The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1874-11-03
Western Fairs.

western Fairs.
That staid old paper, the Journal of Com
merce, New York, contains ar article or
the western fairs Of the past season which
in strange misconception rivals the daft
notions of the London papers when they
attempt to deal with American affairs
This is all we'll enough no doubt. 1t mat.
tiers very little to the steady going, gray
whiskered old readers Of the Journal
what it's columns contain. The great bed
blanket is orthodox and trustworthy in the
matter of keeping in the ruts, and so long
as it hangs on to the familiar form, mixing
up all sorts of matter promiscuously on the
fourth page, the merchant of Manhattan
will be content. The Journal of Com
merce has picked up the idea in
the Podunk Gazette, or the County Croaker
from some remote neck of woods, that the
fairs of the West, especially the state tairs,
have been failures. It thereupon reels of
a long faced lecture like some old
deacon dilating on novel reading. Illi-
nois is remiss for not exhibiting her
factory cheeses. Iowa is to blame because
she did make too much of her hogs, and all
are at fault for too small an attendance, for
giving too little encouragement to horse
races and a general failure of management.
All of this only shows how very little the
Journal of Commerce knew about the
facts of which it proposed to write. The
Sentinel will venture to say that the fairs of
the western states nave as far excelled those
of New York and New England, except,
perhaps, the horticultural and poultry exhi-
billions, as theirs exceed no fairs at all. On
Thursday, the last day of the New Hamp-
shire State fair, the attendance was reported
at 1 800 by the Boston Globe correspondent,
fair, in this city, had at a safe estimate,
10000 people on the grounds at
one time. One of the indian county fairs,
Tippecanoe, showed more and better
blooded stock than was probably ever got
together at one time in any fair of the
Eastern states, and had a daily attendance
for a week of from five to ten thousand
people. Nearly every county in this state
has held a fair this season, and, almos with
ont exception, they have been entirely
successful. The last fair, probably, of
tho year was closed last week in
Spencer county, and is represented as a very
great success by the Rockport Democrat.
Knox county fair was the best hat she ever
had, and so one might go over a long list.
Each year the societies of this state are en-
enIarglng their cash premiums and intro
features of practical value to the
agricultural interest. AS for the racing, the
fairs have had rather too much of it, and
nave shown some as good stock on the
speed track, OF their own raising, as can be
found in the United States. The Journal
wisely says:
II horse races hurt the Western fairs, we |
should say that their racing stock Is too poor, or
hat the Westerners have degenerattd from
heir old healthy fondness for out door sports. |
The old fogy who penned these o~racular
ines, is respectfully invited to visit the land
If the Hoosiers and bring on if he can
ind it. as honest, handsome and swift a
rotter as 'Red Cloud" If he will come
here in the season of fairs, he shall sec more
to the acre than he ~imagines. Other
of our fairs are not discreditable
)y the side of any in the country. But 1t
to be a rather crude idea to lecture
iowa because
A man of tastes can not but feel that,
wen at the peril OF financial loss, IL would have
better to have had less pork and more high
not TO speak of larger variety OF farm pro-
luce, at the Iowa fair.
A notion has obtained in some quarters
a state acts on the true idea when she
Exhibits what she has. 1t must be admitted
the lasting disgrace OF Iowa, no doubt.
hat "high art' has not thus far received a
treat deal of attention while she has been re-
laiming to productive conditions her vast
nd rich plains that furnish cheap bread to
editor of the Journal of Commerce and
lis babies, if he has any. But lows may de-
herself AS for Indiana, her campaign
t agricultural fairs has been satisfactory,
and creditable, and would prob
bly, be so regarded in comparison with
hose Of any other state in the Union.