Baraboo weekly news. [volume] (Baraboo, Wis.) 1912-197?, 1921-10-13


up the music stores. The first one we
found was little branch of Water
son, Berlin and Snyder" where they
informed us there was no such firm
in Buffalo as the Buffalo Talking Ma
chine Company" AS we had received
concrete evidence to the contrary III
the way OF shipments OF goods at vari-
Gus times, we took exception to their
statements and plunged farther down
the street.
Suddenly name attracted our at
tention- Meal Clarke and Neal.
From the vague depths of our memory
we saw sheet of Letter Paper which
gave to our eyes the statement,
Buffalo Talking Machine Co., Sue
cessors to Neal Clarke and Neal"
We enter the door. A very attrac-
tive lobby greets our eyes, but no
salesman is at hand We look back
farther into the store and see record
booths, display counters, etc., also sew
eral clerks chatting together. We step
back--the clerks scatter, save for one
man, and he sits down and begins to
read the paper.
After Several moments of idly stand
ing, we interrupt his reading by pre-
senting our card Representing the
Eberha1dt Hays Music Co.," and we
receive a little attention. The longer
we stay, the more he warns up to the
occasion, but we certainly thought at
first that he had been metamorphosed
into a bronze image of man. =
From this firm we learn that the
Buffalo Talking Machine Co.," is far
Their UP the street and has no connec-
ton with Neal Clarke and Neal" We
are glad that it has not.
The next place to attract our atten-
ton is the Rudolf Wurlitzer Co" We
decide to see what sort of opponents
they may be of the "Frigid Zone of
Hospitility" We enter their large,
beautifully equipped store and present
our card to a man at desk. He imme
diately leaves his work and very graci-
ously shows US over the entire store,
even to the big pipe-organs on the top
general attitude of this company to-
wards the buying public. it is easy TO
understand why theirs is by far the
incest and most prosperous looking
music store in Buffalo.
Across the street and about half a
block farther on, we found the "Kurtz-
man Piano Co." and in the rear part
of this building is the Buffalo Talk
ing Machine CO." Great stacks of
records were piled almost to the street
door returned records from retail
dealers in the vicinity Of Buffalo,
which this company is trying to
handle as it can for it's customers
This is strictly a wholesale house; so
there are no elaborate display rooms,
but merely sections and sections of
stock cases, with a very pleasant little
man in charge.
He advised us that the Buffalo
Talking Machine Co" had bought out
the wholesale department of Meal,
Clarke and Neal and were now con
Quoting the business entirely separate
from the retail store.
We were glad to learn this, for we
hated to think that our memory had
played us false in this matter. A
memory Is Of little value, il it cannot
be relied upon TO remember at the
time the information is needed.
One thing of interest we saw in
this store-a unique counter holding
places for the insertion of tnree
Style vi Victrolas. It was so arranged
that there were connecting tubes from
the sound chambers space of these
machines, to the customers ears, thus
allowing him to listen to his own par
ticular choice of a record, without
being disturbed by the record which
the next customer, even at his very
elbow, might be listening to ait the
same time. If this counter proves a
success, it will greatly relieve con-
gestion in the music stores at the rush
hours. We would tarry longer. How
ever, as there are those in our party
who are not especially interested in
music and music stores, we must
take no more time here.
Our next goal is East Aurora and
the Roycroft shops. We reach this
quiet spot about noon ard take lunch
in the veranda dining room OF the
famous Inn. Such a subdued air per
yades the place; no glaring lights nor
noisy confusion; everything is peace
and harmony; an ideal spot in which
to rest and think. Nearly all the fur
nishings and equipment have been
made by the Roycrofters themselves.
Even the food that is served comes
from their own farms and dairies. The
little chapel looks no more like a
church than does the print shop at
its rear. One can scarcely imagine
conducting big, thriving business
in S0 Tnueh arinf and in sr1ch artistic