Windham County reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1901-1906, 1906-01-05
FRIDAY, JANUARY 8, 1906.
THE MEDDLER.
"HMe coat ms yon put n on"
While nearly everybody has come to

While nearly everybody has come :,
realize that the Valley Fair is not q
IA money making proposition, except as II
!, benefits the town by bringing people
% here every year and giving them n
70 chance to spend money for various
n things, there are many who believe
o the institution ought at least ~ be self
;. supporting. Offering as II does every
/ year the finest agricultural exhibition
r IN New England, il would seem ms II
: iudicious advertising ought TO result In
, nm attendance large enough to pay all
current expenses aud leave something in
the way of n "rainy day" fund. And
: yet the statement TO be presented nj the
next annual meeting Of the Valley Fair
association will show that the expenses
of the last fair were something like $3.50
more than the receipts,
The principal reason for this state of
affairs is the fact that the amount dis.
tributed in premiums last year was
nearly $4,000 more than ever before
This increase was largely in the cattle
and horse departments in which practi. |
cally every standard breed was repre-.
sented by enough animals to carry of all n
premiums offered, the increase in en-.
tries being due to increased prize
money. Premiums in other departments
were also increased to some extent. and
the amount of money spent in adver.
Using was larger than ever before. As
far as the fair itself is concerned there
is no doubt that it was the 'afinest
ever - II set new standards in both
quantity and quality of exhibits. The
attendance also was larger than ever be.
foS, if figures given out can be relied :
upon, and the whole show was huge
success except from the financial stand, ;,
point. :,
+
The proposition which confronts the J.,
Iair management. therefore, is TO find =
way of maintaining the quality of the u
snow and at the same time putting il on :
self-supporting basis. This question
5 not easy to solve, yet il is imperative
hat II be solved if the association is TO
continue on firm financial footing
There are two methods of procedure |
oward this end. One is to reduce "a.
enses enough to keep them inside the
eceipts resulting from the present at.
enhance; the other is to increase the at. |
enough to more than offset the |
lcreased expenses. Or perhaps a third
nd still better plan is to reduce ex-
enses in all departments which do not |
italy affect the success of the fair and
At the difference into features which
Ill advertise the show and increase the
tendance sufficiently to put the bal. u
Ice on the right side of the ledger 4
The chief difficulty seems to be in l.
certaining a method of increasing the IL
tendance. There are those who saw ~
at the attendance at the Valley Fair
$ reached its limit, that there is no
" OF bringing any more people here Il.
an already come and that for this rea- Al
1T is foolish to continue to spend
ney advertising. Others maintain
1t there is no such thing as reaching
INIT of attendance and that the mum
of people who visit the fair depends
oily upon the publicity given to the FiTo
mt. While not pretending TO be Nv
lifted to speak authoritatively on this ~,
'stion, The Meddler believes that it is io %.
reat mistake to proceed on the prin- payri
lie that the Valley Fair is so well ad. part
tised that it needs no further exploit
on. Experience has proven that the Or
cess of any project of this nature II
ends entirely on keeping it continu- ~
before the public If increased
ertising does not result in increased
ndance at the Valley Fair some
g must be wrong with the way the 9
ertising is done. There is no reason
the number of people should not be ;;
er every year, provided the merits :,
he show are put before the public in !,
right way.
q
lie fair management will no doubt
way to put the show on sound G. e.
lcial basis without lowering its Al
ity, and there is no reason for think -
that Brattleboro's reputation for cnJ
e the greatest show in New Eng. vi
- will suffer in the future 1t is to
oped, however, that instead of go -
IN the principle that the fair can "
on its reputation the management ~
abor with increased vigor to widen
cope of its drawing power.
The Meddler.