The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-08-03
THE FAIRS FINANCES.
The First Half of the Big Show
Not Entirely Satisfactory.
NO PROFITS FOR STOCKHOLDERS.
Exposition omcials Charge the Railroads
with Responsibility for Smaller Attend
ance Than Was Expected-Presiden
Higinbotham Hopeful for tho Future.

CHICAGO, Aug. with the closing of
the gates Monday night the first half of
the Columbian exposition passed into his
tory. The number of paid admissions dur
ing the month was 2.T59,97t. and the larg-
est number of paid admissions was regis
tered July 4, when 2S3, 273 people deposited
the admission fee with the ticket seller.
The smallest number was on Sunday last,
when only 1867 paid admissions were re-
corded. The paid attendance for May was
1.OoO.O3T, while that of June more than
doubled this figure. reaching n total of
2675.ll3.
Officials of the fair are greatly pleased
with the artistic success of the exposition,
but this much cannot be said of the finan.
cial end OF the enterprise. The enterprise
has failed largely TO reach the mark it was
expected to attain during the frat half of
the fair, and especially during the month
OF July. For this the railroads are in the
main held responsible. and the officials do
not hesitate to criticize their stubbornness
and meanness in refusing to make one
fair round trip at the beginning of the
fair. The present hard times have had
much to do with the poor attendance, but
the management thinks the people could
have attended largely had the railroad
fares been reduced
There must necessarily be a large at
tendance during the remaining period of
the fair If the management expects to nav
Its debts, and this is all they now hope to
do. 1t is n foregone conclusion that the
stockholders of the fair will get nothing
on their inves tment nor will their sub
scriptions be returned, as the money for
which the exposition is legally liable
amounts to so much that it will take
tremendous daily average of paid admis-
sions to release the obligation.
President Hignbotham is as hopeful ms
any of the officials in the matter of finance.
He said today:
Il have only one fault to find with the
first half of the fair The attendance has
not been what it ought TO have been. In
all other respect the exposition has been a
success. rs no one can reasonably deny, but
In That respect the first half is by no means
the better half. | believe that the attend
ance from now OH will steadily increase 1
believe that the admissions this week will
exceed those of last. There have now been
about 6,500,O00 admissions. Certainly more
than that many will be registered during
the remainder of the fair, and the total at
tendance will more than double those fir-
ures. The latter half of the fair will SUR
prise us as much with large attendance
rs the first hal has disappointed us with
bad
The retirement policy will be renewed at
once with increased vigor One of the first
effects of economy is felt in the elimina
ton OF one special night per week.
Heretofore Tuesday, Thursday and Satur-
day were designated rs special nights, and
were rendered attractive by band concerts,
fireworks, etc. This feature has been
abridged to two nights, and Wednesday
and Saturday will hereafter be known as
special" nights There will be no music
at night except upon those days, and the
hours for the day concerts have been
changed so rs TO divide the music equally
between the morning and the afternoon.
The free orchestra concerts will be given
as usual, when the orchestra is not en-
gagged in rehearsing for an afternoon pro-
gram. at least for the present The new
arrangement will work II saving of few
hundred dollars daily.
The paid admissions at the fair yester
day were 1S,ilS