Music Trade Review

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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
TWENTY-FIRST YEAR.
• - ) . t EDWARD LYMAN BILL < •< -
Editor and Proprietor
PUBLISHED EVERY SATURDAY
3 East 14th St., New York
SUBSCRIPTION (Including postage), United States,
Mexico and Canada, fa^oo per year; all other countries,
l+oo.
ADVERTISErlFNTS, $2.00 per inch, singte column, per
insertion. On quarterly or yearly contracts a special dis-
count is allowed. Advertising Pages $50.00, opposite read-
ing matter $75.00.
RRMITTANCES, in other than currency form, should
De made payable to Edward Lyman Bill. *
1
Entered at the Nero York Pott Office as Second Clou MatUr.
NEW YORK, APRIL~21, 1900.
TELEPHONE NUMBER, 1745-EIGHTEENTH STREET.
THE KEYNOTE.
The first week of each month, The Review wil)
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 wilf
continue to remain, as before, essentially a
trade paper.
ern houses are fostering Eastern trade.
Eastern men are also interested in branches
throughout the West. Their interests in
promoting principles which tend towards
the up-building of the trade are one and
the same.
That the industry will constantly under-
go changes, no one can dispute who is
familiar with piano history. That the
future' means the disruption, or the de-
thronement of one particular center as a
piano manufacturing district is ridiculous-
ly absurd. Individuals who show no de-
sire to progress or to conform with the
constant current of changes are of neces-
sity destined to take a rear place in the in-
dustrial ranks. New men too will spring
up who will build vast enterprises and un-
doubtedly ancient institutions will under-
go the law of change and some will crum-
ble as well.
Taken altogether the piano industry is
full of hope and inspiration for those
whose capital and interests are involved in
the creation of the king of musical instru-
ments.
To talk of sectionalism in 1900 is like
digging up the skeleton of states rights
which was laid away to rest amid the dy-
ing echoes at Appomatox. It is a question
of organization—of discipline—of system—
of method—of intelligence—of a clear and
perfect conception of what the word com-
petition means in all its ramifications—
not sectionalism, that is in the saddle to-
day.
INFELLIGENCE NOT SECTIONALISM.
T H E R E appears to be no reasonable
doubt, but that the May meeting of
the piano manufacturers in Chicago will be
the. most notable ever held in this trade.
In the first place the membership of the
organization has materially increased dur-
ing the past two months. It includes some
of the largest piano manufacturing con-
cerns on earth and the western meeting
marks, too, a spirit of nationalization of the
entire trade which has never been before
well emphasized. That the attendance
VARIABLE LAWS.
will be large is already assured. That the
T
H
E
R
E
will
be a perfect Niagara of elo-
matters discussed will be of manifest in-
quence brought to bear on the trust
terest to the entire piano fraternity is cer-
question
during the coming Presidential
tain. It emphasizes, too, a new era in
piano politics, for it is the first time the campaign. We shall have the trust ground
national convention of piano men has ever thrashed over and over again. The leaders
of the majority in Congress have taken up
been held in the great West.
Passing aside the lesser advantages such for serious consideration the question as
as the cultivation of good fellowship, the to what shall be done in the way of leg-
extending of personal acquaintanceship, islation looking to federal regulation of
and of all those things which are instru- trusts and combinations. They have be-
mental in creating trade betterment, there come convinced that some action must be
will be. a discussion of those larger and taken if only to redeem party pledges, and
more vitalizing issues which are closely in- plans have therefore been formulated with
a view to initiating legislation that will
terlocked with trade future.
form a basis for the federal control of cor-
The men who have the business meeting
porations within conservative lines without
in charge have already listed a line of trade
making a radical attack upon the indus-
topics, which will interest every manufac-
tries of the country.
turer in the country, and after the May
At the beginning of Congress it became
meeting in Chicago the piano industry of
America .will be more closely welded than apparent that the trust question would be
a vexatious one for the majority to handle
ever before.
The talk of a division and the subsequent and makeshifts were resorted to in order
creation of an Eastern and Western asso- that bills might be disposed of when
ciation is the merest tommyrot, originating brought forward by minority members of
in the brain of the individual who has the house.
A proposition is now made in a bill
sought at all times to interject a destructive
to
suppress monopolies by declaring them
force into piano association growth. West-
to be unlawful and to control combinations
largely by prohibiting interstate traffic
in their products.
To our mind all of the bills which have
been before Congress regarding the regu-
lation of trusts are hopelessly inadequate
to cope with the situation. The Constitu-
tion will have to be amended in order to
enable Congress to legislate regarding cor-
porations which are at present the creations
of the several States. Congress is at pres-
ent without power to enact a law regu-
lating industrial combinations without a
constitutional amendment to that effect.
It may be said of the trust problem at
the present time, that there has been no
intelligent and well-directed effort made to
suppress the growth of trusts. There have
been volumes of incoherent talk, endless
abuse and all of that, but there has not
been an intelligent governmental effort
made with the direct intention of regulat-
ing the trusts, because in order to do so
there must be a constitutional amend-
ment. Without it we can do nothing, and
the best-posted constitutional lawyers will
agree with us. In very truth there are a
number of problems ahead for these loose-
ly-jointed states which constitute the
American union. Why should there be one
law for New Jersey and another for Maine,
or one law for New York and another for
Ohio in the matter of corporations? Why
not one national law operative in
every state ? Even in Honolulu and
Luzon ?
Piano manufacturers know of the com-
plicated and expensive legal machinery
which they encounter in the various states
in order to protect their rights. There are
so many different laws affecting the own-
ership of merchandise that it makes it ex-
pensive as well as annoying to carry on
business in certain states. It was only a
short time ago that we learned of the chase
of a piano which covered five states. The
manufacturer won in the end, and he pro-
posed to win his point no matter at what
expense, but, after all, it was simply main-
taining a principle for the ownership of a
piano, and to maintain that principle it
cost him ten times what the piano was act-
ually worth in cold dollars. It was not too
much for a principle, because a principle,
when right, should be maintained at any
cost, but at the same time a man should
not be compelled to pay out great big
golden dollars to support a piano principle.
The people of this country will learn
after a while that the best governed people
on earth are the least governed, and about
the time we learn that, the state laws will
become weaker and the national govern-
ment will become stronger.