Music Trade Review

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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
ASSOCIATION VALUE.
INDUSTRIAL associations have worked
a powerful influence in the develop-
ment of our commercial affairs—national
and international. The almost phenom-
enal growth of the export business during
the last decade has been materially in-
creased by the efforts of the various organ-
izations throughout the country. Piano
manufacturers too have played no unim-
portant part among these organizations
which have been formed for the direct
purpose of stimulating thought along
commercial lines. In Cincinnati among
the members and officers of the National
Manufacturers Association we can reckon
Frank A. Lee, Lucien Wulsin and Geo. W.
Armstrong, Jr. In Boston, Henry F. Mil-
ler has been a staunch worker and pro-
moter of the organization idea, himself
having occupied an important official po-
sition in the Association Board of Trade of
that city. Albert S. Bond of Ft. Wayne
came on from the West to attend the Con-
vention of the Manufacturers Association
in Boston this week. And so we go all
over America, East and West, and find
that the association idea is taking firm
root. As far as the Piano Manufacturers
Association, which holds its annual meeting
in Chicago next May, is concerned, it may
be said that the recent augmentation in the
membership roll proves that this will be
the most important meeting of the industry
ever held. There is no doubt that the as-
sociation idea has taken firm root in the
trade and will bear more plentiful fruit
than it has heretofore. As it gains strength
it will be in a better position to furnish
logical evidence to win those who have
thus far remained outside of the associa-
tion fold.
COMMISSIONS AND LOANS.
CROM time to time, The Review has
commented upon trade eccentricities
which have germinated under the present
existing system as applied to commissions
paid on piano sales and the loan of pianos
to musicians.
There are some distinguished concerns
which have viewed this subject in the light
of pure commercialism, and after analyz-
ing the conditions by no system of reason-
ing could they conclude that they were
acting wisely to loan pianos indiscriminate-
ly for alleged influence on the part of pro-
fessionals, who too often turn their influ-
ence in other directions. Then, too, they
have figured that they have have had a
vast capital, useless for that matter, locked
up in loaned pianos.
The tendency of the trade is to cut down
and reduce the number of pianos out on
loan in studios and elsewhere. In chatting:
with a member of a distinguished house
recently on this question he used the ex-
pression, "We use great discrimination re-
garding the parties to whom our pianos
are loaned," which interpreted meant that
he had practically eliminated the loaning
business, with some notable exceptions
which will always exist.
Regarding commissions, the Piano Man-
ufacturers' National Association recognize
the legitimacy of the worker in this field.
But there are many kinds of commissions,
and in London the commission system as
applied to piano selling has reached such a
point that it was deemed advisable to take
legal action concerning it, and there is
now a bill pending before the House of
Lords supported by twenty sections of the
London Chamber of Commerce, making it
an offense, punishable by fine and in some
cases by imprisonment, for any dealer or
piano maker to give, or for any professor
of music to receive, a commission or pre-
sent for recommending a piano unless the
customer has expressed notice that such a
commission is to be paid to the music
teacher.
If this passes and becomes a law why
would it not be followed up by another
making it punishable by fine and imprison-
ment to take a second-hand piano in any
kind of a piano deal? This would be an ex-
cellent thing for the business and if the
second-hand instruments could be excluded
from new sales in the entire piano world, it
would be infinitely better for trade inter-
ests.
SOWING THE WIND.
A S the lack of advertising support be-
comes more and more apparent, the
destructive and malicious propensities of
the Royal Roaster are brought weekly into
stronger relief. Finding that the days of
stand and deliver, through the influence of
clean journalism, are of the unhappy
past, he has now been playing a colossal
bluff in an attempt to stem the tide which
is fast setting against him. As contract
after contract closes and no renewal is
made his plight becomes more desper-
ate, and now the destructive tendencies
are seen in the reprehensible attempts
to injure non-advertising manufacturers
through the fights and warfares of local
dealers. Can anything be more degraded
in journalism than the printing of letters
of rival dealers decrying certain instru-
ments? It only shows to what depth a man
can descend to accomplish an end, but,
stranger still it is how a man posing as a
manufacturer, can aid and abet this sort of
thing by passing to this paper copies of
letters which have passed between him and
piano manufacturers on the question of
price. A man who will disclose private
correspondence to a paper for the purpose
of injuring a competitor should be forcibly
ejected from an association composed of
gentlemen.
We shall see plenty more of this work, be-
cause as we stated at the beginning, the de-
sire to destroy the industry will be marked
from this time on. As the Royal Roaster
is driven closer and closer into his corner
his desperation will become more and more
emphasized. And it is surprising, too,
why men who denounce his methods, who
admit that his influence is of a degrading
kind still indirectly contribute to his main-
tenance. He realizes, however, that con-
ditions point to his destruction, and he can
exclaim with Louis XV, who knowing that
his country was on the verge of an upheaval
which culminated in the French Revolu-
tion, dismissed the subject with " after me
the deluge." There is a steady trade up-
heaval which is now going on and after
that a deluge which will sweep the Roaster
off the throne of power forever. Hav-
ing sown the wind of abuse he is de-
stined to reap the whirlwind of retribution.
NEED OF AUTHENTIC REPORTS.
''THERE is in this trade a pressing neces-
sity for an authentic directory. There
are several which exist, but if one probes
deeply it will be learned that many names
reappear each year whether the firms have
dropped out of existence or not. There is
to-day no published list of music dealers in
this country which can be relied upon with
absolute certainty.
As a proof of this address an envelope to
each one of the names which appear in the
printed lists and see what percentage are
returned to you marked "not found,"
" out of business," " deceased," " retired,"
"change of firm," and all of that.
Then again, the lists of to-day are pad-
ded to an alarming extent, so that they con-
tain many names which have no place in a
properly classified music trade directory.
To illustrate :
In a number of directories names appear
of firms who sell a few Jews-harps or har-
monicas or something of that sort from a
cigar counter and are classified as music
dealers. Instead of the list approximating
ten thousand names, the entire legitimate
number could be boiled down to less than
five thousand. It is absolutely misleading
to prepare a trade list full of inaccuracies.
While upon the subject we may apply the
same rule to the mercantile agency report-
ing. One form of waste is the reporting
of needless names. Both of the leading
agencies rate over a million and a quarter
names upon all of which it is claimed daily
reports are regularly made. Of this vait