Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1895-06-15
MUSICAL NOTES.

real estate investment represented by
costly factory structures erected on
highly taxed and valuable land adds
greatly to an unrecognized cost. says
the Musical Courier. of New York. The
dealer who Is prepared to purchase
the goods Is not interested In any of
the features connected with the pro.
duction: all he wants Is a piano of
definite grade. comparable with its
price. and having u name or reputation
to justify the handling ut that price.
He is not Interested I'm the firm nor In
the factory. nor In the location.
The rapid increase Of real estate val.
Ties In New York City drove large
colony Of piano manufacturers beyond
the Harlem River. where now. within
the radius Of few miles. several dor.
en- large establishments are located.
which could not compete II they were
compelled to make investments GOV.
ering the same extent in the heart Of
the city.
The movement began years ago. It
displayed itself in other places outside
Of New York City. although the mecca.
sity for cheaper locations was and Is
not manifest to any degree similar to
this here. except probably In Chicago.
In the latter city Kimball went ut once
to the very outskirts Of the place. his
factory having been erected far distant
from any buiit-up locality. although It
Is now gradually being surrounded by
factories and buildings. But It Is not
and never will be. I'm the heart of the
city. The same must be said Of the
buildings of the Chicago Cottage Or.
gan Company. and the Conover Piano
Company. which are situated In Chi.
cago relatively about as the Harlem
factories are situated to New York
proper.
The new Boston factories are all OF
the line Of direct traffic or are In Cam.
bridgeport. across the river-something
like the Astoria piano factories. And
yet the rapid Increase In the value Of
land and the difficulties Of transporta.
ton In large cities. the delays In the
receipt Of material. Of shipment and Of
general traffic on trucks and wagons
must BIZ added to the cost Of produc.
ton. must make the competition more
difficult with each yenr-even In these
favored instances.
How then are plano manufacturers
10 manage when brought into this COM
petition. as they inevitably are. with
the makers. say. like the Starr Plano
Company ut Richmond. Ind: the A. h.
Chase Company at NOrwalk, Ohio; the
Brambach Piano Company ut Dodge
willie. n. Y: the wegman Piano Com.
pany at Auburn, n. ": the Waterloo
Company ut Waterloo, n. Y: the Ster-
ling Company mt Derby. Conn; the
Brown X Simpson Company ut Wor.
cester. Mass: the Chase Brothers Com.
pany Mt Muskegon. Mich; ar the Shaw
Company ut Erie. Pa. All these fac.
tories ARE located on railroad lines that
bring them In direct contact with all
shipping points. and some Of them have
switches running right into their yards.
Here then Is represented saving Of
thousands upon thousands of dollars
In each case every year. the actual cash
being saved. Some years ago. before
the rural piano became the equal Of the
urban plano. the makers In New York
and Boston looked with derision upon
country. made" pianos. but this de-.
risiOn has been transformed into re.
spect now, due to such men ns Rufus
Blake and Ben Starr and Calvin Whit
ney. and the late Henry Wegman and
Harry RaymOre aud TheO. +. Brown
and AlOis Brambach, the Chases and
a few more, who have more than amply
demonstrated that the dealers and the
2 people are not interested In the place OF
manufacture. not even In the name OF
the plano. as much as In the plano It
self. aud who have also shown that ru
ral plano factories can Ike made sue
cessful equally II not better AMI quick
er than costly city factories. Did thu
failures during or rs result Of the
panic come with city or country manu-
facturers! The question answers itself
What Il the expense Of running ,
closed plano factory or u nalf-time plan
factory In country town compared Il
such un expense In the heart Of New
York City? How IL that, gentlemen
Have you ever pondered over that as
pect Of the case? And probably Their
are very few In the manufacturing lin
who will not admit that the half-tim
piano factory has been very fashionabi
In New York NJ late. We wish to pu
ourselves on record rs predicting TIM
Il will be- much more fashionable her
than ever, judging from the manner l
which the general piano trade Is view
ed by the average New York piano mar
ufacturer. We venture to assert Diet
nitely and without any kind of reset
walton that a great majority IF the Ne,
York piano manufacturers will nevC
again produce rs many pianos per NJ
mum as they have made in the past pc
annum.
Competition with the small cue
tthe Courier Is New York paper
with Chicago. Cincinnati, Boston an
even Philadelphia, is impossible on ii
existing basis. II Is an industrial 1n
mercantile impossibility as affairs
conjunction with New York piaI
building are conducted. The pessimi
tic New York piano manufacturer
dead already; 1t Is only question I
the funeral with him. The New YOl
piano manufacturer who Is living In Il
hopes that his name will sell his Diar
when the trade revival reaches MS
doomed to the most narrowing kind
disappointment, for he Is not eve
a.