Music Trade Review

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TH
MU3IC TRADE
REVIEW
11
Piano Business in Healthy Condition—Piano Men as Farmers—Jacob Estey in Town—Other
Visitors—What Various Houses Have^to Report—Selling Baldwin Pianos.
(Special to The Review.)
Philadelphia, Pa., June 28, 1910.
There has been a little drop off in the piano
business the last week, owing to the excessively
hot weather. It is very evident that it is only
temporary, for a cool day brings out the usual
amount of trade. The early closing season has
been started at the various stores, daily at 5 and
Saturdays at 1, and most of the Philadelphia
dealers have settled their families for the sum-
mer at one of the nearby watering places, and
many of them are going back and forward.
There is a healthy feeling and a healthy spirit
dominating the trade just at present, which looks
well for the future. The Philadelphia manufac-
turers are feeling it more bounteously probably
than the retailers, but the fact that new pianos
are coming into Philadelphia almost daily shows
that there is a liberal demand.
Piano Men Bucolically Inclined.
An interesting feature of the Philadelphia
tradesmen is the number of piano men who are
devoted to the pursuits of farming. Quite a few
of the Philadelphia salesmen are owners of ex-
tensive farms, and are enthusiastic husbandmen.
Every day as Frank Riggins, of the Estey house,
comes up from his farm at Quinten, N. J., he
brings evidences of the productiveness of some
patch or other that he spends his leisure time
in cultivating. Robert M. Stultz, the piano sales-
man, song and play-writer, actor, base ball player,
and what not, is another of the enthusiastic
piano husbandmen. His place at Collingswood,
though small, is said to be a model in its way.
Clarence Shank and Chauncey De Long, the
Siamese^twTcs 'of the N. Stetson & Co. firm, both
have' very' fine farms under a high state of cul-
tivation in Centre County, this State, where
they always spend their vacations. True, they
are gentlemen farmers, in a sense of the word,
but when vacationing it they are typical laborers
in their make-up. The two most noted of the
Philadelphia piano farmers are Messrs. 0. W. and
W. B. Williams, the former representing the
Packard Co., and the latter the Sterling Co.
They have two of the finest farms in Delaware
County at Secane. There are still others in the
list, and strange to say it seems to run in the
local trade to prefer farm life to the seashore
for a place to spend the holidays.
several times recently arranging for the conven-
tion, which will open there on July 5. This week
they have a very fine talking machine window- at
the Heppes, an Independence Day window.
Stoll Joins Gimbel Forces.
Thomas Stoll, the well-known piano man, but
who recently had forsaken the business for the
insurance field, has accepted the position as head
floor man at the Gimbel piano store, under Mr.
Schwankovsky. Mr. Stoll is not only recognized
as one of the best salesmen of Philadelphia, but
as the best pianist among the Philadelphia piano
salesmen. He is well placed and will no doubt
be very satisfactory.
Distinguished Visitors.
M. B. Gibson, of the Weaver Piano Co., of
York, Pa., was a Philadelphia visitor this week;
also Charles H. Eddy, vice-ipresident oif the
American Piano Co., who is on his honeymoon.
Lyon & Healy Piano at Miller's.
The new deal between the Miller house and
that of Lyon & Healy, of Chicago, will give the
Miller house in Philadelphia the exclusive right
to the handling of the Lyon & Healy as well as
the Washburn pianos. They will not relinquish
any of the agencies they now hold.
Weymann's Active Baldwin Business.
H. A. Weymann & Sons have received several
new and exceptionally fine Baldwin pianos to
replenish the stock. They have had a particu-
larly active business during June, and were about
out of the Baldwin, and entirely out of the
Baldwin players. The Baldwin players seem to
be unusually popular in Philadelphia. In fact,
the player-piano business in Philadelphia has
been exceptionally good all this month. The
Estey firm report that they sold more Estey
player-pianos than during any other month of
the year.
The plans for the new Estey building have
been finished and approved, and the building
now standing on the site will be demolished
early in June and ground broken for the new
building.
The High-Class
Trade
The dealer in high-grade pianos:—
He is the man we are taJking to.
He is the man who should he inter-
ested in Columbia product.
Every quality-argument that can
be applied to any piano applies with
^qual fitness to the only complete
talking machine line—Columbia Graf-
onolas, Columbia Disc and Cylinder
Graphophones, and Columbia Disc
and Indestructible Cylinder Records.
First and always, quality.
Comparisons show it. Investigate
for yourself.
Along with Columbia quality goes
the exclusive Columbia privilege of
exclusive selling rights. One means
the certain sale, the other the certain
profit.
The keen piano dealer knows what
exclusive selling rights and the one
complete line can be made to mean.
PIANOS FOR jJ^S. REGIMENT.
Sohmer Piano and Milton Player-Piano Accom-
pany the Regiment from Ft. Crook to Val-
c'ez, Alaska, Their New Station.
Jaco.b. Estey a Visitor.
The Estey Co. were favored this week by a
vfsit from Jacob Estey, the eldest son of Col.
J. Gray Estey. It was his first visit to Phila-
delphia, and while his stay was short he took in
some of the places of interest and spent one
afternoon at the Philadelphia ball park seeing
his favorite Boston team get a good drubbing
at the hands of the Quaker City team. Jacob
Estey is the oldest of the fourth generation of
the Esteys, and will no doubt some day be at
the head of the great house of Estey.
Weather Doesn't Bar Heppe Activity.
C. J. Heppe & Son note that business with
them showed no falling off during the hot
weather, and it seemed the. hotter the day the
more business they did. Wednesday of last
week, the hottest day of the year in Philadelphia,
was the biggest day at the Heppe house of that
week. G. A. Baer, of the Heppe force, has taken
his family to Garrettsford, Pa., for pie summer.
John G. Stratton has opened his cottage at
Ocean City this week. He will spend his vaca-
tion there, and before and after will go down
every week from Friday until Monday. John
W. Irwin, advertising manager of the Heppes,
has sent his family to Gettysburg, Pa., for the
summer. George Getzoff went on a two weeks'
vacation Saturday.
D. D. O'Neill to Attend Convention.
D. D. O'Neill, in charge of the talking machine
department at the Heppe house, is on the execu-
tive committee of the Talking Machine Jobbers'
Association, and he has been to Atlantic City
Hayden Bros., Omaha, Neb., last week dis-
posed of a Sohmer upright piano and a Milton
player-piano to accompany members of the Six-
teenth Infantry who have been removed from
Fort Crook, near Omaha, to Valdez, Alaska, at
which fort they will be located for the next
two years. The Sohmer piano was for First
Lieutenant R. John West, and the Milton player
lor the privates and non-commissioned officers
of Captain Simons' company.
A PIANO YOUNGSTER.
There has been a new member recently ad-
mitted to the firm of Foster & Waldo, piano
dealers of Minneapolis, Minn. The young man
is named Kenneth Foster, and he arrived on
June 8. He is at present stopping at Woodside,
Lake Minnetonka, the summer home of his proud
father.
H. D. PEASE SAILS FOR EUROPE.
H. D. Pease, president of the Pease Piano Co.,
sailed on Wednesday for Europe, it being his in-
tention to attend the "Passion Play" at Oberam-
mergau while abroad.
J. G. Corley, manager of the Cable Piano Co.,
of Richmond, Va., was recently elected president
of the Wednesday Club, one of the prominent
social organizations of that city, with a member-
ship of over 500.
Consider what you would do with
the new Grafonola "Mignon," for in-
stance, at a hundred-and-a-half.
And write. Get into correspond-
ence first and decide afterward.
h
COLUMBIA
Phonograph Co., Gen'l, Tribune Bldg., New York