The talking machine world (Jan-Dec 1906)

THE TALKING MACHINE WORLD. 47 PAUL H. CROMELIN'S SPEECH At the Banquet Given to Mr. Marconi Last Month — A Very Able Address Which Will be Read With Interest by Our Readers. In last month's World reference was made to the visit to the United States of Mr. Marconi, the noted inventor of the wireless telegraph, who visited the factories of the Columbia Co. at Bridgeport, Conn., for the purpose of touting that great establishment and becoming acquainted with the personalities of the company, witl? whom he is now connected. At the dinner tendered Mr. Marconi in the evening of his visit at the Waldorf-Astoria some very interesting addresses were made, that by Paul H. Cromelin, vice-president of the Columbia Co., being of especial interest, so much so that we deem it worthy of reproduction herewith: "ilr. President, Honored Guest and Gentlemen : I understood that this was to be purely an informal gathering to meet and greet our distinguished guest and to mark his association with our enterprise. It occurred to me that one of the features that would contribute to this delightful informality would be the tabooing of after-dinner speeches. It seems, however, that this is not to be. and as my friend, Mr. Emerson, has not yet perfected his new Invention for the tongueless transmission of mental conceptions, and we still must resort to such common, ordinary, vulgar methods as spoken words and mouth our speech, let us for a few moments this evening consider the sound recording art ; the achievements of the past, the promises for the future. " 'The Phonographic Book, or Story of the Art of Eecording and Reproducing Sonnd,' is one which tells of things accomplished. It contains many interesting chapters. It does not relate the performances of any one man, and no one individual occupies the cover, the inside page, the several chapters and the back. The name Edison is found on the opening page and in frequent passages — for to Mr. Edison is due the credit for first reproducing sounds previously recorded. Interesting and unique, however, as was Edison's discovery, it remained for Prof. Alexander Graham Bell, Dr. Chichester Bell and Prof. Chas. Sumner Taintor, to give to the world an actual living invention — something on which an i'Jidustry could be grounded — and in the Volta laboratory in Washington, D. C, in the discovery of the wax engraving process in 1886, the present world-embraciug talking machine industry was born. Twenty years of progress and to those who have watched it from the beginning, twenty years of splendid achievement. "Skimming through the pages we find passing mention of Berliner, and then our own MacDonald and Emerson occupy prominent positions — Emerson, the man who does things ; MacDonald, the inventor, the designer and the builder. Poulsen's telegrfiphonic achievement is deservedly given prominent mention, and the book concludes with an account of Higham's wonderful contribution towards the amplification of sound. What a fascinating story of surpassing interest ; of steady, constant improvement in the sound-recording art. A second book is about to be begun, and we look confidently to the future in the knowledge and certainty that all the glorious achievements of the past will appear but as insignificant when the new story is completed, and we have reason to hope and to believe that the portrait of our distinguished guest, Mr. Marconi, will illumine its title page, and that the record of his achievements will be found to be the most absorbingly interesting chapter of all. "Last Saturday night I watched with greatest interest the presses in the New York Herald building turning out daily papers at the rate of 300,000 an hour ; and then I thought of the present methods of manufacturing disc records, and permitted myself the privilege of taking a peep into the future, when talking machine records would also come from the presses in one constant stream. Some progress along this line has been made. Much remains to be done. "Last night, while on the elevated cars in Brooklyn, we were delayed a while in front of the Post-Oflice building, and, looking down on the animated scene, I saw hundreds of clerks handling thousands of letters — letters which had been written ; and I thought of the hours of careful, painstaking, laborious toil that had been spent in penning or type-writing these letters. As I watched, it was with the thought and hope that we might speed the day when we can personally converse with our loved ones in distant cities and across the sea : when the merchant will make his orders, the traveling man his reports, and all ordinary business communications will be spoken, listened to and understood without the tiresome and useless intermediary of written signs and figures. We all know that a cornet or other brass instrument sounds better than an ordinary voice record, becau.se the horn of a talking machine approximately resembles the instrument recorded, while vocalists do not ordinarily sing through a funnel. Speed, oh, speed the day, ye inventors, when the horns of to-day will go the way of the rubber hearing tubes of the past ! "It is not disputed that a talking machine without a diaphragm or other medium than the air is actually possible and practicable — no needles, no friction, no uoise. Be on the lookout for it, for it surely is coming. The future offers much more of a field for inventive elTort and application than has been covered in the past. The surface has hardly been scratched. I have an abundant faith in the lasting quality and permanency of the talking machine enterprise. I have little faith in the permanency of the present forms of either machines or records, and I seriously believe that before the second book is finished, and the %vorks of Marconi and his contemporaries become history, present-day talking machines and records will bo looked upon as curious specimens in the evolution of the art much as we to-day consider the Edison tinfoil phonograph and the original Bell and Taiutor treadle graphophone. "And then in the field of metaphysics. To you, distinguished -sir, by reason of your matchless achievements in wireless telegraphy, is due the credit also for conveying the idea, the germ of thought, the missing link heretofore required, to give a plausible and ready explanation of the phenomena known as mental telepathy— the mental transmission of thought. Before . your wireless discovery it was impossible to conceive how such a force could really exist. It was thought that some tangible, corporeal, organic medium must necessarily be required. But when your work was announced to the world, and messages were flashed across long distances without wires, many things previously inexplicable seemed not only possible, hut entirely reasonable. I mention this subject particularly, because I believe it to be akin to our industry, and it requires no stretch of the imagination to conceive of some future system, not of recording sound, hut of rccordiini through t by the use of some proper and suitable organic or inorganic media hereafter to be discovered, so that our thoughts, ideas and wishes may not only be passed to the minds of others, but actually visually recorded so as to be readily understood. "Perhaps this is a long look into the future, but these are good things to think about and, particularly at this time, when, crowned with laurels in that branch of science which you have adorned and to which you have already contributed so much, you will devote some time and thought to a kindred art, which offers such a rich field for future endeavor. That there is still loom and need for immediate improvement is evidenced by. a squib, which some person wrote who evidently does not fully appreciate what has already been done. When he heard that the great Marconi, the 'Wireless Wizard,' was to give some of his time to the perfection of talking machines, he sent the following to the papers. If I may be pardoned for repeating the lines, permit me to address you thus : Say, Mr. Marconi, get busy, please. Give us a tip — set our minds at ease ; They say you've hitched up with the Columbia staff And soon we're to hear your improved phonograph. Will it be noiseless and screetchless and scratchless V Raspless and gaspless and hornless and grassless? If so, G. Marconi, to thee be the praise From morning till night, till the end of our days. You've done some great stunts, flashing news 'cross the sea, But say, hully gee ! That ain't one, two, three To what you'll be when you perfect your idee, And land in every home Your Noiseless, Screechless. Scratchless. Raspless, Gaspless, Hornless, Brassless GRAPli-U-PHONE. "So, Mr. Marconi, it's pretty nearly up to you." At the conclusion of Mr. Cromelin's address, which was greeted with great applause, an interesting address was made by Mr. Binder, who dilated on Italy from the standpoint of the historian. As already related in The World, Mr. Marconi responded with some very happy remarks to the greeting extended to him, and his appreciation was further expressed the following morning by a marconigram from the steamer to President Easton of the Columbia Co. WHY SOME DEALERS CANNOT SELL Talking Machines — They Fail to Know the Mechanism of Their Instruments and Lose Many Sales — What a Jobber Learned on His Travels. A successful jobber in talking machines recently made a tour among the retail trade incognito, to study the methods employed in making sales, and details his general impressions thus: "There are a number of dealers scattered throughout this part of the country who have not the slightest idea of how to sell talking machines or records against keen competition. They seem to have an idea that the mechanism of all machines is much the same, and that the name on their goods is its chief selling merit. The consequence is that they lose many good sales to the other fellow who has familiarized himself with what may be termed the talking points of the machines in his stock. He will dilate on the springs in the motor, the ease of regulating speed and many minor technicalities, all of which will convince the customer that he is dealing with a man who has made a study of all machines, and carries in stock what he believe.? to be tlie best. Another point I scored agains-l the first mentioned class of dealers is that they show their low-priced machines first. This is a poor policy. They should rever.->e the process, as it is far easier to come down than go up a hill of prices. A customer who has heard the best machine is never satisfied with a cheap one, and will almost invariably compromise between the machine he intended buying and the one he would liuy if he could. This is human nature. Another bad feature in some of the stores is the employment of ignorant salesmen to play records. In the heart of this city I had an amusing experience recently. A young man of perhaps eighteen was showing records, and among them was the 'Ave Maria,' 'Who is singing that?' asked the customer, 'Miss (jounod,' he replied. 'And who is it by?' asked his patron with a smile. The young man looked at it hastily and answered, 'Mr. Sembrich.' Such ignorance is inexcusable, and unless the customer had a keen sense of humor, would result in the loss of future sales. Dealers and salesmen cannot become too familiar with their line, and if they are wise, will carefully study the line of their opponent so as to be able to intelligently answer any question put to them. The successful men in the trade I found to be those who have studied out every detail of the business, and such men always receive the backing of their jobber," CAL STEWAET'S LATEST RECORD. During' the recent visit of Cal Stewart to Columbus, O,, he made a young man in that city, Henry Ferguson, very happy by making a record for him. He chanced to be in a music store getting a part for his machine when Mr. Stewart came in, and he succeeded in persuading the entertainer to speak for a blank record for him. Cal Stewart's record specialties are Uncle Josh Stories, and to the record he told an inimitable story called "Uncle .Josh Joins the Union." Some Tacts mortb Considering HE talking machine man frequently asks, "How can I increase m)' business?" The answer is easy. Place on a side line which takes but little space, which is attractive, and a standard in its particular line. Take the Black Diamond Strings, for instance. .Steel and wound. New process. They are the finest manufactured. They are used by all ot the prominent artists, and you will have a trade coming your way when it is known that you handle the "Black Diamond." Music dealers all over America, and all over the world for that matter, know full well the value of this product. Rational musical $trin9 go. new Brunswick, n. 3.