Music Trade Review

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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
Conducted by B. B. Wilson
THE MUSICAL GOLD BRICK GAME.
Musical Magazine Takes a Fling at Those Who
Make a Fractice of Setting to Music and Pub-
lishing the Poems of Amateurs—Makes In-
teresting Reading for All Concerned.
In its editorial columns this mouth the Etude
takes a strong and decisive Ming at certain of the
concerns which make a practice of setting to music
and publishing the "song poems" of amateurs for
a consideration. In view of the action taken by
postal authorities against one such publisher for
misuse of the mails, the editorial is particularly in-
teres'ting at this time. In this connection the Etude
says:
"It is difficult to sympathize with any one who
has been taken in by a patent swindle. The gentle-
man from the rural districts who goes to the great
city with the profits of a year's hard labor and pur-
chases a brick which has been dipped in gold paint,
simply because some diamond-studded crook as-
sures him that the brick has been purloined from
the U. S. Treasury, is actually compounding a
felony in spirit. He is willing enough to enter
into a thieving conspiracy to defraud the govern-
ment, but he is first to demand the protection of
the police when he finds out that he has been
buncoed. You may think that this fraud is a thing
of the past or a part of the stock in trade of the
comic papers. The police records, however, show
that the game with some slight modern variations
is being played nearly every day in the great cities.
No, the fools are not all dead yet.
"There is a musical swindle which is quite as
perennial as the 'gold-brick' swindle. It deserves
the severest prosecution by the law, since its vic-
tims are not among those who are trying to en-
gage in a swindle. Liike the older 'bunco game,' it
is difficult to conceive of so many people being
hoodwinked by a fraud which seems so obvious.
"Someone writes a poem which, good or bad,
naturally elicits the praise of someone's well-mean-
ing friends. Then someone sees an advertisement
which reads like this:
'• 'GREAT FORTUNES MADE FROM
SONG POEMS. Send us your poem and
let us put music to it and publish it for you.
We will put it on the market and bring you
vast wealth and untold fame. Opportunity
knocks but once. STICKEM, FAKER &
CO., 1323 Humbug St., Cheatville.'
"Someone sends his poem to Stickem, Faker &
Co. He is then informed that for the small sum
of $? ?. ? ? they will write beautiful music for his
poem and publish it with a highly ornate title page.
Someone consents and Stickem, Faker & Co. carry
out their part of the contract (perhaps). They
write music that would paralyze an epileptic hippo-
potamus. Someone knows nothing of music, but
in his cloud of vanity he believes that it is "a great
deal ibetter than lots of other music he has heard."
Somehow, the whole matter stops here. The for-
tune which Someone was to get never comes. Fame
alike procrastinates.
"Then he learns to his surprise that reputable
publishers of music are not in the habit of buying
song poems unaccompanied with music written by
a competent composer. He also learns that if a
•musical composition is worth while the publisher
of good standing will publish it without calling
upon Someone to bear all the expenses of the first
and very probably the only edition. Someone then
sits down and writes to the big publishers and
offers to let them have five hundred or one thousand
copies of his composition on sale, etc., etc. If you
should know a Mr. Someone for goodness sake go
to him and whisper over and again, 'Keep away
from Stickem, Faker & Company and all of their
piratical accomplices.'"
FLANNER FILES SCHEDULES
WRITES SONG FOR OLCOTT.
Showing Liabilities of $17,297.63 and Assess
of $31,922.49—Claims Four
Well-known
Numbers as Exempt.
"That's an Irish Lullaby" to Be Featured by
Prominent Actor in New Play Next Season.
(Special to The Review.)
MILWAUKEE, WIS.. July 8.—Joseph Flanner,
well-known sheet music publisher and general
music dealer, 417 Broadway, who went into in-
voluntary bankruptcy recently, has just filed his
schedule in the Federal Court, showing liabilities
of $17,297.IM and assets of $:l 1,922.49. The only
secured claim is that of the Wisconsin National
Bank for $1,500, representing half of what Mr.
Flanner owed this bank. Unsecured claims amount
to $15,797.03. Mr. Flanner claims as exempt prop-
erty valued at $1,880. Music plates and copyrights
are valued at $3,80(1, fixtures at $3,092.55, while
the remainder of the assets is made up from the
stock of sheet music, small goods and talking
machines.
Mr. Flanner claims as exempt the music plates
and copyrights of four of his leading publications,
including: "On Wisconsin," a march; "Pickles and
Peppers," rag; "On the Road to Mandalay," a
song; "The Herd Girl's Dream," instrumental.
The value of these plates and copyrights is placed
at only $200. Other property claimed exempt in-
cludes the sum of $1,500, the proceeds from the
sale of the Flanner homestead at 221 Twenty-fifth
street, to be invested in another homestead, and
earnings of the bankrupt for the past three months,
amounting to $180.
Most of the claims are on open accounts and
are unusually extensive in number. Many of them
are as low as twenty-seven cents. A fairly large
number of claims are represented by notes held
against Mr. Flanner.
Morris Bimberg, well known as a violinist and
band leader, died on Saturday at his summer home
at Arverne, N. J.
(Special to The Review.)
DETROIT, MICH., July 7.—J. R. Shannon, the De-
troit song writer, many of whose compositions
have been published by Witmark, Remick and
others within the last year, has written a song
especially for Chauncey Olcott, which will be sung
by the noted actor in a new play which will be put
out in August. It is being published by M. Wit-
mark & Sons. The title is "That's an Irish Lull-
aby." It is a brand-new thing in Irish songs, not
a ballad, but a distinct type of song. Mr. Olcott
liked it so well that he made a place in his new
play especially for it. It will not be published
until the new show is staged.
OPERA BY ELOPING PRINCESS
To Have First Performance in Rome This Week
—Much Interest in Work Growing Out of
Stormy Career of Louise of Saxony.
A dispatch from Rome states that this week will
see the production of the new operetta, "Princi-
pessa Bizzarra," or "The Strange Princess," from
the joint pens of Princess Louise, of Saxony, and
her pseudo-husband, Signor Toselli. The libretto
is by her Royal Highness, and Toselli has com-
posed the music.
It is further stated that Righi, the well-known
tenor, has been engaged to play the part of the
husband of the Princess in the play. An an-
nouncement that "both Princess Louise and Signor
Toselli have promised to be present at the produc-
tion" attracts more attention than the operetta
itself.
Few court scandals have surpassed in vivid in-
terest the stormy periods of the life of Louise of
Saxony.
CONDITIONS IN BOSTON TRADE
So Far as Music Publishing Is Concerned Are
Excellent—Leading Houses T u r n i n g Out Ex-
cellent Class of Publications—Other News.
BOSTON,
(Special to The Review.)
MASS., July 7.—So far
as
your
correspondent learns, business with most of the
publishing houses of the city has been quite good
in the past month, and the prospects are excellent
for a continuation throughout the summer.
Busy Times with Ditson.
At the Oliver Ditson Co. there has been notable
activity in all departments, and there has been
quite a heavy demand for many publications of
this house. George W. Furness, one of the com-
pany's traveling men, just now is on the Pacific
Coast dividing most of his time between Cali-
fornia and Washington. Clarenc- A. Woodman,
of the Ditson forces, is away on his vacation and
all his time will be taken up with the diversions
and pastimes incident to life at Marshfield Hills,
where Mr. Woodman's family have a summer
home.
The July number of The Musician has an ex-
cellent cover, one calculated to quickly rivet the
attention of its subscribers. It is entitled "A
Difficult Passage," and shows a young, attractive
child with a violin in one hand eagerly poring over
the manuscript of the music that is before her.
The contents of this number include a "Resume
of the Teaching of William H. Sherwood," con-
tributed by Eleanor P. Sherwood; "The Country
Town Music Teacher," by J. Shipley Watson;
"The Importance of Details," by Ernest von Mus-
s.'lman; "Musical Conditions in Certain European
Countries" and "Love Music for the Piano," by
Harriette Brower. There is the usual supplement
of excellent music, both vocal and instrumental.
Made Popular by McCormack.
"I Hear a Thrush at Eve" has proved to be
such a big hit in John McCormack's repertoire
that the publishers, the White-Smith Music Pub-
lishing Co., are having a hard time to keep up
with the demand. The song has already been
given three editions and still the demand
for it keeps right along. This is all the
more surprising in view of the fact that
it was issued only last April. Mr. McCormack
is going to make it an important feature of his
concert programs next season, and of all the
popular pieces of Composer Cadman this one
promises to be the equal if not the peer of the
others. The White-Smith Co. has two instru-
mental pieces that are nearly ready for the public
and will be out in a fortnight. They are by A.
Sartario and one is entitled "The Cavalry At-
tack" and the other is a Carmencita Spanish dance.
The house is about putting out a n:w violin cata-
log, also one of pipe organ numbers which doubt-
less will be found most useful to students and
professional people.
Charles W. Thompson Reports Fair Business.
Charles W. Thompson's plac^ under the Park
street church is one of the coolest places in the
city these hot days, and he and his staff of clerks
are to be envied. Mr. Thompson reports a fair
business for this season of the y.'ar. He is not
putting out any pieces for the present. Just now
Mr. Thompson is figuring as to where he had bet-
ter spend his vacation.
NEW SONGS BY OTTO HEINZMAN.
Four new songs by that well-known writer, Otto
M. Heinzman, are: "Last Night," a pretty ballad;
"If All the World Should Turn from You," an-
other ballad; a song, "If Every Girl Were a Beau-
tiful Rose," and a march and two-step instru-
mental number, "On the Firing Line." In addi-
tion to being a song writer Mr. Heinzman is en-
gaged in the piano manufacturing business.