The Forrest City times., 1910-03-11
ENLARGE STATE FAIR
PRESIDENT g. A. COLE URGES
MODERN METHODS.
Representatives of Business organiza-
cations Hold Meeting at
Little Rock.
Little Rock. Ark

n movement to enlarge the scope of
the Arkansas State Fair and make it
more truly a representative state wide
affair was launched at conference at
the Hotel Marion attended by George
\. Cole, president of the Arkansas
Farmers Union and president of the
state fair association; c. n. Rix and
George r. Belding, president and sec.
rotary respectively of the Hot Springs
Busines Men s League; II. H. Remmel
and George K. Brown, president and
secretary of the Little Rock Board of
Trade, and Frank b. Gregg and Frank
Longley, president and secretary re
spectively of the Little Rock Retail
Merchants Association.
AS further step IN this movement
the representatives of the three local
business organizations decided to hold
smoker at the Board of Trade build
ing at which President Cole will be
the guest of honor. 1t is stated that
the object of the smoker is to start
movement to arouse interest in the
agricultural development of Arkansas
through the state fair association and
the good roads and drainage assoeia-
ton
President Cole left for Washington
to consult with President Taft, the
Arkansas delegation in Congress and
officials of the department of agricul-
ture concerning the proposed survey of
the swamp lands lying between Arkan-
sas and Missouri. He will, however,
return in time for the smoker.
To Develop Agricultural Interests.
At the conference President Cole
outlined to the busines men present his
plans for the enlargement and better
ment of the State fair and through i,
the icreasing, awakening and develop
ing of the agricultural interests of the
state
1--WE want to develop the agrieul
tural interests Of the state of Arkan
sas, and the best method of accom-
plishing this is to develop the stat,
fair he said.
But 20 out of every 100 acres il
the state of Arkansas are under cult
vation-vthe rest is timber and swamI
land. The farmers of this state have
never yet thoroughly cultivated the
first eight inches of their soil and be
meath those eight inches are eight more
just as fertile. The farmers of this
state spend so per cent of their gros,
receipts of their cotton crop for corn
hay and meat. What we want to do is
to build up the interests within the
state instead Of sending our money
away.
To Make Fair State Wide.
We want to get all the interests OF
this state cooperating for its general
development, and for this reason We
hope to place the stock of the State
Fair Association with the business mer
throughout the state and thus increase
interest in the fair and make it 8
statewide proposition. Hot Spring,
people have put up as much as they
ever did but we want to get the peo
pie in other parts of the state inter
ested
President Cole then outlined his plan
to make the old state house perma
h'Hl tAuibIlIoh pldCe oI lUe dgFlcUl
tural products of the state.
The present agricultural exhibits il
the state house are in no manner rep
resentative of the state he declared
of | had my way, | would throw
them all into the Arkansas river
would divide the old state house into
- parts-one for each countv-let
them place there samples of their agri
cultural products, their m inerals, Their
manufactured products and maps show
ing their soils and all the other details
that people investigating the possibiI
tiles of this state, would want to know
Then you will have an exhibition tha
viii really be of value
President Cole in conclusion state,
th.t he had held from one to thre
farmers educational meetings in ever,
one of 73 counties, that the member
ship of the Farmers Union had in
creased 10000 during the last year
and that the total membership was nov
near 10000.
CtONTIN ORnpppn AT rrpupnv