Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1859-11-18

Report Of the Muscatlnc County
Agricultural Society Tor 1eeo.r
BY sus1 Poster, psss1Dssr.
It Is generally known That l hays for
so,ns time been oppossi q ths Grace sosrss"
At our Fair grounds, for trying the spsed Of
horses. either At trotting, pacing, racking or
running, and consider it IN erroneous fea-
turs, and highly detrimental to the best in
tsrssts Of the Jarmers, in the profit Of stock
raising, and to his sons economically, in.
dustrially and morally. In this in stance it
may have attracted some more in At the
gate than it kept out. It certainly kept
out quite number Of farmers. The great
plea for the trotting match has generally
been, that without it Fair would he dull
without attraction, would not be patronized
by the crowd aud consequently fall short in
receipts at the gate. Let Us now examine
this money matter. In the hrst place we
voted to have no trotting match, and had
got our premium list arranged and printed
at cost of s37,05. A meeting was called
and this emo trotting" was re-considered,
and the trotting must be put in, the prem.
ium list changed 90 as to get the greatest
amount of premiums Upon the EAST horses"
Fancy and fast horses $25 to $50 and team
horses, cattle and COWS IS to SO. The
premium list must be reprinted at an ad.
ditional cost of $29,50 with snndry "Horse
Show Bills" at other additional cost.
The premium list for tast and fancy hor-
SEES was 1925, and for form horses $50. On
cattle of all ages, grades aud kinds $72.-
On field crops $50. Jacks, jeunnies and
mules, SIT. Sheep, $l4. We see that
premiums on useful farm stock and crops
was reduced to low point, in order to raise
it onfaucy horses to high point. The
result in financial point has not been as
successful as had hoped it would have
been, for we can pay but so cents on the
dollar Of premiums.
Now, farmars, the question is before us.
How much have we made by fancy trotting
matches These high premiums have raced
the money out of the treasury faster than
honest industry and real merit could bring
it in. would rather see the programme
changed and race match got up between
young men. deem it of more ,nsequence
that q man should be nimble and spry than
than that his Nurse should. onoe ran
three miles in 81 minutes, and con now
walk my four miles per hour with ease and
this consider as healthy stirring Of my
blood Us it is for the fast horse's man to sit
in his chair and ride mile inside of three
minutes. For what shall we award prom
iums To encourage and promote the best
interests Of agr;c .lture and Industry. Far
mers if anything in the trotsing match and
premium list 10 wrong, it is your own fault.
Come in and attend your business m ceilings
in future and you may have it all your own
way. At any Of tho bus ness meetings of
this Society, if stem righteous" good farm.
ers had come in, they could have voted
horse racing out or in as often as they
pleased. Remember this and come in and
attend the business meetings.
At the State Fair of New York, held at
Albany this year, no trotting match was al.
lowed-no race course was there. Luther
Tucker, the veteran Agricultural editor Of
the United States, says in the Country
Gentleman "The time is past when our
State Fair needs any elephant show, circus
performance or horse race, to attract atten-
lion." The great Agricultural interest of
that Stats stands upon its own merits.
The State Of Ohio, in their Agricultural
Society, passed two resolutions, that they
would not offer premiums for speed in
horses, aud recommending to their County
societies to do the same.
This year the Vermont State Fair had o
"trotting MATCH" but in that State they
have Jaw against horse racing, and the
Grand Jury of Chittenden county found q
bill of Indictment against the State Society
for horse racing.
Gentlemen, l move that we call for q
divorce from horse trotting next year. Let
the horse-men have their ssHorse Show"
but let the Muscatine County Agricultural
and Mechanical Fair stand or fall upon
awards for intrinsic merit.
In that most excellent farmers periodical,
the North Western Farmer edited by Mr..
Miller, OF Dubuque, in the report of our
State Fair this year, he says: Gin sheep
and hogs, this Fair surpassed any previous
one, while in poultry and ''fancy' horses,
and in some other things of less interest to
the practical observer, having utility mainly
in view, the exhibition could not be consid.
cred otherwise than good one. -
"We are no friend of horse racing as such
when made species of gambling to foster
the love of mere excitement or the oppor-
tunity for the bo ting OF. money. In this
respect the State Agricultural Society has
taken the right ground, and discourages the
exhibition OF mere animal power and endu-
rance, unless viewed with some purpose OF
utility"
view it it like brandy drinking, tobacco
using, card playing, etc. the evil 80 out
weighs the good tina: it had better be dis
continued.
Benefit Of Agricultural !Sscieties.-Be-
sides the exhibition OF the best of useful
products, stock and manufactured articles, is
the ASSOCIATION of men together-,he inter
change of ideas, and advance by additional
infoymation - adding the acquired knowl-
edge of others to that of our own. This is