The Portland daily press., 1895-08-10
GATHERED AT RIGBY.
Preparations for the Coming New
England Fair.

EHSlduu EdIFs
The Greatest Agricultural Show Maine
Has Ever Seen-Some of the Features
Remarkable Time Made at the July
Trotting Meeting.
MWhen the Rigby race track was built it
was predicted that it would be one Of the
| fastest, if not the fastest in the country.
The track is keeping up to it's reputa-
tion right along. For instance, take the
July meeting, which preceded that now
in progress. There We're four days OF
racing and the average of the time made
is quite remarkable. Mr. Fred +. Har-
ris of Manager Farnham's office, has
been making some figures, and the result
is interesting and gratifying to the
friends OF the track. Mr.. Harris figures
include the average time of each day. On
the frst day he finds the average was 2
minutes and H. SO seconds; on the second,
2 minutes and 14.7 seconds, and the
fourth, minutes and 16 16 seconds. OF
the 81 heats in the four days racing in
| all but one the 2.30 mark was beaten.
The fastest rush was done by Gil Ayry in
| the z. Ii trot, his mark being 200 1-2.
Forty-two heats were done in less than
2. 20; % in less than 2. 10, and three were
| finished in 2 10 or better. The average
speed of the four days meeting was 2
minutes and 16. "a seconds.
The thousands of visitors who will
come to the New England Fair will see
some gilt edged racing. A track where
such time can be made is without a bet
ter and there will be famous horses from
all over the country i'll the races at the
Fair. The Fair, by the way, is likely to
be the largest ever held in the States.
Entries are being received in large num-
bers from all parts of Maine, and Massa-
chusetts will have a large representation.
When the management built the four
large cattle barns to accommodate 400
head, 1t was supposed that there would
be ample room, but now it seems prob
able that another building must be erect
ed. A crew of carpenters is being held in
readiness to do this work with rush.
The 2s5fsheep pens and the 80 swine..pens
will be crowded from present Indications
In the cattle exhibit, there is to be what
is probably the finest herd of Jersey cat
| tie in the country. 1t is owned by c. T.
| Hood of Lowell, Mass, of Sarsaparilla
fame, and it will take two cars to bring
| the herd to Rigby More horse stalls
must be built if the entries keep coming
in the way they are being received at
present. Nelson, the famous stallion,
will be shown on the track He will be
harnessed to bike wagon and will be
accompanied by ten or twenty of his
progeny.
| The appearance of johnson, the cele-
brated bicyclist, is attracting great atten-
ton among wheelmen. johnson is a
high priced man. For his attempts to
beat tw o minutes for the mile and A. 1C
for two miles he will receive 81, 600. Mem
bers of the Barnes club of Boston, the
Buffalo IN. Y. y club and the Syracuse
club will be among the throngs of wheel
men who will see the great bike rider do
his prettiest on the Rigby track
| A feature of the fair of especial interest
to the farmers will of course be the exhi-
bit of agricultural implements. To ao-
commodate this, the original allotment Of
space has been just doubled, and foul
great tents, go by 100 feet, will be erected.
Kendall & Whitney, of this city, will
also have tent on the ground, and will
fill it with their exhibit.
This question of space is troubling the
gentlemen in charge of the City Hall
exhibit. Room will be found for every.
body, but it will require careful figuring.
The Haskell Silk Company of Westbrook
have applied for space for one of theil
looms, which they want to show in oper.
alton, and the Androscoggin mills oi
Lewiston have made a similar request.
1t is to be the biggest show of the kind
ever held in City Hall.
/ The management are now sending out
mammoth posters advertising the fair.
They are four or five feet long and three
or four broad. The gorgeous pictures are
surrounded by q gilt paper frame, and
the printed matter informs readers OF
the various attractions OF the fair, in.
cluding the presence of presidents. gov.
ernors and mayors galore