The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1870-06-04
The Louisiana State Fair.
Especial Correspondence.

~ ISR~N
NEW ORLEANS, May 18th, 1870.
Our Fourth State Fair, despite the unto
ward wet weather, has established the per-
-~nanancy,of the enterprise, and its great
utility in exciting competition and emula-
ton among Northern and Western found
ries, factories and inventors, to meet the
peculiar wants of our section for improved
labor saving machinery, especially IN the,
department of agriculture. Southern III
~venters. foundries and factories too, have
been stirred up by the increased demand
in the South tor machinery and other I'M
Elements to replace TO some extent the
loss of manual labor ; and if this FAIR had
done nothing but prove that the South has
the genius to invent, and the skill and en-
t~erurisc to put its inventions into open and
successful competition with those hereto
fore looked upon as the masters ofmeehanl-
cal and agricultural implement fabrication,
it would have achieved an object worth
all the expenditure of time labor and mon
ey our Fair Association has Incurred.
The ornamental features Of this Fair,
though ample enough, were no wise com
mensurate in number, value and variety
with it's practical parts. Especially was
the exhibition of steam engines and boil
ers, sugar making apparatus, saw and gram
mills, cotton gins, ~condensers, llnters, n
hullers, cotton presses, rice mills and oth-
err machinery to prepare the rice crop Tor
market, mechanical tools, and agricultural
hardware and labor-saving machines and
implements, Large, varied, and interesting
Twenty different steam engines compile
ted 4; as many cotton presses, numerous cot
ton gins ; wagons, ditchers and reapers,
mowers, powers, scrapers, shayers, cultiva'
tors, grain drills, plows, and garden nipple:
ments innumerabIe. The catalogue would
fill several columns alone. | examined, or
tried to examine, every article myself IN
the whole Fair, but can Only pretend to
give you a cursory idea of the different de
partments.
Department AZ. M. Russia, Superin'
tendent, was devoted to the exhibition Of
Farm Products, Cereals and Cereal Food,
Fruits, Vegetables, Seeds, Canned Fruits,
Meats, Fish, ETC., Pickles, Confectionery
Sweatmeats, Cakes, Native Wines, Spirits
and Malt Liquors-The display was large
and Northern, Western and Southern mer
and women competed for the prizes. The
eve was bewildered and the physical TASTE
stimulated by the varied array of the sub
stantials and luxuries, represented by cider
lager beer, ales, porter, gin, whiskey, bit
tiers by scores champagne, foreign ano
domestic, catawba and seuppernong, can
dies and other confectioneries in quantity
and variety and tempting look, to democrat
ize an army Of youngsters; cordials, fruits
canned in their own juice, of foreign ane
home manufacture, chocolate, cocoa, sauces
wheat, rice, German barley ; self raising
-four sundry yeast powders !; catsups ane
other condiments, some from the East In
dies, some from South and Central Ameri
ca some from the West Indies, some from
England, some from Continental Europe
some from Bosting, and some of the best
mustard, tomato catsup and red peppe,
sauce-made in Louisiana. The bakers wer'
on the grouud in full force with their bread
buiscuit,s crackers, rolls and corn bread
There were plenty of other nice eatable
displayed, as cheese, butter, fish, to g
down with bread; you have seen that Their
was no lack of desert to- sweater the sub
stantials, nor liquors to relieve dryness
and one might well pause after rioting il
SO many good things, before the more maj
ter of fact rows of seeds, grains and vege
tables that limited at the origin of many Q
the edibles and drinkables.
Most of the prizes in Department A
were carried off, over all competition, b,
Messrs. j. Villarrubia & Co., confectioner
No SO Old Levee street. They receive
Diplomas (the highest award) for "hes
! Stick and Machine Candies in variety
J made in the United States !" and best Pa
Kettle Work Sugar Plums, Drages, etc, i
variety and quality made in United States;
silver medals for "best Stick and Machin
Candies i" best Louisiana made Nougat 0
Ornamental Pyramid y best display G
Confectionery in variety and quality, pn
up in the United States J" Special Premium
offered by another large house in the sam
line, for best Stick Candy manufacture
in the United States )" five Premiums 70
best cakes of different kinds, and al
honorable mention for best dozen bottle
Of syrups made in the United States. Thes
gentlemen are old citizens ofNew Orleans
They purchased not long since from MI
Ernest Turpin, who established this steam
candy factory on a large scale, in 1852 and
after making it the largest in the Soutl
has retired from business