Music Trade Review
Issue: 1899 Vol. 28 N. 20 - Page 6
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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
shorter hours which are now being enacted to keep the store from being what it should
in the various States will play a part, but be in these end of the century days.
still the fact remains that the great brain
AGAINST RESTRAINED COMPETI-
workers, the producers, are men who never
TION.
work on the eight hour plan. They want I T is said on excellent authority that the
to work twenty out of twenty-four. The
retirement of Andrew Carnegie from
machinations of their busy brain hardly active participation in the steel business
cease, but life is too high a price to pay for was brought about primarily through his
these brief glories.
dislike to combinations. Mr. Carnegie,
although having been even a party to ar-
PREMIUM ON DISHONESTY,
rangements and pools, has always been
T H E Missouri anti-trust decision is being outspoken in his disbelief of them. They
hailed.as a blow on the solar plexus may have served a temporary end, but
of the great industrial corporations. It is even then he has been the first to break
assumed that the views of the court thus away from them. He has always held that
promulgated will have a sweeping effect, unrestrained competition was the most ad-
particularly in teaching the citizens of other vantageous to all, and on this he has dif-
States how to attack the great aggregations fered materially from other leaders who
have held that artificial restraint should be
of capital.
It is a question in our mind whether this placed upon all products. Mr. Carnegie,
law will have the effect upon the trusts that however, more than any other man in the
its promoters sanguinely assert. From a country, has been the dominating power in
purely selfish view it would seem that if the iron trade. He has been more than
the trust could not collect its debts in the any man the type of the untiring expon-
State of Missouri, it would be placing a ent of unrestrained competition which the
premium on dishonesty, inasmuch as mer- trust promoters of to-day do not consider
chants could purchase goods from the trust the proper kind of competition to create
and could not be forced by legal means to dollars for them.
pay for them.
Yet we must recollect that manufacturers AGAINST INDIVIDUAL INDEPEN-
DENCE.
as a whole are careful about granting credit,
A RECENT interview with a manufac-
and through their sales agents or traveling
turer, who, for the past six years, has
men they are well informed as to the char-
been a stockholder in a trust, brings to
acter or probity of their customers. We
light some interesting facts. This is what
seriously question whether the Missouri
the gentleman remarked, whose name we
decision will make any of the great indus-
can give at any time desired: "I would not
trial consolidations uneasy over the collec-
advise any one to merge his business in a
tion of the accounts now dtie them in that
trust. In six years, since I sold out to the
State.
wall-paper trust it has cost me $50,000,
In our opinion laws which wink at dis- and you will find that five out of six of the
honesty do not make a whole State dis- manufacturers who went into that trust
honest. Business men as a whole are will agree with me that they could have
honest, and value their good names above made more as individual manufacturers
a little temporary gain. No matter how than they have made in that combination.
much we may dislike consolidations or The immense saving of expenses and cost
trusts we must find some other way to fight of manufacture were emphasized by the
them than in repudiating honest indebted- promoters six years ago just as they are
ness.
now by the present promoters, but the sav-
ings were never realized. The truth is the
THE ART OF STORE DECORATING. unit system of manufacture has proved to
I T is an art, and further it is an art that is have little, if any, advantage over the sepa-
most sadly neglected in a great many rate or individual system, and the same
retail establishments. If the proprietors remark applies to the cost of distribution
of these stores in which it is neglected of the product. I had my doubts about
would only bestir themselves and look the trust and would have stayed out of it,
around and inquire they would find that but for the fact that I was frightened into
the most successful merchants of to-day it. I did not have all the capital I needed
regard the decorating feature as one of the and it was illustrated by the promoters that
I was not in a position to fight for trade
most important in their business policy.
against
a great aggregation of capital. I
The difference between the popular, up-
believe
that trusts are against individual
to-date store, and the down at the heel,
set-in-the-rut place, lies chiefly in the independence, and that nine out of every
mercantile sins of omission. It isn't so ten manufacturers who merge their affairs
much what is done as what is left undone into a great combination will experience
just the same sort of disappointment that
I have encountered."
BYWAYS AND HEDGES.
QOMETIMES in considering ways and
means for the development of his
business a merchant is apt to let some of
the old homely truths escape him. He is
prone to think that success in these end of
the century days means a breaking away
from all that has guided successful mer-
chants in the past.
So it does, but not in the light in which
he views it. He generally proceeds upon
the hypothesis that so and so having made
a success by preaching one thing and
practising another, it will be safe for him
to do likewise.
The speciousness of this reasoning is
apparent the moment it is examined.
1\/I ORE and more the American piano
manufacturer is branching out for
foreign trade. Everywhere the fields are
ripe for the harvest, only it requires the
proper kind of machinery to gather it.
Anyone who will study the reports sent
out by the State Department at Washing-
ton by our Consuls abroad must be im-
pressed with the frequency of the state-
ments as to the opportunity which such
and such a country presents for the intro-
duction of American goods.
T F the Annex editor possessed one spark
of m:\nhood he would publicly apolo-
gize to the members of the National Piano
Manufacturers' Association whom he so
grossly insulted. He published that it
was a prearranged matter to remove Mr.
Widenmann from the executive committee
in order that he might not be in the way of
other gentlemen composing the committee.
Mr. Widenmann says that positive in-
justice has been done his fellow committee
members by that statement. He was urged
by them to accept a renomination on the
executive committee, but declined to do
so, stating that he had served a term of
years and he thought it was quite proper
that offices should be held in rotation. Mr.
Widenmann was very much incensed that
his fellow members should be placed in
such a false light before the trade.
We may say, however, that this inten-
tional distorting of facts is in perfect har-
mony with the Annex editor's general ut-
terances anent Association affairs.
•"THERE is no disputing the fact that
trade, taken as a whole during the
first half of May, has been in a degree dis-
appointing.
While there are sporadic
cases of activity, yet taken in the aggre-
gate things have not been just as we should
have desired them.
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
shorter hours which are now being enacted to keep the store from being what it should
in the various States will play a part, but be in these end of the century days.
still the fact remains that the great brain
AGAINST RESTRAINED COMPETI-
workers, the producers, are men who never
TION.
work on the eight hour plan. They want I T is said on excellent authority that the
to work twenty out of twenty-four. The
retirement of Andrew Carnegie from
machinations of their busy brain hardly active participation in the steel business
cease, but life is too high a price to pay for was brought about primarily through his
these brief glories.
dislike to combinations. Mr. Carnegie,
although having been even a party to ar-
PREMIUM ON DISHONESTY,
rangements and pools, has always been
T H E Missouri anti-trust decision is being outspoken in his disbelief of them. They
hailed.as a blow on the solar plexus may have served a temporary end, but
of the great industrial corporations. It is even then he has been the first to break
assumed that the views of the court thus away from them. He has always held that
promulgated will have a sweeping effect, unrestrained competition was the most ad-
particularly in teaching the citizens of other vantageous to all, and on this he has dif-
States how to attack the great aggregations fered materially from other leaders who
have held that artificial restraint should be
of capital.
It is a question in our mind whether this placed upon all products. Mr. Carnegie,
law will have the effect upon the trusts that however, more than any other man in the
its promoters sanguinely assert. From a country, has been the dominating power in
purely selfish view it would seem that if the iron trade. He has been more than
the trust could not collect its debts in the any man the type of the untiring expon-
State of Missouri, it would be placing a ent of unrestrained competition which the
premium on dishonesty, inasmuch as mer- trust promoters of to-day do not consider
chants could purchase goods from the trust the proper kind of competition to create
and could not be forced by legal means to dollars for them.
pay for them.
Yet we must recollect that manufacturers AGAINST INDIVIDUAL INDEPEN-
DENCE.
as a whole are careful about granting credit,
A RECENT interview with a manufac-
and through their sales agents or traveling
turer, who, for the past six years, has
men they are well informed as to the char-
been a stockholder in a trust, brings to
acter or probity of their customers. We
light some interesting facts. This is what
seriously question whether the Missouri
the gentleman remarked, whose name we
decision will make any of the great indus-
can give at any time desired: "I would not
trial consolidations uneasy over the collec-
advise any one to merge his business in a
tion of the accounts now dtie them in that
trust. In six years, since I sold out to the
State.
wall-paper trust it has cost me $50,000,
In our opinion laws which wink at dis- and you will find that five out of six of the
honesty do not make a whole State dis- manufacturers who went into that trust
honest. Business men as a whole are will agree with me that they could have
honest, and value their good names above made more as individual manufacturers
a little temporary gain. No matter how than they have made in that combination.
much we may dislike consolidations or The immense saving of expenses and cost
trusts we must find some other way to fight of manufacture were emphasized by the
them than in repudiating honest indebted- promoters six years ago just as they are
ness.
now by the present promoters, but the sav-
ings were never realized. The truth is the
THE ART OF STORE DECORATING. unit system of manufacture has proved to
I T is an art, and further it is an art that is have little, if any, advantage over the sepa-
most sadly neglected in a great many rate or individual system, and the same
retail establishments. If the proprietors remark applies to the cost of distribution
of these stores in which it is neglected of the product. I had my doubts about
would only bestir themselves and look the trust and would have stayed out of it,
around and inquire they would find that but for the fact that I was frightened into
the most successful merchants of to-day it. I did not have all the capital I needed
regard the decorating feature as one of the and it was illustrated by the promoters that
I was not in a position to fight for trade
most important in their business policy.
against
a great aggregation of capital. I
The difference between the popular, up-
believe
that trusts are against individual
to-date store, and the down at the heel,
set-in-the-rut place, lies chiefly in the independence, and that nine out of every
mercantile sins of omission. It isn't so ten manufacturers who merge their affairs
much what is done as what is left undone into a great combination will experience
just the same sort of disappointment that
I have encountered."
BYWAYS AND HEDGES.
QOMETIMES in considering ways and
means for the development of his
business a merchant is apt to let some of
the old homely truths escape him. He is
prone to think that success in these end of
the century days means a breaking away
from all that has guided successful mer-
chants in the past.
So it does, but not in the light in which
he views it. He generally proceeds upon
the hypothesis that so and so having made
a success by preaching one thing and
practising another, it will be safe for him
to do likewise.
The speciousness of this reasoning is
apparent the moment it is examined.
1\/I ORE and more the American piano
manufacturer is branching out for
foreign trade. Everywhere the fields are
ripe for the harvest, only it requires the
proper kind of machinery to gather it.
Anyone who will study the reports sent
out by the State Department at Washing-
ton by our Consuls abroad must be im-
pressed with the frequency of the state-
ments as to the opportunity which such
and such a country presents for the intro-
duction of American goods.
T F the Annex editor possessed one spark
of m:\nhood he would publicly apolo-
gize to the members of the National Piano
Manufacturers' Association whom he so
grossly insulted. He published that it
was a prearranged matter to remove Mr.
Widenmann from the executive committee
in order that he might not be in the way of
other gentlemen composing the committee.
Mr. Widenmann says that positive in-
justice has been done his fellow committee
members by that statement. He was urged
by them to accept a renomination on the
executive committee, but declined to do
so, stating that he had served a term of
years and he thought it was quite proper
that offices should be held in rotation. Mr.
Widenmann was very much incensed that
his fellow members should be placed in
such a false light before the trade.
We may say, however, that this inten-
tional distorting of facts is in perfect har-
mony with the Annex editor's general ut-
terances anent Association affairs.
•"THERE is no disputing the fact that
trade, taken as a whole during the
first half of May, has been in a degree dis-
appointing.
While there are sporadic
cases of activity, yet taken in the aggre-
gate things have not been just as we should
have desired them.
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