Presto

PRESTO
February 17, 1923
as much, if not even more, to retail business. If you w.ere to follow
the Steger announcement into the warerooms of thet house, where
retail sales are made, you would find that there, too, in a large sense,
"Our major problem is serving—not selling."
A SONGSTER CAGED
The town of Belleville, ill., has succeeded in putting itself on the
musical map with a black ring around it. No one who thinks much
about music, and the people who work for it, will think very highly
of the good sense and justice of Belleville. For out of that town
came last Saturday a newspaper story of peculiar brutality—judicial
and perfectly legal, probably, but inhuman just the same.
It was the case of an unfortunate maker of songs who had starte.l
out, under great handicaps, to make a living by his gifts and hard
work. He left a family in Chicago, dependent upon his efforts and
he stopped in Belleville without a thought that to sing his songs and
sell them could be a crime. But he didn't get far before the bucolic
guardians of public morals, or something, caught the song writer and
put him in jail, with a six months' sentence hanging over him. His
starving wife and babies in Chicago had no concern in the minds of
Belleville "justice." For the culprit had tried to sell his songs with-
out the formality of securing a license to make a living.
In this country there are almost numberless schemes for the
spread of music love. We have associations which send forth mis-
sionaries in the interest of song. We have agents of the propaganda
of community singing. We have a Chamber of Commerce in the sole
interest of music. It takes a small fortune every year to sustain those
efforts designed primarily to encourage music, and finally to enhance
the business of music selling. Hundreds of traveling salesmen visit
the cities and towns in search of orders for music, and musical in-
struments. There is at least one musical federation, scheme, or
league or something of the kind, that is promoted by a trade paper
editor for some little-understood purposes and the entrance to which
costs the price of several songs.
But it is not customary to sentence the salesmen, or the league
workers, to jail. Their good work is permitted to go on undisturbed.
But when an honest, hard-working writer of songs wanders
helplessly into Belleville, he is arrested, tried and sentenced to six
months in jail, just as if he had been caught breaking into a house or
picking someone's pocket!
Isn't it time the sheet music association's offices were brought to
bear upon a law by which such things may happen in Belleville, or
probably anywhere else in this free country?
And it seems to make the pitiable case of Leroy Henderson,
song-writer and former music publisher, seem the worse that he is
stone deaf and could not hear the charge against him. He says he
didn't know he had committed a crime until he found himself in a
prison cell.
THE PENALTY
There is a terrible warning in the condition of Hy Filers, a man
who for years was seemingly the favored child of fortune in the piano
business. And the warning is an old one. It may have an influence
for good, if properly applied by other piano dealers who, while mean-
ing well, are weak. And the case of Eilers, while exaggerated as
compared with, most such instances, has had many duplicates, some of
NEW STYLES BROUGHT
OUT BY NEWMAN BROS.
Models Developed by Chicago Manufacturers Now
Being Offered for Sale.
A number of new models of pianos and player-
pianos developed by the Newman Bros. Co., Chicago,
are now being offered for sale and early shipments
point to a favorable reception of the new styles
brought out by this company. General conditions are
good, and the creation of improved instruments will
keep business on a sound basis during the year, the
Newman Bros. Co. believe.
The style on which most work is being done is the
new small upright which is believed to have more
tone volume for its size than any other on the market.
The instrument is four feet four inches high, and
although the size is cut down, care has been taken
to preserve the volume of tone which was the goal
of Newman Bros, in developing this particular in-
which have been adjusted without loss while others have resulted in
disgrace and punishment.
Hy Eilers only a few years ago was considered the most con-
spicuous success in the piano trade of the Pacific Coast. He had
grown from small things into power. His stores were scattered all
over the West and the volume of his business was so large that it was
at times seemingly impossible for him to buy instruments enough to
keep him supplied. As long ago as 1908 his credit was so good that a
financing concern carried considerably more than $100,000 of his
"paper." He could place orders with almost any of the large indus-
tries with certainty of prompt shipments. The piano travelers went
after him, and he was quoted continually because of his enterprise.
Three weeks ago Hy Eilers was in Chicago when he read a copy
of Presto containing an article, by the Portland, Oregon, corre-
spondent of this paper, in which the piano man's sudden disappear-
ance, was told. The hunted bankrupt phoned this paper and asked
who it was that had given the information as published. He assumed
surprise, and even indignation. He said that he was in Chicago in
an effort to mollify his creditors. When he was told that much of
Presto's correspondent's matter had been suppressed, in the hope that
there might be some mistake in the part which told of warrants
having been issued for his arrest on charge of bad check manipula-
tions. Filers exclaimed that it was "outrageous" and dropped the
receiver.
Today Hy Eilers is in his native land of Germany. He left Chi-
cago just as he had departed from Portland. And he has many
friends in the piano industry in this country who will read with sin-
cere regret the report this week from Portland. Indeed, only last
week a prominent piano manufacturer said to Presto that he believed
Mr. Eilers not to be deliberately dishonest, but rather caught in the
meshes of misfortune. "He is a genius," said the manufacturer, "and
the greatest piano merchant we have ever had."
Perhaps so. But his fate, whether the result of misfortune or
reckless disregard of the rights of his creditors, contains a warning.
There is only one safe and sure way to do the piano business.
The piano merchant who tries to "cover up," and to mislead his
creditors, who buys pianos by misrepresenting his financial condition,
who diverts the securities or property that has been pledged to his
creditors, is sure to come to a sudden and disgraceful end.
There are not many piano dealers of the kind who may ever be
classed with the kind alluded to. We know of none at this time.
But there have been earlier cases similar to that of Hy Eilers, and
the warning stands. And the only possible good that can come from
such a case is in the admonition which may keep other and weaker
ones from falling to the temptations which are liable to beset any of
us in the struggles of life.
A daily paper report told of the incarceration, at Belleville, 111.,
of a "mute" song Writer who had been caught "singing his own songs
in public." Probably the offense was not in the songs so much as in
disturbing the somnolence of Belleville, aggravated by the fact that
the singer was "mute." Dumbbells jailing a "dumb" minstrel.
* * *
New York piano factories are so busy that they don't seem nat-
ural to anyone who visited them a year ago. The wheels are going
'round fast and the mail carriers are carrying in heavy sacks.
There is only one weekly trade paper that is conducted by piano
men. Modesty forbids that we name it here.
strument, :v quality which dealers will appreciate.
Newman Grands are also developing well, and the
reproducing piano which was introduced last fall has
been steadily increasing in popularity. In addition,
several new styles in the four feet eight inch size are
now ready for shipment.
"With additional machinery we are able to increase
our output considerably," said L. M. Newman, presi-
dent of the company. "These new machines are all
installed now and operation on a larger scale is being
begun. It looks as though it will be a prosperous
spring and summer, and if dealers would go after
prospects just a little harder, even more business
could be done than is being done now."
EXCELLENT MACHINE SHOP.
One of the features of the Gulbransen-Dickinson
Co., Chicago, is the machine shop in which practi-
cally every metal part of the playerpianos made by
this company are produced. The shop has recently
been enlarged and new machines of the most modern
type installed. The shop is in charge of Frank Chris-
topher, foreman.
EUPHONA REPRODUCING PIANO
FOR NEW STEAMSHIP
Pacific Ocean Liner Supplied with Famous Instru-
ment Purchased in New York.
After having tested out a number of playerpianos
of the better kind, the Sun Shipbuilding Company, of
Chester, Pa., purchased from the Mason & Hamlin
Company, of New York, a Cable Euphona reproduc-
ing piano, for the American steamship "Haleakala,"
which has just been built by them for the Inter-Island
Steam Navigation Company, of Honolulu.
This liner is for Pacific Ocean service and will not
touch an American port again. Consequently an in-
strument that would stand up under severe usage was
desired. In the service that this ship will operate
they claim there will be no opportunity for repairs
upon a musical instrument, and the selection of the
Euphona reproducing piano was indeed a compliment.
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