Music Trade Review

74
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THE MUSICAL CRITIC AND TRADE REVIEW.
TRADE CHAT
Messrs. Behr Bros. & Co., of Eleventh avenue,
New York city, have their offices, warerooms and
factory completed, and in good working order.
There is an active demand for their Cylinder Top
Upright. Mr. Paul Gmehlin expects to receive
soon the patent for his new metal frame for upright
piano actions which was applied for some time
since.
Mr. James B. Nugent, formerly of 145 East 42d
street, New York city, has removed his factory to
232 and 234 East 40th street, and has admitted Mr.
Theo. T. Poole as a partner in his business. The
firm is now James B. Nugent Joseph Metzger, of East Cambridge, Mass., has
patented a Mechanical Musical Instrument. No.
of Patent, 247,774. Application filed March 25th,
1881.
Weber & Co., piano manufacturers, of Kingston,
Ontario, have changed their style to Stevenson &
Co., which we think is a very sensible change, as
we understand that there was no one in the firm
bearing the name of Weber.
William H. Brady, of Hackensack, N. J., has
patented an Arm Rest for Violinists. No. of
Patent, 247,796. Application filed Feb. 14th, 1881.
A report on the products of the French Celluloid
Company has been drawn up by M. Vincent. The
author states that celluloid must be preserved from
any great elevation of temperature, even for a
short time, in order to avoid the conditions which
may produce very serious accidents ; and with a
further view of insuring safety, he says that only
limited quantities of it ought to be stored up. He
found that cold mineral acids have but a very
slight effect on it, but that hot nitric and sulphuric
acids destroy it very quickly. A mixture of alco-
hol and ether will rapidly destroy it, even in the
cold. The nitrocellulose, which is the basis of the
celluloid tested, it is added, is prepared from cigar-
ette paper.
Mr. J. P. Hale, of New York, has presented a
handsome piano to the Channing Memorial Church
of Newport, R. I.
The string making firm of Morse & Emerson,
328 and 330 Seventh avenue, New York, dissolved
on September 27th. Mr. George D. Emerson
the junior partner of the late firm succeeds to its
business, and will continue to carry on the busi-
ness in all its branches.
Judging from the extract from the London
The electrical violon attachment for pianofortes
which we noticed some time ago in the columns of
this paper has been practically abandoned by the
inventor. The model piano has been separated
from the violon attachment and transferred to the
inventor's residence. So an apparently promising
invention meets the fate of many others which
have sunk into obscurity from a lack of proper
push.
Mr. Elie, of New Orleans, La., dealer in Musi-
:al Instruments, has sold out to Ph. Werlein.
The Detroit Reed Organ Co., of Detroit, Mich.,
(notincorporated) has dissolved. R Jennings, jr.,
ontinues the business.
A rumor was circulated among piano men, im-
mediately after the great fire at Morrell's store
house in New York city, on the 10th inst., that 300
pianos had been destroyed. The piano makers
began to congratulate themselves on the oppor-
tunity to increase their sales this Fall by that
number, but unfortunately for them more reliable
information showed that the portion of the ware-
house in which the pianos were stored had not
been touched by the fire. Such is life ; a piece of
good news raises our hopes to the skies and its
ontradiction reduces us to the depths of despair.
October 20th,
i8§t.
SHERMAN & HYDE
vs.
A. M. BENHAM.
STATEMENT FROM SHERMAN & HYDE, AND
COPY OF THE DECISION.
Editor MUSICAL, CRITIC AND TRADE REVIEW.
SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 27, 1881.
Dear Sir: Referring to the decision of Judge
Evans in the cases of Sherman & Hyde vs. A. M.
Benham, we desire to say in explanation of our ac-
tion in publishing the same, that ever since these
suits were instituted, Mr. Benham has persistently
sought to make it appear that we were instigated
by malice alone and were persecuting him on ac-
ount of business jealousy. In every way possible
e has circulated the most indefensible and unrea-
sonable slanders, which must have reached the
ears and created a prejudice against us in the
minds of many whose good opinions we value.
In the early part of 1880 he procured the follow-
ng card from our business rivals, which he pub-
ished in various newspapers and circulated through
the mails:
" TO THE PUBLIC.
Ellis L. Mundy, of Norwalk, Ohio, has patented
the undersigned, piano and music dealers of
a Reed Organ. No. of Patent, 247,846. Applica- an " We,
Francisco, have known A. M. Benham as Agent
tion filed April 16th, 1881.
for the sale of pianos made by J. P. Hale, of New
Geo. M. Patten, of Jersey City, N. J., has pat- York, since his residence in California, and during
ented an Application of Key Board Mechanism to his employment by Sherman & Hyde, and have entire
onfidence in his business integrity and honesty. We
Music Boxes. No. of Patent, 257,849. Applica- believe
the suit commenced by Sherman & Hyde
tion filed January 26, 1881.
against Mr. Benham instigated by malice, and to
Charles F. Chickering, of New York, has pat- have no foundation in fact.
ented a Pianoforte. No. of Patent, 247,887. Ap- '• (Signed)
"CHAS. S. EATON, WM. G. BADGER, KOHLER &
plication filled June 21st, 1881.
3HASE, MATTHIAS GRAY, T. M. ANTISELL & Co., L.
The factory of the German Harmonica Company, K. HAMMER, WOODWORTH, SCHELL & COPE, WM.
at Miller's Falls, Mass., was set on fire by an in- THOS. SHARP, BLACKMAR & Co., C. R. HALL."
endiary on Oct. 8th, and was destroyed. The loss After the decision was rendered he caused the
is estimated at $40,000; insured for $20,000. The following card to be published in the San Francis-
works will probably be rebuilt immediately.
o Chronicle and copied in Oakland papers:
"SHERMAN A HYDE VS. A. M. BENHAM.
The story is told by Joseffy's agent, Henry Wolf-
sohn, that he travels with no less than four pianos " The report given in last Saturday's issue of this le-
and a tuner, an outfit that should be sufficient, one ;al controversy was not altogether fair towards Mr.
would think, for even so great an artist as this Benham, as it mentioned only the smaller and less
young Hungarian is reputed to be. First of all, he important
case.
1
has the large grand used at the concerts ; next a
The first suit was for $7,892, commissions alleged
large upright, which he uses for daily practice; to have been received from the well-known piano
third, a dumb upright piano, designed for practice manufacturer, J. P. Hale. This suit was decided in
at very early or late hours ; and fourth, a small Mr. Benham s favor. The other suit was for $1,100,
dumb piano resembling a reed organ, which he alleged to have been received from other parties.
defense was the same in both cases, Knowledge
takes with him on the railroad or steamer for prac- The
acquiescence on the part of the plaintiffs. In the
tice while en route. At any rate the existence of and
these four pianos, and the use to which they are large ease Judge Evans remarked that he decided
Musical Opinion and Music Trade Review, which put, shows how necessary incessant practice is to the case for Benham purely on the evidence of the
Hyde, who swore that Benham acted as
we reprint below, our English cousins have not the pianist who wishes to maintain that flexibility plaintiff,
Hale's agent with their full knowledge and consent.
yet found out how to glue celluloid to piano keys, of finger so essential to execution.
In deciding the second and smaller case Judge Evans
although the manufacturers here find no difficulty
did not intimate in any manner that Benham's acts
in doing so. The extract reads as if it were sug- Alfred Dolge will shortly introduce the Electric were fraudulent, but there was no positive proof of
gested by some one particularly interested in the Light at his mills at Brockett's. He has ordered knowledge on the part of the plaintiffs, and hence he
ivory business :
one of Edison's largest machines with 125 lamps, found for them."
"That celluloid looks very white, I must say," which is to be in operation by November 1st. As This article was so cunningly worded, that a cas-
said a key-maker to us the other day ; " but I find this improvement will enable Mr. Dolge to in- ual reader unacquainted with the facts would be
it difficult to fix on the keys.' That seems to be a crease his production during the Winter about left with the impression that Mr. Hyde had been
forty per cent, at which rate he will still remain forced into some confession by which Mr. Benham
general complaint just now.
That region of Ohio inhabited by the religious behind orders. He considers the comparatively had won the "Hale" case, and that the suit for the
lesser amonnt had been decided in our favor only
sect called the Tunkers, seems to be a very bad heavy outlay a splendid investment.
place for music dealers, judging from the proceed- Dominicus L. Bollerman, of New York, has through some legal technicality.
We are not desirous of notoriety, neither do we
ings at their recent general meeting, in which their patented a Repeating Action for Pianofortes. No.
heaviest denunciations were directed at instru- of Patent, 248,131. Application filed Aug. 15th, think that the private differences between our-
selves and Mr. Benham are of public importance,
mental music, which they consider as born of the 1881.
but we feel that in justice to ourselves our friends
devil.
Henry W. Smith, of West Newton, assignor to should know the real history of these suits, and
the
Smith
American
Organ
Company,
of
Boston,
R. H. Halsted, of this city, has recently pur-
read for themselves the decision thereon.
chased from the Mechanical Orguinette Company Mass., has patented a Reed Organ. No. of Patent,
Mr. Benham was employed by us for four years
248,224. Application filed Aug. 5th, 1881.
a mechanical pipe organ for $2,500.
as confidential clerk and salesman, and so great
The Mechanical Orguinette Company, of 831 We understand that in the case of Geo. Steck & was our confidence in him that we allowed him to
Broadway, New York, has sold a Combination Co., of New York, against the Emerson Piano Co., control a large share of our business. Starting at a
Organ and an Automatic Piano, to Mrs. A. T. of Boston, for an infringement of patent, no papers salary of $100 per month we soon increased it to
$325 per month, which we considered ample, even
Stewart, the price paid for the two instruments have as yet been served.
being $1,200. There are now in the neighborhood Among our recent visitors have been Mr. Lyon, for a man of his abilities.
We were at that time buying a large number of
of 34th street and Fifth avenue, in this city, at the of Lyon & Healy, of Chicago, and Mr. W. H. Keller,
residences of Mrs. A. T. Stewart, Judge Hilton of Easton, Penna. Both were apparently in good pianos of J. P. Hale, and for our own convenience,
and James Hilton, $2,500 worth of mechanical health and spirits, and spoke encouragingly of bus- and as we supposed, for our own benefit, we allow-
ed the agency nominally to remain in Mr. Ben-
musical instruments of the above company's iness prospects in their sections.
ham's name. From facts that afterwards came to
manufacture.
The committee of twenty-eight who have in our knowledge we learned that he had secretly tak-
Messrs. John F. Stratton & Co., of 47 Maiden charge the World's Fair project, met in Boston, on en commissions, on goods bought by him as our
Lane, New York, are having a very active busi- Thursday, Oct. 13th, at 12 o'clock, and decided to employee, not only from Hale but from others
ness; the Organina, especially, grows in favor with push the enterprise to success, provided they can with whom we had dealt, aggregating many thou-
the public. Mr. John F. Stratton continues to re- raise subscriptions in Boston and New England sands of dollars. We thought we were entitled to
side in Europe, and at last advices was enjoying his amounting to $5,000,000. Nearly all of the New the recovery of this money and hence the suits.
usual good health.
England cities have announced a willingness to re- On the trial of the cases tha principal defense of-
fered was, that we were cognizant of his receiving
Wm. Tonk & Co., of Maiden Lane, New York spond to the call for money. In Boston the indi- these
commissions and agreed thereto, which we
city, have lately added to their stock a very hand- cations are that subscriptions will be freely given, positively
denied. One thing is certain, the most
some music rack in ebonized cherry painted by and as the amount required is a trifling sum for a glaring perjury
committed on one side or the
hand, which is a work of art and should be seen to great city like Boston to raise, the Fair may be con- other, for on no was
possible supposition could the
sidered " un fait accompli."
b« appreciated.