Music Trade Review

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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
From the Editor's Note Book.
THE DIFFERENCE IN THE FEELING OF MEN THIS FALL AND LAST THE POST OFFICE ILLUS-
TRATES IMPROVED COMMERCIAL CONDITIONS—THE A. B. CHASE CO. AND THE
USE OF NEW YORK—TRADING ON THE REPUTATION OF HAINES BROS.—
OFF FOR THE WEST.
HERE is a vast difference mani-
fest this year in the feelings
of men, as compared with last
fall when I began my travels.
For the past month, I have
been on the road almost con-
tinually, and have called upon hundreds of
dealers in the New England States. There
is a distinct feeling of confidence, of buoy-
ancy, which was entirely lacking last year.
No matter if the fall trade has not as yet
made its appearance in a good substantial
and satisfactory manner in all quarters, I
find men everywhere talk hopefully and
confidently, believing that the future will
be full of bountiful prosperity for them.
It is always such a satisfaction to visit
men who are in an optimistic frame of
mind. How much better it is to take a
hopeful view of life and business than to
allow the indigo hue to darken one's horizon
at all times. There will be better times,
and without doubt conditions everywhere
will be constantly improving for some
time yet.
Perhaps there is no surer proof that the
good times have really returned to this
country than is demonstrated at the post
office in New York, where the fluctuations
in the volume of business are an unfailing
gauge of the life of trade throughout the
land. Financial and commercial activity
always means increased demands upon the
mails, which is at once felt in New York,
the clearing house for the entire country.
The New York post office is forced to
its utmost this fall to transact its business
in the various departments, and the pres-
sure is daily becoming greater. The en-
tire force is working over one and two
hours over time every week day and all of
Sunday, when half of the men usually
should be off duty.
Such a condition of affairs shows conclu-
sively the activity prevailing in commer-
cial and financial circles. Enormous mails
means enormous business transactions.
I recollect some two or three years ago
when I was calling at a well known fac-
tory in New England, the morning mail
was brought in. It consisted of one paper
and two letters. I know positively that
the average mail of that concern in good
times was over a hundred letters a day.
The increase of mail matter is always a
sure indication of an increase of business.
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It is more than two weeks ago since the
editor of the Musical Courier Trade
Extra made the statement that the A. B.
Chase Co., of Norwalk, O., had a legitimate
right to place the words New York upon
the fall board of their pianos.
I could not permit such an affirmation to
pass unchallenged, and by argument I
endeavored to show that the Western con-
cern referred to had no right to place the
name of our metropolis upon the instru-
ments made in their factory in Norwalk,
Ohio. I claimed further that when they
abandoned their branch here they forfeited
whatever right they could have had during
its occupancy, of using the name of New
York in conjunction with their pianos.
I notice that the Musical Courier Trade
Extra has refrained from giving ex-
planations regarding the position assumed
by it in its A. B. Chase claim. From the
silence manifested on the part of the paper
making the statement, I must conclude
that it acknowledges the correctness of my
position and the falseness of its own. For
no paper can afford to permit such a chal-
lenge to pass without argument unless it
desires to make open acknowledgment of
its error in making the original claim. If
the Musical Courier Trade Extra can-
not substantiate its opinion, is it not fair
to believe that it refrains from going into
explanations because of its knowledge of
the inherent weakness of its position? If
the paper occupied a strong vantage ground
in its claim, it would certainly be able to
withstand the onslaught by some sort of
an argument.
In this matter I propose to exercise that
right which belongs to every independent
newspaper man, and that is to criticise the
actions of another when they merit criti-
cism. I claim that the maintenance of the
name New York upon the A. B. Chase pianos
is in direct violation of the ethics of trade,
and that Mr. Whitney and his associates
have no right to sell their instruments
with the name of our city branded upon
them, unless their representation here
shall be direct.
It may not be wrong to interject the
statement at this time that it would be a
matter which would consistently come be-
fore association councils. Why should not
the National Association take up such ques-
tions as these ? They are of great impor-
tance—far-reaching in influence and of in-
terest to every manufacturer.
The recently incorporated Haines&Co.,
Rochester, N. Y., place upon the fall board
of their instruments "Haines & Co., New
York." Now in New York City there is
the original, the genuine Haines Bros. Co.,
Incorporated. It occurs to me that when
this concern at Rochester uses the name of
New York upon the fall board of their in-
strument that they are doing so with the
direct intention of conveying the idea to
the purchaser that the instruments are
made in our city, therefore it naturally
follows that the two names will be-
come confounded in the minds of pur-
chasers.
There is an illustration up in Providence
which occurred lately where a young lady
purchased a Haines & Co. piano from the
branch of Geo. H. Champlin, the Boston
dealer, who recently established a ware-
room in that town, supposing that she had
bought the genuine Haines piano.
It is said that legal proceedings will be
immediately taken and that the party who
purchased the piano will make the state-
ment that she purchased it with the fixed
impression that it was the New York
Haines that she was buying.
Geo. H. Champlin has the Dunham
piano made for him by a Western concern.
It is also sold in his Providence store.
Now there is to-day no genuine Dunham
piano, since the collapse of David H.Dun-
ham, who owned the trademark "Dun-
ham." This was not sold to any party and
the whereabouts of Mr. Dunham are still
unknown. Mr. Champlin, however, has
this piano stencilled for him, and thus
trades without authority upon one of the
oldest names in piano history. There is
to-day no legitimate Dunham piano made,
and every new piano sold as a Dunham is
sold with the intent of dishonestly claiming
what remain ing prestige there is attached
to a once leading make.
The right to use the name of a city, the
matter of offering pianos both wholesale
and retail under certain misrepresenta-
tions, intending to mislead the retail cus-
tomer, is a subject which can never fail to
have interest for every one engaged in
manufacturing and vending musical instru-
ments.
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I now have a couple of months of solid
travel before me as I am now well on my
way toward the West. I have already
visited this year almost every important
city as far North as St. Paul and as far
South as New Orleans, and my itinerary
this time includes some points farther
West, and still there are those who think