The talking machine world (Jan-Dec 1913)

THE TALKING MACHINE WORLD. FROM OUR CHICAGO HEADQUARTERS — ( Continued from page 36). cently three people who have bought machines and he has bought over $200 worth of records from me for himself," said Miss Tischler. Wurlitzer Doing Satisfactory Business. Fred H. Siemon, assistant manager of the Wurlitzer Co., is away on a vacation that is to be distributed among several points of interest, leaving the entire management of the talking machine and small goods department in the hands of F. A. FTarnden. Mr. Harnden reports that August has brought a very noticeable improvement in the Victor line. The retail department continues to sell large quantities of dance records and the usual large number of 75-cent records. The Victrola Aids Dancing Teacher. M. Eileen Long, who has a studio on the top floor of the Powers building, is one of the local dancing teachers who is reaping a rich harvest from the immensely popular wave of the tango, the one-step, the Boston and similar glides, twists and sways that have set the young folks of Chicago society and the old folks, too, dance crazy. And Miss Long uses a Victrola. ''There are several advantages in using the Victrola," said she. "In the first place an orchestra to be worth much at all must have more than one or two pieces. That means considerable expense to me, so I find that a small orchestra, with the added help of a No. XVI Victrola, saves considerable money and is entirely satisfactory. Then, too, there is a regularity about the Victrola music that helps the pupils very much, and I can regulate its speed to whatever is best in giving the lessons. When the orchestra has been worked pretty hard and wants a rest it can have it, while the Victrola does the work and never tires. Oh, I like the idea very mucti, and my pupils like it, too." G. W. Davidson and C. L. Davidson, of the Talking Machine Shops, had planned to spend much of the summer in Lake Bluff, where their families are located, but some combination letters and record lists that they had sent out have forced them to stay in the city and chase up the prospects. O. C. Searles, in charge of the talking machine department of the Bissell-Weisert Co., has just returned from a two weeks' vacation that was spent mostly in motoring and fishing. Miss Ella McClelland had charge of the business while he was gone, but departed immediately for a three weeks' stay in Michigan upon his return. Where Columbia Men Are Summering. Edward Blimke, of the city sales force of the Columbia Graphophone Co., left Friday for Denver to attend the triennial conclave of the Knights Templar. He will afterwards go to Minnesota on a fishing and hunting expedition. F. G. Cook, who travels Indiana and Michigan, is spending his vacation at Spring Lake, Mich. A. W. Graham, the Man from Texas, who preaches the Columbia gospel in Iowa, is again in the field, after a fortnight's vacation among the Wisconsin lakes. Manager C. F. Baer is taking his vacation on the instalment plan, putting in the week-ends al his summer cottage at Lake Catherine and making the round trip in his auto. E. A. Parsons, of the dictaphone department, left last Sunday for a week at the factory at Bridgeport and the general offices in New York. George Ingalls, superintendent of the repair department of the Columbia's Chicago office, recently returned from a trip to Bridgeport and New York. It was the first time he had visited the factory in the sixteen years he has been with the company and the experience was a memorable one. Victor Dogs Break the Rules. During the meeting of the National Educational Association in Chicago recently two stuffed dogs used for display purposes outside the rooms of the Victor Co.'s quarters in the Congress Hotel came near shattering the rigidly enforced edict against dogs that has been a part of the hostelry's rules for years. A woman guest demanded the right to have her Scotch collie in her room "because there were two clogs upstairs." "There are two dogs on the seventh floor," she told Assistant Manager Edward Burke when ha explained the rule of the house forbidding canines, ''for I saw them sitting outside a room on that floor a few minutes ago." "If there are dogs upstairs," replied Burke, "out they come. We will investigate." The dogs proved to be Victor advertising models, so the woman's Scotch collie was sent to the baggage room. A New Automatic Stop. The. Rajah Co., of Chicago, has perfected and will probably put upon the market in the near future an automatic stop that is really good and appears to contain all the points sought for in a device of this sort. The stop is located beneath the turntable and is connected with the reproducer arm by means of a sliding lever beneath the turntable that moves in unison with the reproducer arm. When the record is finished and the arm has slopped the continuous movement of the lever releases a brake and' the machine is stopped. The stop can be used with any disc machine. B. B. Elood is the inventor of the machuie, and associated with him in the company are H. D. Jones and Eugene H. Ziegler. New Starck Manager. H arry C. Meek, formerly with the EberhardtHays Music Co., of Wichita, Kans., and previous to that connected with the Wurlitzer Co., of Cincinnati, took up the duties of manager of the Columbia and Victor departments of the P. A. Starck Piano Co. about the middle of last month. Under Mr. Meek's direction the talking machine department of the Starck Co. has been greatly enlarged, the entire basement being refitted and redecorated and a greatly increased stock of machines and reco:ds installed. The new salesrooms have been painted white and trimmed with mahogany, as well as four unusually large demonstration booths. Miss Myers, formerly connected with the talking machine department of Rothschild & Co., has been given charge of the greatly increased stock of records. RECEIVES 100 EDISON MACHINES. Denver Dry Goods Co. Receives Big Shipment of Edison Products — Business Is Excellent. (Special to The Talking Machine World.) Denver, Col., August 8.— The Denver Dry Coods Co., of this city, is closing a splendid business with the Edison products. A shipment of over 100 Edison machines arrived at the store a few days ago, and Manager Wyatt, of the talking machine department, stated that these machines are practically disposed of already. Edison record business is also keeping up most gratifyingly. Columbia wholesale business for the past' month has been very satisfactory, and the new accounts opened up in Colorado, Wyoming and the adjoining territory bespeak a banner fall season for Columbia goods. RECORDS FOR SECRET SOCIETIES. Of special interest to the members of the famous Odd Fellows and Masonic orders is the announcement by Thomas A. Edison, Inc., that it is listing this month three special records for the former society and four Masonic records. These records should be in demand all over the country by the members of these orders. The Odd Fellows records are made by a male quartette, and the use of an organ in all the accompaniments gives a fitting air of dignity to these selections. The Masonic records are equally impressive and are designed to make an instant appeal to Masons. WADYERMEAN? IT HURTS? Mr. Albert. — What's the name of that talking machine record with the yells and screaming in it? Salesman. — It's called "A Few Minutes at a Painless Dentist's." Be big enough to go alone. Individuality is not developed in groups. ARTHUR D. QEISSLER IN CHICAGO. General Manager of Talking Machine Co. on Short Visit from East, Where He Is Now Located, Regrets Being Compelled to Give Up Annual Trip to the Pacific Coast — Some Orders of Unusual Size Received by the Talking Machine Co. — Business Excellent. (Special to The Talking Machine World.) Chicago, III., August 12— Arthur D. Geissler, general manager of the Talking Machine Co., the popular Victor distributer of this city, arrived here lo-day from the East for a stay of a week or ten days. Mr. Geissler expressed keen enthusiasm with the excellent reports given to him by his staff here, and in a chat with The World stated that it was all right to be so busy that even a vacation time could not be spared, 'but that it was a great disappointment to . him that he would be obliged to forego his annual Coast trip this year because of this unprecedented press of business affairs. Mr. Geissler has always looked forward to this coast trip with pleasure and anticipation, for he enjoyed it thoroughly. These summer coast trips have been noteworthy in former years because of the truly remarkable orders that Mr. Geissler alv.ays brought 'back with him from San Francisco, Los Angeles, Portland, Seattle and the surrounding territory. The dealers out on the coast have always seemed to appreciate the exclusive wholesale service rendered by the Talking Machine Co., of Chicago, and felt that the certainty of getting goods in times of shortage more than compensated for the extra freight they were forced to pay to the coast. On his arrival here Mr. Geissler was advised of the receipt of a $25,000 order from the P. A. Starck Piano Co., of this city. This splendid order called for August 1 delivery on a big portion of it, and for September 1 delivery on the remainder. This is some summer order that gives an excellent idea of the prosperity of the Talking Machine Co. In addition to this $25,000 order, the following single order from one firm was reported to Mr. Geissler by one of the Talking Machine Co.'s salesmen : For August 1 delivery, 2 Victrola No. 4s, 2 No. 6s, 2 No. 8s, 12 No. 9s, 7 No. 10s, 6 No. lis, 4 No. 14s, 6 No. 16s ; September 1 delivery, 5 No. 4s, 5 No. 6s, 2 No.' 8s, 13 No. 9s, 12 No. 10s, 14 No. lis, 8 No. 14s, 14 No. 16s; October 1 delivery, 10 No. 4s, 10 No. 6s, 5 No. 8s, 25 No. 9s, 18 No. 10s, 23 No. lis, 12 No. 14s, 23 No. 16s; November 1 delivery, 25 No. 4s, 25 No. 6s, 15 No. 8s, 61 No. 9s, 29 No. 10s, 54 No. lis, 28 No. 14s, 61 No. 16s. In view of the extent of this single order from one firm, it can be readily understood why Mr. Geissler is so optimistic and well satisfied with the reports to date of business being closed by the Talking Machine Co. LATIN AMERICA BUYS MORE. Exports to Five Southern Republics Show $10,000,000 Gain. (Special to The Talking Machine World.) Washington, D. C, August 11. — While trade Eetween the United States and five of the principal South American countries — Argentina, Brazil, Chile Peru and Uruguay — is still in favor of the Southern republics, this country made a considerable gain the last fiscal year, and reduced by $10,000,000 the wide margin of difference between its imports from and exports to those countries. Imports remained stationary, being valued at $187,000,000, the same as in 1912. In exports the United States gained, shipping to the five nations $126,000,000 of merchandise this year, as against $116,000,000 in 1912. Thus a net gain of $10,000,000 was created. There were increases in shipments to all the countries named, except Argentina, where there was a slight decrase. In the last year Argentina bought $53,000,000 worth of goods here, sold -$27,000,000; Brazil bought $43,000,000, sold $120,000,000; Chile bought $16,000,000, sold '$28,000,000; Peru bought, $7,000,000, sold $10,000,000, and Uruguay bought $2,000,000 and sold $7,000,000.