Semi-weekly herald., 1909-10-11
IGNACIO
FAIR
Big Crowd Enjoy ID
dian Exhits and Ia-
dian Sports


Fuily 700 PERSONS were present At
the Indian fair at Ignacio yesterday
fhe sports commenced at two in the
afternoon. A horse race a foot race.
relay race and a cr'cken putting con,
test We're some Of lhe attractions
There was sr.i,r-i game nf bos,.
ball be ween ,he 1Ifien s,ho.I ,.om
and the Tiffany team. At the end of the
seventh inning the game stood thir.
teen TO five in favor of the Indian
boys
There was very creditable dis.
play OF agricultural products and the
products of domestic arts.
Only twenty five years have elopsed
since the effort to educate the Indian
under the auspices of Uncle Sam was
begun. This years exhibit eonyinces
one of the success Of the effort.
The fair, an annual event, is an in.
centive 10 the Indian to make A prac.
tieal application of his education. This
year the government gave one hundred
dollars in prizes for the best exhibits
Mr. Werner. who for the past three
years has had charge of the Govern
ment school. for Indians has proven
himself to be eminently qualified for
the work. He has SO successfully adapt
ed our present syatem of educarion
to the culture of the Indians who have
come under his supervision that they
are sure TO become useful and capable
citizens. Special stress has been laid
upon practical agriculture. handicraft
and the socalled domestic arts.
Al present the boarding school num-
bers fifty-six and the, Allen Day school.
s-----s--- ---~'--->--H- s-ouut ts'svsjs,-ro'~,o
from Ignacio. has an attendance of
seventeen pupils. At present work
is done only in the first five grades
The drawing. writing and language
exhibits compare very favorably with
the work Of the white children. The
penmanship of some OF the fifth grade
pupils was better than the average
fifth grade work.
In the poultry display Of the cook
ing school class, was chocolate cake,
ccocoanut cake, marble cake, dough
nuts, bread pies. light rolls, baking
powder biscuits and several kinds OF
canned fruits. An exhibit OF which
any fair might well be proud, from
the laundry, some of table linens and
several dresses which we're we'll
laundried we're exhibited.
A number of well made dresses,
some embroidery work and darning
told plainly of the good work being
done In the sewing department.
Through the children In the school
much good work is done In the homes
OF these people. Many OF the Indian
women are learning to use the sewing
machines. The United States govern.
ment furnished the Indian man any I'm.
' plement, from a hoe to threshing
machine, that the agent deems nee
essary to carry on their work. II the
squaw learns the use OF sewing ma
must buy for herself.
One OF the most Interesting exhib-
Its of the fair was number OF gar
ments made by an Indian woman with
the sewing machine. So far AS known
she had not had any instruction The
display consisted OF a child's dress and
underskirt. shirt and several dresses
which Judging by their coloring were
intended for festal occasions. One OF
the gowns was a splendid parody on
the Princess
In the agricultural department we're
displayed. watermelons. five different
varieties OF squashes. beets. onions,
popcorn. squaw corn. carrots. turnips
rutabagas, cucumbers and mangoes
pumpkins that weighed sixty pounds
cabbage and potatoes.
The potatoes. which were the nam
9th Pearl variety were grown by the
children OF the boarding school This
years yield In spite of the damage
by the floods Will be about two hun
dred bushels to the acre.
! Among the grains and grasses exhib
tied were alfalfa. timothy oats. wheat
barley and millet. Owing to floods the
threshing has not been done no there
was no display of threshed grains.
i William Rabbit, an Indian farmer OF
the La Plata raised one hundred ant
twenty acres OF grain this year.
| Several chiefs Of the Capotas ais,
raised one hundred acres OF grail
this season.
The Indians are. very succcsfu
turkey raisers. In the poultry exhibi
we're several fine bronze turkeys. Tn,
Corniah Indian game chicken. as