Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1891-10-15
WESTERN INNOVATION.
PLANKINToN's HAPPY SUBSTI-
TUTE FOR THE COUNTY FAIR.
A South Dakota Town Sets nm origins
Exampie-A Beautiful Temple to Ceres
Art and Plenty Combined to Create
Novel Festival.

Example-A Beautiful Temple to Ceres
Art and Plenty Combined to Create n
Novel Festival.
The county fair, subdivision OF the
genus fair which has been q feature OF
agricultural life since remote ages, has
finally been supplanted In the enter
prislng commonwealth Of South Dakota,
and its place has been supplied by some-
thing so entirely new and attractive
that 1t is likely to be widely, success
fully and proiitaoly copied. This sub
stitute is nothing more nor less than the
erection OF grain palace. Plankinton,
5. d., is the energetic place to first at
tempt the new order OF fair, and from
all appearances it is evident she has
made a ''ten strike"
Plankinton does not claim TO have
originated the idea of palace, for OF
late wears palaces have multiplied, town
after town choosing that method of at
tracing attention to itself and its enter
prise; but Plankinton is probably the
first community to experiment upon
distinctly agricultural palace as a sub
stitute for the annual agricultural fair,
and her effort has been a marked sue
cess.
The recent opening OF the Plankinton
grain palace was auspicious for more
reasons than one. Plankinton has never
suffered such crop shortage as TO be.
come subject for outside aid, but she Is
located in region which has for a year
or two before this suffered more or less
from insufficient rainfall. The splendid
crops OF 1891, however, loaded her gra-
naries to overhowing, and from this
abundance came the beautifully deco
rated grain palace as thank-offering
tor natures lavish bounty.
Sioux City, the nearest commercial
centre, responded to an invitation to
assist in the inaugural ceremonies of the
palace, and sent special train load of
representative business men to ''rejoice
with those who did rejoice" A we'll
arranged program was carried out,
which included glowing tributes to the
beauties OF the palace, the splendid fer
tility OF the soil whose products had
been so artistically drawn upon, and to
the hopeful promise of future prosper
ity which the exhibit voiced. A para
graph from the opening address of Pres
ident Andrews indicates the confident
hopefulness Of the new state. He said:
"From hillside and plain and valley,
where the silence of ages has fingered,
the white incense OF steam, the curling
smoke of industry's fires, and the mu-
sical hum Of busy, prosperous and con-
tented people aScends like grand
thank offering to heaven for the good
time coming, come at. last, thank Cod"
The palace itself, measured by the
rule of proportions, is remarkably cred
table to its builders. 1t is, in its ex-
terror decoration, distinctly symbolic OF
grain, corn occupying no conspicuous
place, but ranking in It's order. Thc
tasty building, adorned with gable,
tower and minaret, made an attractive
heading for the principle street. Within
every township in the county was rep
resented by an exhibit of agricultural
products, similar TO, though more
artstically arranged than the usual
fair exhibits. The wheat, flax and other
small grain specimens won the admira-
tion of all. Wheat sheaves from fields
that yielded over forty-six bushels per
acre, and other grain IN proportion, at
tracted conspicuous attention. The
Plankinton schools oRupied a hand
somelY arrayed corner, including art
pieces worthy the best efforts OF older
hands and heads. Three specimens of
genuine art in decoration challenged
particular attention. One was an elk,
with head upraised as IL suddenly
startled. The blending of color was
produced with different shades OF corn
silk, while the spreading antlers were
composed of wheat and flax grains.
The whore eReet- ~as 4be@,,tifula aud tha
general design thoroughly artistic.
Opposite this picture was one represent
ing sheep in the field. The wool on the
animals, perfect In appearance, was
composed of clematis. The third piece
was a South Dakota farm house, field
and buildings, taken from nature and
done in cornstalks.
The conduct Of the grain palace festi-
val is not particularly different from
that of the county fair. There is art
instead OF horse racing, that is about
all. Bands OF music, decorated build
ings, agricultural addresses, stock pens
all these there Is ample time and
space for, but for years to come a new
interest may be given and new ideas
be developed by the novelty OF artisti-
cally empowering a suitable building In
the gorgeous and easily blending colors
of the harvest time The painters
brush long ago detected the voiceless
melody of color In wood and field and
rick; 1t remained to the present genera
tion to use the colors as mixed by nature
itself, in all their strangely fascinating
combinations OF tint and tone, and to
produce with them living pictures which
are in fact living realities. eloquent
alike Of the art and bOundless gener-
osity of harvest hue and time.
How far east the fad for palace
building may extend remains to be SEEN
1t seems as yet to be confined to the
west and south. Texas built q spring
palace OF grain, grasses and cotton, and
won wide notoriety by IL. Sioux City
has its annual Corn Palace festival, with
increasing interest from year to year.
Other Iowa towns build palaces--a fax
palace at Forest City, hay palace at
Algona, q blue grass palace at Creston
and coal palace at Ottumwa. But now
that q notion OF general grain palace,
created by and for a county population.
has been successfully experimental
upon 1t is not improbable that the idea
may be expanded and enlarged until
the palace idea obtains d footing I'm
hundreds of communities. 1t is
peculiarly apt and happy expression of
an appreciation OF natures bounty. The
community that has material for a
lavish grain palace has the inherent
qualities OF soil and climate which as
sure prosperity.