St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1896-01-17
GOTTEN UP BY A FIRM OF MUSIC
DEALERS IN THIS
CITY
A sCURyY TRICK TO DECEIVE.
MAKING A "CAT,s-PAWv of THE
@.USICAL COURIER OF MANY
YEARS AGO.
TO 1NJURE THE KENDALL PIANO
Some "COurter', Fences of Their Own
to Mend, and They Are Dated
Whose Ok Is Gored3

I want to call the attention Of the
public here to one Of the scurviest
tricks that has ever been played upon
man. and coming. as 1t does. from a
music house in this city which has
lie confidence, 1T will be the greater
surprise, and by all honest and fair
minded people must be condemned as
little short Of forgery.
1t will be remembered that on the
18th day of last month I, as general
agent of the Kimball company, piano
manufacturers, Chicago, announced a
great surplus stock sale Of Kimball
pianos at 40 and 142 East Sixth street,
this city, making a full column an
nouncement explaining in detail,
in the daily papers, our reasons
for said sacrifice sale, describing each
make and style Of piano in stock, and
quoted prices we would take for each
one SO described, and terms on which
they could be had. These descrip-
tons. quotations and prices were on
our own make Of piano Ghe KimbalD
and other cheaper brands handled by
our wholesale house, Chicago. We
made no mention Of any prices on our
competitors Instruments, nor made
any reference to them, no more than if
they were not in existence, avoiding
anything that might offend any COM
petitor (lnless our own low prices
could offend).
In my advertisements during the
week following the announcement, no
word or reference to any other music
house or music dealer has been seen
nor can be found in them. And up to
this day no reader of this paper or any
other, has seen in print one line or
word from me derogatory to the credit
of the grade or class Of any piano han
died by any other dealer in this city.
But from the day Of the starting Of
our sale here a local dealer in this city
began in his display space in bold
type to vilify by insinuations and slurs
the KimbaH piano, and other instru-
ments offered by us in this SALE The
public was constantly being warned
against the Chicago odds and ends
dumped into ST. Paul for a cheap sale"
Low grade shoddy goods" "snide
pianos at high prices guarantee no
good" and many other unbusiness-
like and uncalled-for insinuations cal
culated and intended to injure both
the reputation of the Kimball piano and
it's maker, and thereby injure the sale.
Not until this sort Of work had been
INDUCED in for several days did I
take any notice Of it, or reply and
then only a reminder that I should
sell another hundred pianos here for
their insolence. and warning them to
attend to their own business, and let
others do the same. But they kept 1T
up. They seemed desperate, hesitated
at nothing, nor stopped at anything.
On the second or third day of our sale,
Il was informed that this house had
gotten out and was circulating hand
bill or circular, derogatory to the credit
and character of the KimbaH piano.
and purporting to be from the Musical
Courier" New York, but bearing no
date.
Later, one Of these handbills was
handed to me by customer, and soon
nearly every customer that came in
had one-some a half a dozen; and
now here propose to publish this mis-
cradle circular in full, and / want ev-
erybody in this city to read it, that
they may know the undetermined tricks
resorted to, by a competitor who can't
honestly compete. Here 1t is!
KimbaII.
From the New York Musical Courier. "
There are number Of letters before
us in reference to Kimball pianos. AL
of these inquiries, some Of which will
be answered in detail next week, tend
in one direction, and we therefore can
cover the various replies by merely
stating that any attempt to dispose OF
Kimball pianos with the plea that they
are high grade is an imposition upon
the public, for Kimball pianos are low
grade.
''They sell at various cheap prices
and it depends upon the standing Of q
Kimball agent whether he pays $140 OF
$3.50 for them. If he is a poor devil who
has everything consigned to him, he
must naturally pay the Kimball com
pany the latter price. If he buys fol
cash he can get them for less than
$40.
"a recent letter published by the Chi
cago indicator the Kimbal paper
purporting to have been signed by DR.
F. Ziegfeld. praising the Kimbal
pianos, is a forgery; DR.. Ziegfeld gave
no such letter.
1o++er ie co;d 10 I,ouo baop oivar