Music Trade Review

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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
the conditions which The Review refers to sociation of New York and a number oE
can only prevail where there is lack of sys- other commercial bodies entered a vigorous
tem or a superabundance of trust on the protest at a hearing given by the railroad
part of those at the head of business insti- officials on Jan. 22.
tutions. It is well to take time by the
J. M. Langley, of the Merchants' Asso-
forelock
and
"look
into
things"—to
turn
ciation,
said this week in regard to the new
TWENTY-FIRST YEAR.
•EDWARD LYMAN BILL.
on the calcium light as it were. Much of modifications: "There were 169 items of
Editor and Proprietor
interest may materialize.
less than carload that were advanced from
PUBLISHED EVERY SATURDAY
That the purchase of so-called "influ- third to second class. These have not been
ence" is actively pursued to-day to a larger put back to third class, but the charge on
3 East 14th St., New York
extent than ever before has been brought them has been reduced so that instead of
SUBSCRIPTION (including postage), United States,
M«xico and Canada, f awoo per year; all other countries,
$4 00.
to our knowledge in various ways recently. these items carrying an advance of 30 per
ADVERTISEflFNTS, $2.00 per inch, single column, per
insertion. On quarterly or yearly contracts a special dis-
We do know that a certain varnish house cent, the advance on them now is about 10
count is allowed. Advertising Pages $50.00, opposite read-
ing matter $75.00.
paid to a certain foreman $500 to recom- per cent. This is a maximum advance and
REMITTANCES, In other than currency form, should
b© made payable to Edward Lyman Bill.
1
mend his varnish—that this has been du- it varies according to the distance shipped.
Entered at the iVew York Post Office a* Second Clou Mattmr,
plicated by other manufacturers and in "There were," continued Mr. Langley,
NEW YORK, MARCH 17, 1900.
other factories, with a variation in the sum "in the new classification 291 items of less
TELBPHONB NUMBER, 1745-EKlHTEEMTrI STREBT.
of money paid. And it is safe to assert than carload and 7 carload items advanced
THE KEYNOTE.
that manufacturers are the ones who, un- from fourth to third class. The changes
The first week of each month, The Review will
contain a supplement embodying the literary
knowingly, eventually recompense the var- now made in these are about in the same
and musical features which have heretofore
nish men through increased prices for the proportion as the above. In these two par-
appeared in The Keynote. This amalgamation
will be effected without in any way trespassing
bribes paid their foremen. Hence, as we ticular lines the changes amount to a sub-
on our regular news service. The Review wilt
continue to remain, as before, essentially a
said last week, it would not be amiss for classification, or the establishment of new
trade paper.
many of our readers in the manufacturing classifications, in the one instance between
"PAYING FOR INFLUENCE."
field to look more closely into the varnish second and third class, and in the other
l\/l ANY letters have reached The Review end of their business.
between third and fourth class.
this week regarding the editorial in
"It is the first time, to my knowledge,
our last issue entitled " A Varnish Test."
FREIGHT RATES VICTORY.
that the railroads have ever made conces-
That it has excited considerable interest is '"THE value of association work has never
sions of this kind in this way and within so
obvious, and judging from the remarks of
been better exemplified than in the
short a time. The fact that they are will-
some of our correspondents, the curtain accomplishments of that body of business
ing to meet the shippers in open confer-
has been raised on a reprehensible practice men which make up the Merchants' Asso-
ence argues well for the settlement of dif-
which, within a recent period, has assumed ciation of New York, and which is seem-
ferences which may in future arise between
large dimensions in this industry.
ingly untiring in its efforts to benefit the
shipper and carrier. This shows the effect
The monetary inducements held out to manufacturers not only of this city, but of
of the work done by the Merchants' Asso-
varnish foremen by representatives of cer- the country at large. Thanks to the ef-
ciation and other commercial bodies. Un-
tain houses to use their varnish may be forts of this association the railroads, for
der the old system each individual shipper
"private business," but it unquestionably the first time in history, have been in-
who thought he had a grievance would
concerns the manufacturer if not from the duced not merely to reconsider, but to re.
have been forced to make a separate and
ethical, at least from the standpoint that vise, a new set of rates making consider-
distinct appeal to the railroads."
he is the party who pays the bills—and able reductions in the interests of shippers.
Shippers in various lines of trade have
this means a twenty-five per cent, increase
In the revised classification by the Trunk
been
busily engaged in discussing these
in the price of each gallon of varnish used lines the advance in freight rates which
to cover the " generosity " of the varnish went into effect on Jan. 1, is modified to changes during the week. It is the gen-
eral opinion that considerable complications
manufacturer toward the foreman.
the extent of a fifteen per cent, reduction
will result, as a separate calculation will
This bribing, or to use a more genteel on second class freight, and twenty per
have to be made to determine the rate on
term " paying for influence," is one of the cent, on third class. The territory thus
each commodity that comes under the two
curses of our political system to-day—it is affected, roughly speaking, lies east of the
classes.
undermining integrity, solid worth and all Mississippi and north of the Ohio and
that go to make a people great. That this Potomac Rivers.
THE REIGN OF HUMBUG.
evil is insidiously growing in the commer-
Readers of The Review will remember "THERE are tricks in all trades. Cer-
cial sphere there can be no denying. Its that when the classification went into ef-
tainly. People like to be humbugged.
extent is not of sufficient magnitude to fect on Jan. 1, the railway officials claimed True again. In this industry of ours, we
alarm, but that it should gain even a foot- it was necessary for them to receive a find plenty of schemes. And the beauty
hold in the business world is something to larger amount of money for the transpor- of it is, they come exceedingly close to Bar-
regret and think over.
tation they had to sell. Instead of advanc- num's tail-in-the-manger humbug of the
Manufacturers in talking with The Re- ing the rates of freights charged on the horse with head where tail ought to be.
view admit that this evil of bribing var- six classifications in question they trans- That was a fake pure and simple, just as
nish foremen exists. Efforts have success- posed a large number of articles from lower are the so-called private house sales of
fully been made by some to stamp it out to higher classes, in a few instances put- pianos which we see advertised every Sun-
by enforcing certain factory rules and in ting down from a higher to a lower class day in the newspapers.
many cases by removing the parties im- certain other articles, and made a very ma-
There is a big army of the unsophisti-
plicated, be they manufacturers or em- terial difference in the prices charged for cated abroad, who are always looking for
carload and less than carload freights. "bargains"—who expect to receive five-
ployees.
This activity is to be commended, for Against these changes the Merchants' As- dollar gold pieces for an investment of a