Part 46 (1/2)

DEAR SIR: I beg to make reply to an accusation against the Music Publishers' a.s.sociation of the United States yesterday by the manufacturers of mechanical perforated music rolls, cylinders, and disks, in which they claimed our a.s.sociation had corralled into its ranks, by promise and contracts, the Victor Talking Machine Company, of Camden, N.J. They further claimed that the Librarian of Congress had made no attempt to seek them out and give them representation at the various conferences he had called for the purpose of securing suggestions from organizations of authors, composers, and others interested in receiving copyright protection for their productions.

I beg to state that the copyright department during the interim between the first and second conferences conferred with me and asked if the talking machine and music roll manufacturers had an organization. I replied that I did not know but would inquire about it. About that time I met Mr. R. L. Thomae, a representative of the Victor Talking Machine Company, who had just drafted a bill with the view of presenting it to Congress, for protection on musical compositions for which his company had secured the right, having expended about $35,000 for well-known artists who had sung in the records for them. They wanted protection from the pirates in their own business from copying such valuable subjects. As a result of our talk Mr. Thomae decided to drop the bill and secure protection in the new copyright draft which was then being formulated.

Mr. Thomae and myself made a trip to Was.h.i.+ngton, called on the copyright department, and it was agreed, in view of the fact that the talking machine people had no organization, that the delegates from the Music Publishers' a.s.sociation should be increased from two to three, provided the third member was some representative of the talking-machine interests. After conferring with the president of the a.s.sociation it was decided to do this, and Mr. Thomae was selected as such representative. We believe that the talking machine people should have as good protection as ourselves on their original or characteristic works embodying the personalities and instrumentation of their artists, bands, orchestras, etc., employed by them.

We hereby declare that the Victor Talking Machine Company has no contracts of any kind whatsoever with any member of the Music Publishers' a.s.sociation of the United States in regard to any future purchase for use of compositions belonging to us. This statement will explain in detail how the Victor Talking Machine Company came to be a.s.sociated with the Music Publishers'

a.s.sociation in the copyright conferences held to aid in drafting the bill here under consideration. All statements to the contrary are not substantiated by the facts.

On behalf of the Music Publishers' a.s.sociation of the United States, whose list of members is attached, I beg to remain,

Sincerely, yours,

GEORGE W. FURNISS, _Chairman Copyright Committee_.

_Members Music Publishers' a.s.sociation, June, 1905 to 1906._

Allbright Music Company, Chicago, Ill.

Anthony Brothers, Fall River, Ma.s.s.

Ascher, Emil, 24 East Twenty-first street, New York.

Biglow & Main Company, 135 Fifth avenue, New York.

Bloom, Sol, Forty-second street and Broadway, New York.

Boosey & Co., 9 East Seventeenth street, New York.

Bouvier, A. J., Fall River, Ma.s.s.

Chandler-Held Company, 439 Fulton street, Brooklyn, N.Y.

Ditson, Chas. H., & Co., 867 Broadway, New York.

Ditson, J. E., & Co., Philadelphia, Pa.

Ditson, Oliver, Company, Boston, Ma.s.s.

Ellis, Jno. F., & Co., Was.h.i.+ngton, D.C.

Feist, Leo, 134 West Thirty-seventh street, New York.

Fischer, Carl, 6 Fourth avenue, New York.

Fischer, J., & Bro., 7 Bible House, New York.

Frain Publis.h.i.+ng Company, 20 West Fifteenth street, New York.

Francis, Day, & Hunter, New York.

Goggan, Thos., & Bro., Galveston, Tex.

Gordon, H. S., 1241 Broadway, New York.

Groene, J. C., & Co., Cincinnati, Ohio.

Hald, J. R., Company, 337 Wabash avenue, Chicago, III.

Harms, T. B., Company, 126 West Forty-fourth street, New York.

Harris, Chas. K., 31 West Thirty-first street, New York.

Haviland, F. B., Publis.h.i.+ng Company, 125 West Thirty-seventh street, New York.

Jacobs, Walter, 165 Tremont street, Boston, Ma.s.s.

Lyon & Healy, 199 Wabash avenue, Chicago, Ill.

Mills, F. A., 48 West Twenty-ninth street, New York.

Molineux, Geo., 150 Fifth avenue, New York.

Novello, Ewer, & Co., 21 East Seventeenth street, New York.