The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1882-09-08
THE STATE FAIR.
Greatest and most Successful
Exhibition Ever Seen in
Minnesota.
A Purely Agricultural Display of Choice
stock and Farm Products

A Purely Agricultural Display Of Choice
Stock and Farm Products.
The initial day of the Minnesota State
Fair was last week Thursday. but prac
tically last Monday was the opening
day, and even then, chaos prevailed In
nearly all departments, on account of
the hardness of exhibitors getting their
displays in place and shape. But with
the entrance of the gun on Monday
morning and glorious weather, the peo-
pie began to gather by trains and team,
and by noon the grounds were alive
with eager curiosity seekers, and the
crowds were augmented daily until
Thursday when there was perfect jam
of humanity.
The grounds are located about two
miles from the city of Rochester to the
South, and contain 80 acres, which is
owned by stock company with $780,
600 capital, and known as the Southern
Minnesota Agricultural Association.
The grounds are surrounded nearly half
their circumference by tight.board
fence eight feet high. In the enclosure
are the Secretary's Office, floral hall and
mechanical department buildings, large
numbers of sheds for stock, etc, besides
the temporary buildings for exhibiting
machinery and agricultural implements,
erected by the manufacturers of the
same. The floral hall and mechanical
building is commodious one, built in
the shape of cross with ample light
from the windows in the roof and tower
1t is new and occupied this season for
the first time. 1t was filled in every
possible corner with products of the
field and loom. In one corner was Prof.
Hall, of the State University, assisted
by Mrs. Barr's son of Mankato, who had
on exhibition various specimens of
geological formation, which he took
pleasure in showing and explaining.
Prof. Hall saw the specimen of cement
stone among Msnkato's exhibit and
wished very much to gain possession of
it when the fair closed. In another
corner was large stock of cheese, but.
ter and butter making apparatus of
every conceivable pattern and all pos
sessing superior virtues for producing
gilt edged butter. The management of
the association failed to have sufficient
refrigerator room for all the butter,
consequently 1t could not be proper
ly shown and admired. One of the
most novel churns we witnessed was
operated by boy on tread mill, and
as we watched the huge drops of sweat
run down the lads face we thought as
the old lady expressed it, "The old way
was the best" Further on was a large
array of needle work, which only drew
our admiration for the amount of labor
bestowed without sufficient compensa-
ton. In another wing was display
of vegetables of every imaginable kind,
and some varieties, such as beets, pota.
toes, cabbages and carrots, were large
enough for an entire family of seven
children.
But the greatest attraction was the
building occupied by the Winona & St.
Peter railroad company, in which was
a collection ofproducts from the various
counties along the above line Of road.
The display was under the management
of Mr.. Whitney, editor of the Marshall
Lyon Co. } NsaOs, and too much praise
cannot be bestowed upon Mr.. Whitney
for the energy, taste and thoroughness
with which he has attended to every de-
tail. The interior of the building is
matched all over with heads of wheat,
barley, rye and fax, while prominent
upon every corner were punches Of mil.
let, hungarian, and various grasses, all
of enormous length, showing the proli-
fcness of this section of the State for
grass and dairying. At the entrance
of the building was large pyramid of
flowers and grasses, while from its CEN
ter was tiny fountain which threw its
spray over all. Along the sides of the
interior were ever variety of vegetable
that Mother Earth can produce, while
the samples of grain were exceedingly
fine. In the center of the structure was
sort of an arcade covered with Oat and
wheat straw and surrounded with
bundles of grain and grasses, while the
interior was filed with Southern Min
nesota fruits. In front of this arcade
was tall octsgon pyramid with glass
panels, which was filled with flax,
wheat, oats, rye, barley, grass seeds and
peas. Tall stalks of corn were visible
on every hand, but none equaled that
from Blue Earth county, 30 every one
said. The Blue Earth county collection
was in this building, and while it was
not extensive, it was fully as good as
any there. Our apples, sweet potatoes,
wheat and corn seemed to create aston
ishment in the minds Of the "down
East" visitors, and the mammoth papers
of THE FREE PRESS were eagerly called
for and carefully preserved. Our coun-
ty had the only sample of sweet pota-
toes and Damson plums on exhibition,
and one old fellow from "Varmount"
wanted to know "if they wasn't raised
in hot house?"
In the line OF stock, no finer or larger
exhibit was ever made in this State.
There were herds of Jerseys, Devons,
Short-horns and Attorneys. The
showing of hogs was fine, consisting of
the Suffolk, Chester White, Berkshire,
Poland China, and a snuff colored breed
which we failed to learn the name of.
Among the sheep were the Cotswold,
Shropshire. Merino's, Black Nose and
Southdown's. Poultry was in abund.
ance, whose patriarchs kept up con-
slant Growing. The long row of horse
stalls showed large number of breeds
and grades, the Clydesdale taking
rank for weight and size while the
Norman's followed next, but the finest
general purpose horse according to our
notion, was cross between the Morgan
and Norman, which produced an animal
of splendid proportions, weighing about
900 Dornds and with O onod dasnos;