Music Trade Review

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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
PIANO TRADE CONDITIONS IN AUSTRALIA
By F. OWEN FRENCH, of Jesse French & Sons Piano Co.
Did you ever stop to realize that Australia
is a territory larger than the United States?
It is not a little island in the Southern Seas as
seems to be the general opinion, but is just one
great big undeveloped territory abounding in
natural wealth, 100 square miles greater in area
than the U. S. A. But it is very small in
population, for in the whole of this great island
there is not the population of New York City.
The last census showed something under
5,000,000, but since that census 300,000 Aus-
tralian sons have volunteered their services to
defend the Empire, and most of these are in
active service, others in training.
War conditions exist in Australia, and it is
natural to suppose that the Australian people
are not interested in the luxuries of life, espe-
cially pianos. However, there is a fair state
of prosperity in the commonwealth, due to
various reasons. Last season a record crop
of wheat, 179,853,602 bushels were harvested,
and wheat was selling close to record prices.
The wool crop, which is perhaps Australia's
greatest wealth, was not a record, but still Aus-
tralia and New Zealand produced 2,129,915
bales. The gross value of the 1,807,979 bales
exported was $116,171,165. Apart from Great
Britain the most of this came to United States.
Australia is essentially an agricultural coun-
try, and all agricultural products have been
bringing enormous prices. The Australian sol-
dier gets good pay, the private gets $1.50 per
day and keep, and if he is a married man he is
allowed so much for his wife and so much for
each child. He is a happy cuss, and spends
his wages just as soon as he gets them, so that
taking all things into consideration, there is a
good deal of loose money around.
American Pianos Made a Hit
I went over there with a big bunch of Jesse
French & Sons and Lagonda samples both for
New Zealand and the commonwealth of Aus-
tralia, the first lot of samples for New Zealand
being burned on board the steamer. My sec-
ond lot of samples opened up in fine condi-
tion, and I had some in all the leading cities
of the commonwealth. I really made a hit
with our instruments, that is as far as tone and
doesn't he had better stay at home, and he will
be money in pocket. However, since the war
the Colonial dealers have been clamoring for
the good English agencies, such as Brinsmead
and Broadwood, the English piano being very
similar to the German. Owing to the cheap
labor both in England and Germany, they have
been able to pretty well keep the Colonial mar-
ket to themselves. They are making instru-
ments for about half of what the average Amer-
ican instrument costs. For patriotic reasons,
also the saving brought about by preferential
tariff, the Colonial dealer will prefer to do
business with the mother country.
New Zealand's Requirements in Pianos
New Zealand is much more conservative in
its requirements than Australia. They insist
on a small piano about four feet two inches
high with the English or old style fall board,
that this country has relegated to the scrap
heap these past twenty years. French polish
is the only finish wanted, and it seems that this
F. Owen French
is one thing that the American piano manu-
facturer can't get next to. There have been
quite a number of attempts to polish the pianos
with this finish, but so far they have been mis-
erable failures. The English and German work-
men were adepts at this line of work, and a well
polished piano from either of these countries
was just as brilliant as the very best Amer-
ican high varnish finish, and what is more it
has the advantage of not checking. The aver-
age low priced English and German instrument
CONTEST OVER BARKER CO. CASE
Superior Court of Connecticut to Decide Le-
gality of Relations of Bankrupt Piano Con-
cern With Discount Co.—Important Case
Kurrabeena Point, Mosman
construction are concerned. I got all kinds of
compliments, and some of these were from the
leading musicians of the country, most of whom
have been students in European conservatories
of music. Naturally, I felt pretty good about
this, more especially when a lady called around
and said that she had purchased a piano from
the Jesse French Co. over twenty-six years ago,
and how very pleased she was. She invited
me over to see it, and I went, and was more
than pleased to find that the instrument had
stood the climate perfectly, and the tone was
still good and clear.
Why Germans Captured the Market
Before the war England and Germany sup-
plied the piano trade wih its requirements.
About 16,000 pianos per year was the annual
importation, 13,000 of which came from Ger-
many, owing to their more aggressive busi-
ness methods in catering to the peculiar re-
quirements of the Colonial trade. The Ger-
man manufacturer got into the habit of making
exactly what the trade required, a point that
the American manufacturer might note, if he
HARTFORD, CONN., December 5.—In the case of
the Barker Piano Co., bankrupt, this city, it is
probable that a precedent will be set by the
court regarding the relations of retail piano
houses and discount companies, and pending a
final decision in the matter by the Superior
Court of Connecticut, Steward N. Gunning as
trustee for the bankrupt estate, is holding on
to certain moneys collected on the conditional
sales contract.
When Mr. Dunning was appointed trustee,
the Barker Piano Co. had many contracts out-
standing with people who had bought pianos
on the installment plan. These contracts had
been assigned to the Commercial Security Co.,
of Chicago, and others. Notwithstanding the
assignments, the Barker Piano Co. had con-
tinued to collect on the installments, and in the
usual course of business the Barker Co. turned
the money over to the holder of the assign-
ments.
After being appointed trustee, Mr. Dunning
made application to Edward M. Yeomans,
United States referee in bankruptcy, for au-
thority to collect on these installment contracts,
9
was cheap and nasty, but we must not forget
that that is something that applies to the cheap
American piano though not to such an extent.
And we must not judge all their pianos on that
score. The better brands of English and Ger-
man instruments are particularly well made,
the cabinet work and general finish being ex-
cellent, and they seem to have a knack of get-
A View of Lavender Bay, Sydney
ting a good rich round tone in a small instru-
ment.
Now the Australian dealers taking them all
through are not so conservative as the New
Zealand dealers, and a fair number of straight
American models are being sold there. At the
same time there are a number of first-class
houses that will not consider your line unless
you can talk Colonial models to them, so it
seems as though to get any volume of busi-
ness in Australia and New Zealand we will have
to adopt the Colonial model. Then at the
same time we must not forget that the war is
not going to last forever, so it might be as well
to give a little timely warning and thus save
the American manufacturer from getting too
much dead Colonial stuff on his hands, remem-
bering that for patriotic reasons and preferen-
tial tariff England and her allies will get the
bulk of the Colonial piano business after the
war has ended.
Exploiting a foreign market is an expensive
business, more especially when the market is so
firm in its demands for an article that is so
different from our regular lines.
The retail business is done pretty much in
the same way as it is here most of the sales
are being made on time contracts of from twelve
to thirty-six months. Repossessions are prac-
tically unknown, so that while the time is ap-
parently long the business is clean. The trade
is principally controlled by a few large con-
cerns who operate from the larger cities having
their country agencies in the smaller towns.
The Colonial people are a musical people, and
per capita there are more pianos in Australia
and New Zealand than in any other part of the
world.
he alleging that they were illegal under the
law of this State, because of what he con-
tended was the usurious interest rate that was
being charged the Barker Piano Co. on account
of loans, by the holders of the assignments, the
intention being to try out the validity of the
assignments under Connecticut law, in the Supe-
rior Court. Referee Yeomans granted the au-
thority the trustee requested.
The holders of the assignments appealed to
Judge Edwin S. Thomas from the referee's or-
der, and Judge Thomas reversed the referee,
and directed that the money be paid by -Mr.
Dunning to the holders of the assigned con-
tracts. Mr. Dunning held on to the money,
however, and John T. Robinson acting for him,
took an appeal from Judge Thomas's order to
the United States Circuit Court of Appeals, that
tribunal reversed Judge Thomas, and sustained
the action of Referee Yeomans. Then the hold-
ers of the assignments made application to the
Supreme Court of the United States for a writ
of certiorari that the case might be taken to
that tribunal. The Supreme Court has denied
the application and consequently, under the de-
cision of the United States Circuit Court of
Appeals, Mr. Dunning will keep the money, and
it will be for the Superior Court to say whether'
the money will go to the holders of the assign-
ments or to general creditors. Mr. Dunning
has about $14,000 in his possession.