The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1892-07-31
THE STENCIL PIANO FRAUD.
1T Is NEARLY EXTINCT IN NEW T0RKi
BUT 7HRIpEs IN CHICAGO.

Dealers OF Good Repute share Profits with
Open swindier-- sham Instruments that
Ruin tho Performances OF Lsarners--rt
nno Trade Organizations Are siieat
I'm exposing. In its recent article. Bargains
That Swindc,' the manner In which 'stencillef
pianos are worked Off on the unthinking buy
ers. The Sun has done good public service"
said Editor Bhnmenbcrg OF the Musical Cowf0.
1T has called public attention to o moan
swindle that ought to receive publicity oil ovef
the country. 1t has boon going on for about
twenty years. and now that It has been almost
rooted out in New York city Chicago has taken
hold of it and is booming the nefarious traf1os
II will probably be at the height OF It's pros<
pority when Chicago opens its Worlds Fair.
rs tho demand for stock to swindle unthink.
Ing buyers at that enterprise will probably be
great. and thon possibly it will die out. and
perhaps may practically become extinct.
Vast fortunes wcro made two decades ago
by tho makers of these stenciled' instru-
mcnts. and other fortunes were repeated By
tho dishonest dealers who palmed them on on
tho public. You will find this almost worth-
less instrument in country houses all over the
land. Whom tho trade began about twenty
years ago the method was to make an inferior
instrument, and stencil it with a name which
was close imitation OF tho name OF some we'll
known and thoroughly trustworthy manufac-
turer. This system was comparatively short
lived. for only the very ignorant buyers could
BIO fooled by the imposition Large numbers
OF these cheap pianos were made In the East
and shipped South and West before the method
was changed.
Later the manufacturers made these poor
instruments In stock, and hold them awaiting
orders Of dealers who had reputation for
honest business methods. who. tempted By
the vast profits of tho business. were willing
to participate In tho swindle. They ordered
tho manufacturers to stencil their names on
the instruments and ship them to their stores.
The dealers then sold them rs instruments OF
their own make. AS competitors in the same
cities had no means OF discovering that the
pianos were stenciied they We're unable to
compete. Tho stencillcd piano cost from sos
to Sl25 each. but with tho dealers name
proportion to the commercial rating OF the
dealer. who was supposed to be reputable.
dealer aud the maker. Another dodge was to
9mSi thS Cheap piano with standard
Gotham The names Of famous musicians
We're also used with great sucGess in dipping
lar tho dealer could often get rid Of o SfO5
piano Tor 500 and sometimes $3.50.
"A fight hogan against these, Inferior instru:
in New York and Boston. where the instru-
mens had been turned out in great numbers.
cagoans took it up This was about Ave years
ago Now fully half of these low grade pianos
sernpu9us Ne% York manufacturors did de-
h thai W Whaqass was
eentaEe Of stsncilled instrument Was fully Is
yer cent, TINS year. on an increased out
S %, less Is '%ss %ss{ a}csse
The traffic has been bo6incd latterly through
tho fundamentally Of catchy, advertisinE In
htatcturer. no hot has been the Fight, against
that tho United States postal authorities have
taken hand IN trying to XIII it or by refusing
sHn iii Sn m IN New w9t %a "a.
tanned chiefly through tho means Of the ndver-
gains That swndle. These these ad itise a
all have the same stereotyped form. and al
cianiI, a widow in reduced oircumstances. a
different forms Of ad being employed. You
can spot the stencil ads right of. for the
Residences orat storage warehouses ''.
To return to the Chicago stencil piano. It
is worth some notice for the reason that 1t IL
Internationally tho very worst low grade nj
ano ever turned out on earth. 1t is gotten up
to make SNOWY appearance. and filed with
Of these Chicago instruments don't even var
nish the Piano. as most lowGrad pianos are
the ii sA tSa by
strumonts arc absolutely destitute of merit.
ahe hammer strikes r the string and gives out
on organs. too. but to lessor extent. as the
demand Tor organs Is scarcely, large enough
dealer in stencil goods. Tho organ business
Is carriei on on its inrGe;t scale with an organ
IN the West and hundreds and hundreds Of
Western %"urch people have been duDed by
sHidy b "fs Whom 9 tho %arS F E
opens. for then will como tho greatest oppor-
tunity, of their lives for the dealers to catch
gulliblo buyers.
The bus mess is m outrageous ono. 1t Is
Impossible to calculate the amount of injury
mental music by permitting them to use these
ow,grade instrumrintf. by practising on such
tone quality, and true touch, the two qualities
essential to fine playing. The worst Of this 10
that no amount Of suhseGuent instruction will
thing as the quality called responsive touch
to to- st"ne! pHnn and ey"n less Of the yaas;
liz 0v viii Of Sc daai y sny and rf'h r ras
nat u r7 aSe '%fHf pu" an nsrucS parents ea.
poyed TO teach their children mnsic who be.
gins, by teli,nE the ennoGrr TINT he has been
to tnrn. So tho child is allowed to continue
ruin his appreciation of line INSTRUMENTATION,
that he soon loses tho ability 10 appreciate the
merits of n really good piano"
Editor Biumenberg said finally that no aid
In lighting tho harmful Swinde had been re-
ceived from tho organizations whose interests,
it won 4 ho imagined, would prompt them to
he yea lous In their efforts to root the swinderO
out Editor BIumenDerg wrote this to TIE
SUN on July 4:
No step has ever been taken by the piano
manufacturers Of New York as a body to In
terrupt transactions in stencil pianos, This
Is due probably to the fact that among them
are piano uiacturers engaged in this very
kind of traffic. The Chicago piano manulac-
to interrupt this business. and. by an ap.
parently curious coincidence. the stencil
pianos made and sold IN Chicago. are lust
Clever Capture of - Horse Thief