The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-10-09
status of the Worlds Fair Exhibit.

The Alabama Legislature having failed to provide for q State exhibit at the Worids Fair. there arises the question. what to do next. The President of the socistion has been in correspondsncs with the Secretary of the Kentucky Worlds Fair Association, asking and receiving answer as to what the Kentucky people lucky Legislature also is one of the States that refused b appropriate money for . State exhibit. The Kentucky Asso- citation ha. -bsen at wosts since November last to make up for the lapse of the Leg tsiature. Several schemes for raising the money were tried. One was for the sale of 1.ooo souvenir buttons at T each: It tuclians who would each give a dollar to help the State. By actual experiment the number of buttons sold was less than 1000. Next 1t was proposed that the most State be given a trip to the fair. the pop. ularity to be determined by ballot. each ballot to cost 10 cents. The plan was ex- n yadOe n s to 10000 school teachers, s.60o postmasters and to every book seller. county judge. mayor. ma. etc, and posters in great ousn- Sandrss n wsFs and Canf oaioss were distributed and 225,OOo weekly rapers were issued. containing other blank bal lots. There was no adequate response to
 
 that 1t must make direct appeal to the corporations, asking contributions on the basis of one.tenth of one per cent of their tributed bysthe coal operators, s4.ooo by the bankers. $2.60o from the distillers. s2,0oo by the brewers. N.6o0 by the lum- oermen, and $500 by the live stock rais- given nothing so far. They say that they are subscribing their part when they put the railroad rates to the fair at half price. t, .....
 With this sum of money and the hope of getting more, the Kentucky Associa- ton has gone on with the preparation of building and an exhibit of Kentucky and an exhibit that win be creditable to the State is assured.
 Contemplating like action in Alabama. we shall have the advantage of Kentucky In the matter of knowing what mistakes to avoid: but Kentucky has the double advantage of Alabama: 1t is a much rich- CT State industrialiy, and the work of
 bs fee began s vet so Ss There remain but six months in which to do this immense work, two of which months will be taken In making the ap- peal and getting some response 1t will be three months before anything definite regarding the possibility of making an exhibit can be known, leaving but three months in which to erect building and It should be apparent to a thinking person that even If we had now the most enthusiastic organization perfected for doing the preliminary work, we would not likely be able to get the money together In time to make creditable exhibit; moreover, that the contributions would not be much above those obtained in Ken tucky-a very small amount considering the purpose.
 The prospect of having an Alabama building is so very poor an one, there- fore, that 1t may as well be dismissed. an exhibit, to go in the appropriate gen. eral building or buildings of the exposi- ton. How much enthusiasm can be aroused in support of such a proposition namely, the making of an exhibit in the general building or separate exhibits in several buildInRs-remalns to be seen.