinion as to the
great need of community work, especially in con-
nection with the present restless condition of the
world. There was a strong feeling that these or-
ganizations were rendering a great service to the
country. Samuel Gompers, who was one of the
speakers at the conference, made the statement that
community work was the strongest democratizing
influence in the world today.
OPENING OF BRANCH STORE
SUGGESTS HISTORY FACTS
Mew Knight-Campbell Co.'s Distributing Point
Adds to Growing Possibilities of Company.
P. J. Tirey, Western Slope manager for the
Knight-Campbell Music Co., Denver, Colo., is man-
ager of the new branch of the company at Grand
Junction, Colo. The store was formally opened re-
cently with a series of concerts given by Mme. Rose
Hiltz, a Denver soprano who featured the Duo-Art
piano as an accompaniment to her singing.
The new branch at Grand Junction is the sixth
ol a string of stores in Colorado and adjoining-stales.
The full line of the Knight-Campbell Co. is carried.
This includes the Steinway, Duo-Art Reproducing
pianos, the A. B. Chase line of pianos and players
and others.
The addition of another distributing agency draws
attention to the growth of the Knight-Campbel!
Music Co.'s business. In the first year following the
opening of the Main store in Denver in 1894 the
company sold $50,000 worth of square pianos and
organs. It is estimated that sales this year Avill
total $1,500,000.
MIESSNER MIDGET FOR SCHOOLS.
The Langlade County Normal School at Antigo,
Wis., is among the latest purchasers of the Meiss—
ner upright for classroom instruction. The Meiss-
nes is manufactured exclusively by the Jackson
Piano Co., 110-120 Reed street, Milwaukee, and is
unique in that while it is only 3 feet 7 inches high,
it is equal in tone volume to the ordinary upright.
The piano has been adopted by public, parochial
and private educational institutions in all of the
forty-eight states in the Union.
PROGRESSIVE WISCONSIN FIRM.
Marx Brothers & Barth, Cashton, Wis., say
the last twelve months were the best in the
total of sales in the history of the firm. This par-
ticularly alludes to the number of playerpianos sold,
and the average of profit. Cashton is a prosperous
town in a rich farming 1 district in Monroe County.
The firm is of the progressive kind that believes in
the efficiency of persistent newspaper publicity plus
the efforts of an active corps of salesmen.
MOVES IN CHICAGO.
ADDS T H E PATHE.
Gimbel Bros., Milwaukee, have added the Pathe
line, which will be stocked regularly henceforth in
their music section. Only a few weeks ago the Mil-
waukee store announced the addition of the Bruns-
wick line. Previously for twelve years Gimbel Bros.'
music section handled the Victor line exclusively.
The Schulze Piano Company, Chicago, for twenty-
five years at the northwest corner of Madison street
and Ogden avenue, has purchased for $17,000 cas^i
from Henry A. Osborn 44x125, north front, on Madi-
son street, 32 feet east of Oakley boulevard, and
will build a show and sales room covering the en-
tire lot.
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