Rocky Ford enterprise., 1894-09-13

| Instructed and Delighted. Larger
Buildings and More of them Must
be Built Next Year.
The past glories Of Rocky Ford's fam
GUS festival were completely collapsed by
the history Of last Thursdays doings.
To the residents of the Arkansas val
ley Watermelon Day has assumed hol-
iday character rivaling Thanksgiving and
the Fourth of July.
Had Rocky Ford advertised that q
hundred tons of silver dollars would have
been distributed 70 all comers the crush
could have been but little greater.
The day was model one, through ono
Of the perfect days Of June being sand
wiched into September for this special
occasion. Early in the morning the
crowds began to pour into town, clouds
of dust arising from the country roads
indicating the trend Of travel. All roads
led to Rocky Ford and all faces were
turned in the direction OF the watermelon
pile. The numerous excursion trains ar
rived at various hours during the morn
ing, each containing from nine to sixteen
coaches, and all crowded to the fullest hol-
iday packing capacity. Bands accom-
panied several of the trains and the town
was tremulous with melody. As each
train arrived the happy excursionists
were 'piloted in the direction Of the
grounds by Rocky Ford's splendid Wat
ermelon Band. The crowd was phenom-
email. Streets, stores, fair grounds, the
melon grove, everywhere, people were
to be found, all intent on securing the
greatest amount Of enjoyment out OF the
unique festival.
On arriving at the grounds the 1900
visitors saw 5000 watermelons piled up
in an immense rick 200 feet long by 80
wide, with liberal fringe of cantaloupes
tons and cords of melons was an oblong
table 600 feet long, within which stood
many stalwart men, armed with sharp
butcher knives. The crimsoned cored
beauties were halved or quartered with
great dexterity and far into the after
noon the multitudes reveled in such wat
cry sweetness as can be enjoyed at only
one place in the United States.
ATTACK ON THE MELON PILE
The program included number OF
|
tional Irrigation Congress. But the
crowd was SO great as to be utterly un-
manageable by Chairman Kellogg and
he was compelled to relinquish the at
tempt to secure order and to permit the
onslaught on the bsrricade of melons,
which loomed up in luscious immensity
in the dense shade Of beautiful trees. So
liberal was the supply Of melons that
two hours after the attack began the
symmetry of the great pile was scarcely
marred.
lunch baskets, and the noon-day meal
was taken in the finest grove in Southern
Colorado. All drafts for melons to COM
plete the luncheon bill of fare was
promptly honored by the guardians Of
the delicious green mountain.
| Late in the afternoon iust before the
starting of the excursion trains on the
homeward trip, melons were given to all
who cared to take them. Many hundreds
of men and women carried twenty-five
pound melons to the cars in wire holders
or gunny sacks, small boys and our col
ored brethren taking two large melons
each.
When the melon pile had worn off the
edge of the appetite for such luxury,
thousands sought the fair grounds, which
adjoins the grove, in which the melons
were served. A steady throng Of visitors
surged through the splendidly shaded
grounds and the various buildings de-
voted to the exhibition OF the innumer-
able products Of the valley.
HORTICULTURAL EXHIBIT.
The building which attracted the larg-
est crowd and which was constantly
thronged to the verge of Inconvenience
was that containing the horticultural ex-
hibit. The display Of fruits grown in the
Arkansas valley in the seventh year since
horticulture was attempted as q business
astonished the visitors beyond measure.
That such variety OF fruits and all OF
such superior quality could be produced
in region which was popularly supposed
to be fit only for coyotes and Texas
who had never before visited the valley.
Many OF the Eastern members of the Ir-
rigation Congress were especially i'm
pressed with the fruit growing resources
OF the Rocky Ford country. A number
of visitors whose opportunities for judg-
ing have been good, say that better
fruit display was never made in Colo
RADIO.
Adjacent to the fruit exhibits were the
jelliee, jams and preserves. The product
Of the skill of the ladies of the valley
| were otlOouCc6 tuub bu0 ucWAy
chised of Otero county are queens in that
department Of household economy.
The fruit displays Of Hon ]. b. Crowley
and R. o. McClain comprised the great
est number of varieties and won the most
attention, but many other growers had
highly creditable exhibits.
| Walter Bishop had display Of eight
varieties Of superior grapes as well as
other fine fruit. J. H. Swift's orchard
contributed an assortment Of high-grade
fruit. R. o. McClain's exhibit included
IS varieties of apples. Crowley & Son
showed 1s varieties of grapes. J. G.
Kain's fruits, especially grapes, were par
ticularly fine.
/ ALFALFA PALACE DISPLAY.
While lacking in the beauty and at
tractiveness of the fruit exhibits, the
show OF vegetables, grains and other
farm products in the alfalfa palace was
as complimentary to the fertility Of oul
soil as the more snowy output Of the or
chard. In all lines Of vegetables there
was fine exhibit and all Of quality to
win words Of praise from all. In all
other departments Of first-class agri-
cultural exposition there was correspond.
ing wealth Of exhibits and superiority oi
qnality.