PRESTO-TIMES
March 15, 1929
THIRTY YEARS AGO
Heard Without a
Tract of Static
(From Presto, March 15, 1899.)
For a small concern the late Century Piano Co. of
Minneapolis has filled an unreasonably large place
in the court records. There is seldom presented a
better illustration of the danger of "too much
law." Since the assignment of the company the
attorneys for the assignee have received $3,793.82 for
their services and they are still crying for miore. In
one case the legal gentlemen charged $66 for "advice" 1919
concerning a controversy involving $75.
Amelia was a highbrow maid
And everything esthetic,
Until the death of H. D. Cable last week it had
Engrossed her in an ardent way
been long since the piano and organ industries lost
Intensely energetic.
so towering a personality. For no department of
She frowned on common ways and things
human activity can have many men who fill so wide
On thoughts aloft she spread her wings
a place; and whose ideals are so well worked out as
The sordid grind of men she deemed
to attract and hold the attention of his associates
Especially pathetic.
and contemporaries. It is the easiest thing in the
world to draw lessons from the career of such a man.
In all the cults Amelia led,
His every advance is a lesson in energy and ambi-
The isms and the ologies.
tious achievement. His example is one full of inspi-
No theory could frighten, nor
ration and marked by energy and courage worthy of
Bluff extract apologies.
emulation.
The best in letters, art and craft;
A meeting of the directors of the Chicago Cottage
In big results, her soul was wrapt,
Organ Co. was held on Tuesday last and officers
She scorned alike all make-believes,
elected in conformity with the altered conditions due
Sort you call con-ologies.
to the lamented death of president H. D. Cable.
The Lakeside Organ Co. is enjoying an unusually
That's why Amelia's lemon gaze
brisk trade, the demand for the "Lakeside" chapel
Fell on Mr. Hanigen.
being especially gratifying to the management.
Who sold the stencils by the load,
Mr. John W. Northrup, of the "Emerson," is in
Coupon sales, stenanagen.
the south for an indefinite length of time in search
But nowhere in Love's lexicon,
of rest and health.
The wee word "fail" you come upon
The old music firm of Porter & Son, 205 South
So when the maiden threw him down, he
Main street, Lima, O., has on exhibition one of the
Jumped right up and ran again.
well known "Steck" Parlor Grand pianos. This is
the first Parlor Grand piano over brought to Lima.
Porter & Son handle the Steck, Everett, Smith & 1929
Nixon, Harvard and Bradbury.
Too soon Amelia reached the time
The following is from the advertising columns of a
Where years come crowding, speeding,
Chicago daily paper. It shows how the handling of
When Hanigen once more proposed,
artistic p : anos affects the minds of poetic salesmen.
In hopeful, eager pleading,
It's all right, anyway:
She answered "yes," then blushing said,
Here is a piano that
"My soul on Art so freely fed,
Always meets approval, and
Doth still abhor all stencil things.
Leaves nothing to be desired.
But you, my love, I'm needing."
Lovely in tone—
* * *
Even in action, it is indeed
PLATT'S
BIRTHDAY
BLUES
The musicians' piano.
Platt P. Gibbs, popular in Chicago trade, had a
birthday anniversary this week and a never forgotten
And above all things else, it's
rite of such an occasion was a visit to Presto-Times
Not hard to pay for, fifteen dollars
offices for a "howdy" and a hark-back to past anni-
Down and ten per month!
versaries with sympathetic listeners. "I'm observing
my birthday anniversary today," he announced.
Don't do a thing
"Your umptieth?" was the query.
About pianos until you
"No, my umpty-umpth." he proudly replied.
Visit our warerooms, and
A chorus of congratulations, felicitations and wishes
Inspect these matchless in-
for many happy repetitions of the event greeted him.
Struments, and hear them.
"Please note, I said 'observing,' not 'celebrating,'
The death of H. D. Cable, which occurred on
Thursday morning, March 2d, at 9 o'clock, was told and if you use your beans for real thinking for a
in THE PRESTO of last week, together with many minute you will see the broad difference today in
interesting details concerning the last scenes and the their meanings. In conformity with the behests of
causes which led to the lamented close of a useful and the Presidential inaugural address I am loyally and
patriotically observing my birthday anniversary, with
most vigorous career.
spiritual elation, not celebrating it with spirituous
The honorary pallbearers were:
stimulation.
Messrs.—
"Gee, but how long you must feel the day," was
E. C. Lacey,
H. H. Kingsley,
the interruption.
George S. Moore,
B. J. Moore,
"An observed birthday anniversary," proceeded the
H. H. C. Miller,
P. J. Healy,
visitor with a sigh, "is made up of an entrance in
D. H. Burnham,
E. S. Conway.
the morning an exit at night and in between an inter-
The active pallbearers were: Messrs. Price, Keefe, val of restrained vivacity. This may be too highbrow
Teeple, Draper, Wilkins, Riggs, Bronson and Smith, for you fellows, but I've got to get you bored before
all of whom are heads of departments of the Chicago this meeting is congenial.
"A birthday anniversary celebrated—but that can
Cottage Organ Company. The body was laid to rest
never be again. The word 'celebrate' belongs with
in Graceland Cemetery.
such historic words and phrases as 'corkscrew,' 'say
IANOS
when,' 'what'1-it-be-gents?' 'give-it-a-name,' 'Aw-come-
on-another-won't-hurt-you' and such and such classics
of the American language."
"Why make us all feel bad by reciting such dis-
tressful facts," was the protest of a sympathetx
friend.
"I want you to feel my way. Isn't this my birth-
day anniversary? Come on, blues! Good-bye, joy!
There'll be no more fair weather when good fellows
get together. So long, I've got to spread the blue
pall of my birthday anniversary presence over a lot
of fellows down on Piano Row when they open up
the felicitations chatter on me."
* * *
"Make the best you can of the worst you get, and
raise the price during the special sale," advised the
star-eyed optimist.
Mr. Thomas Whitworth of the Piano & Organ
Supply Co., Chicago, returned to his office Monday
after several days' confinement with the grip.
The Ellington Piano Co. of Cincinnati was granted
a building permit last week to erect a factory addi-
tion on Des Moines street, near Gilbert avenue.
It pays Deafen* to fyarydfe tftein.
Nothing is more pleasing to the eye or makes a
village appear more neat and attractive than a well
kept lawn, says the Steger "Herald," and as an incen-
FACTORY AND OFFICE,
tive to employees of the Steger factory, and living
609 & 611 WEST 36™ STREET. NEW YORK.
in the company's houses, J. V. Steger, president of
Adam Buttell of Boscobel, Wis., was in New York the company, has made the following offer: To the
last week purchasing supplies for his piano factory. one who keeps the neatest and most attractive lawn
Mr. Henry Detmer is putting a new front in his or place through the coming summer will be awarded
store on Wabash avenue. It will add greatly to the a prize of $15, to the second best $10, and to the
third best $5.
appearance of the Detmer music house.
The Steger "Herald" correctly refers to T H E In a letter from Mexico City, Mr. Frank D. Abbott
PRESTO as "the foremost of the piano trade papers sends a list of band concerts which take place Sun-
published in Chicago."
day mornings in that capital. From the list it is plain
of Sterfipg
Qua/ity ar>d fort Priced. ^ o? w
KOHLER & CAMPBELL,
*
A CONVENIENT
•
*
SORROW
"In the old pre-Volstead days a frequent cause of
drunkenness was the desire to drown sorrow," said
E. A. Williams, president of the Houston, Texas,
division of the National Association of Piano Tuners.
"Once I discovered a promising young tuner
sprawled in a chair in the basement repair shop gulp-
ing swallow after swallow of redeye.
"'My boy,' I cried, 'what on earth are you doing?'
"With a gesture of despair he hoarsely replied:
" 'Mr. Williams, I'm trying to drown a sorrow that
has learned to swim.' "
* * *
A crank is a genius who lets some foxy one reap
the benefit of his brains; a genius is a crank with
business sense.
* * *
It takes a very tender-hearted man to feel gen-
uinely sorry for his creditors.
* * *
KNOXVILLE ON THE AIR
At the meeting of Tennessee music dealers held
recently in Knoxville, the talk relapsed into a yarn-
fest at the close. It was during an impromptu dis-
cussion of system and office efficiency that Leonard C.
Lamb, Knoxville dealer, injected a humorous yarn to
illustrate the topic. It was about a postmaster who
was also a coroner in a North Carolina town.
"One day a man whose identity was unknown fell
down in a fit on Main street," said Mr. Lamb. "The
town marshall summoned a young doctor, who with
great gravity diagnosed the case as appendicitis and
suggested an immediate operation. When, however,
the doctor proceeded with the job he discovered that
the man's appendix had already been removed. The
young chap did the best he coukl under the circum-
stances, but the unknown died.
The inquest was held in the postoffice and the post-
master-coroner, who was a stickler for form, in ren-
dering the verdict, tilled in the space after 'Cause of
Death' with one of his rubber stamps which read:
'Opened by Mistake.' "
* * *
Advertising consistency is a jewel difficult to coun-
terfeit.
* * *
The piano wareroom cynic says, "A woman's mind
enables her to reach a conclusion without starting."
that the love of music with which the Mexican peo-
ple are credited exists. No American city could ever
point to such a menu of musical events. All these
concerts took place on the Sunday of February 19:
In the Zocalo this morning the band of the 24th
infantry.
In the Alameda this morning the band of the Engi-
neers' battalion.
In the Zocalo this afternoon the band of the Third
infantry.
In the Alameda this afternoon the band of the
Seventh cavalry.
On the Paseo this afternoon the band of the Twen-
ty-first infantry.
In the Alameda of Santa Maria the band of the
Twenty-seventh infantry.
At Tacubaya the band of the Tenth cavalry.
In the Zocala tonight the band of the Fourteenth
infantry.
DEALERS ALERT TO OPPORTUNITY—See special advertisement of Brinkerhoff Piano Company in this issue.
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