Music Trade Review

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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
-EDWARD LYMAN BILL~i—
Editor and Proprietor
PUBLISHED EVERY SATURDAY
3 East 14th St., New York
SUBSCRIPTION (including postage), United States,
Mexico and Canada, $3.00 per year ; all other countries,
$4.00.
ADVERTISE/IENTS, $2.00 per inch, single column, per
insertion. On quarterly or yearly contracts a special dis-
count is allowed. Advertising Pages $50.00, opposite read-
ing matter $75.00.
REMITTANCES, in other than currency form, should
be made payable to Edward Lyman Bill.
Entered at the New York Post Office as Second Glass Matter.
NEW YORK, DECEMBER 11, 1897.
TELEPHONE NUMBER,
1745—EIQHTEfaNTH STREET
THE KEYNOTE.
The first week of each month, The Review will
contain a supplement embodying the literary
and musical features which have heretofore
appeared in The Keynote. This amalgamation
will be effected without in any way trespassing
on Our regular news service. The Review will
continue to remain, as before, essentially a
trade paper.
THE TRADE DIRECTORY.
The Trade Directory, which is a feature of
The Review each month, is complete. In it
appear the names and addresses of all firms
engaged in the manufacture of musical in-
struments and the allied trades. The Review
is sent to the United States Consulates through-
out the world, and is on file in the reading
rooms of the principal hotels in America.
INDUSTRIAL CHANGES.
EVER since the early days when old
Benjamin Crehore built pianos in a
slow, cumbersome way in a Massachusetts
town has the trade been so deeply agitated
over any subject as it has during- the past
two or three weeks over the proposed trust.
Never since it assumed proud rank as an
industry has it been shaken from circum-
ference to center as it has been over the
trust.
It has been more than agitated. It has
been more than a mere matter of gossip,
because thinking men to whose earnest
work this trade owes its position to-day,
realize that the trust problem is one that
confronts almost every industry in America.
Piano manufacturers have labored for
years under peculiar conditions—condi-
tions in which the cost of producing and
marketing their product is excessive when
considering the volume of business trans-
acted by them.
No matter what men may say—for talk
is oftentimes misleading—to a careful
observer it is apparent that there is much
more beneath than is exhibited on the sur-
face. A superficial glance at the trade
does not disclose the fact that it is stirred
to its depth. It is, however, and there
are men to-day who are deeply considering
—are carefully weighing every argument
which is brought to them, whether a trust
or combination will solve satisfactorily the
N
serious industrial problem which confronts policy is evidently directed [towards the
formation of a Zollverein with her col-
us at this time
The first froth or effervescence in this onies. The United States also undoubt-
matter has been succeeded by calm, logi- edly wish to protect themselves against
cal and well balanced thought, and as to our exports, but matters are coming to such
just what the outcome will be, no man may a pass that other American republics are
predict with assurance that he is correct. joining the United States in order to form
We all may predict results with a freedom a Zollverein. Pan-Americanism is for Ger-
engendered by our own confidence in the many still more momentous than Monroe-
matter, but still we may be a thousand ism."
The speaker then proceeded to say that
miles away from the truth.
this
country should not be considered on
Many have a total misapprehension of
the real trend of economic revolution. In- the same footing as a single European
dustry is indeed tending toward greater state, but rather as a continent with regard
concentration, which means greater pro- to its production, and that in the coming
ductive power at reduced cost. The ten- century European countries will be ob-
dency of concentrated capital is to improve liged to co-operate, in order to support
its production and through its efficiency each other in the struggle for existence
bring about a more intensified specializa- with industrial America.
So it goes the world around. Concen-
tion of labor.
While some of us may assert that there tration—centralization, And so it has
are many useless appendages which could been in all nations, in all ages. We too,
be lopped off, as they are, in a sense, non- as a nation, are still in the furnace. We
producers, yet such a statement shows a too, are being welded into one in the
narrow conception. There are no parasites world's great smithy. When the whole
on business or on society, all are agents shall have cooled to the hard temper, who
in placing a product within reach of the in- shall say that it shall not carve a world?
In our own trade it cannot be denied
dividual. The middle man is as essential
as the manufacturer. Advertisers, dealers, that there has been a steady movement of
and salesmen all perform their part in the industrial center towards the West.
bringing commodities within reach of the As the continent has developed, so has the
industrial center moved towards its heart.
home purchaser.
Will out of this all not come a "civiliza-
It is an interesting subject, this trade
tion
that is broader in purpose and deeper
problem, and many sided as well. The
world is undergoing an industrial revolu- in meaning than all that has gone before?
In this glowing heat of the nascent life
tion. It is only this week one of the
largest stockholders of the great cotton there are expounded many theories; there
mills in Fall River said in speaking of the area plentiful supply of pessimists whose
situation in New England, " T h e inevit- chilling theories are felt, and optimists
able is at hand, and the cotton business is whose over-sanguine expectations cheer us
in a state of revolution. The United on.
After all, to reduce this matter of trust
States will manufacture its cotton goods in
the South; it is doing it very largely now, down to a plain every day fact, we cannot
and on common, popular and staple grades escape one thing, and that is, if a trust or
has knocked the market price down." And combination is a thing most desired by
ten years ago the man would have been this trade, it will come; if it is carefully
laughed at who would have even hinted at weighed in the balance and found wanting,
the cotton manufacturing business disap- out it goes. This age is too active, too
pearing from New England, and yet to- keen, too buoyant to accept any gold brick
day we have one of the men most deeply without first testing its value. No theory,
interested in that branch of manufacture, however alluring, will be received by the
who says that it will disappear, and that thinking members of this trade until they
too within an incredibly short space of have carefully gone over the matter in de-
tail.
time.
England is doing the same thing; in
Manchester, frequently called the Chicago
of England, one half of the cotton mills are
idle and the machinery is being packed off
to India and Ceylon.
Thisweek,in the German Reichstag, the
leader of the Liberal party declared, " T h e
most important thing is the policy of Eng-
land and the United States, England's
New Krell Styles.
At the Krell warerooms, in addition to
the usual display of choice Krell styles,
there is now a beautiful example of the
new Krell style J, Ionic Colonial, with
every improvement, including an echo
attachment operated by a third pedal.
This instrument is being made in light
woods. The new Krell style Bi, upright
grand, has been very successful.