Judith Gap journal. [volume] (Judith Gap, Mont.) 1908-19??, 1911-11-24
The EYES OF
THE EAST OPENED
(By Hokc SMITH

(By Hokc SMITH
Montana won four out of the five
big prizes for the best agricultural
exhibits at the great land show given
in New York City this month.
Thus is summed up the greatest
story ever told in agricultural his
tory.
The northwest swept the boards at
the most extensive land show the ma
ton has seen. New York and the east
are left dumfounded with no other
alternate than to admit that the "land
Of the setting sun" has the call in the
''back to the soil" slogan. 1t certain
ly was great victory for the north
west to score in Madison square
Garden. The show opened N0vem.
Der 3, and closed on the 18th.
Farmers from along the line Of the
Hill railway system carried their
grains, fruits and vegetables. right in
to the older sections Of the country
and opened the eyes Of the people Of
the east wide. The time-wOrn evas-
ion "your western apples and grains
are larger and look better than ours,
but they are not to be compared as to
quality" went a-glimmering and was
forever Obliterated by the scrMtiniz-
ing verdict Of such reputable judges
Of land products as 0. Il. Williams
OF the Ohio agricultural experimental
station, Professor Alfred Atkinson of
the Montana agricultural college,
Professor W. NJ. Jardine Of the Kan
sas state agricultural college, Paul j..
Van Cleve and the Hon. w. B.
George OF Montana.
New York and New England states
made desperate effort to offset the
Ego west" spirit spread by the mar
velous products OF Montana, Mime
sofa, North Dakota, Washington and
oregon, but the exhibits these east
ern states presented were Intellectual
by comparison. Turning from ap-
piles, which in former days made the
Empire state famous, the land show
! spectators gazcd in utter amaZement
upon the great big vari-colored ,arie-
! ties which the Great Northern rail
way presented on it's 2OO-fOOt length
of floor space. Besides Louis w.
Hill had brought several varieties OF
grapes and other fruits from WASH
ingtOn and Oregon. These, shown in
massive nine-gallon glass jars, were
beautiful picture, to gaze upon.
"Why, this must be California; g exhi-
bit!" many exclaimed. ''No, only u
hurriedly gathered sample of what
Washington and Oregon produce, y
the railway men explained.
The people Of the east Just couldn' t
believe their eyes. But. there they
were-those big red, yellow and green
apples from Washington and Oregon.
and they were real too, because they
felt of them.
Montana rose nightly in the esti-
nation OF the easterners when 1t was
announced in the Madison Square
Garden Land show that the Treasure
state had captured the prizes for the
best wheat, barley, oats and alfalfa.
1t surely was Il signal victory that
will do more than any other thing to
efiace the wild west impression OF
! Montana.
| Aside from the land products ex-
hibits the most attractive exhibit at
the Madison Square Garden was the
| $5O, 10000 collection of Glacier Ma
tional park paintings which Louis W.
Hill sent from the west. Thousands
of the land show patrons for the first
time, heard of Uncle Sam s new play
| ground ",. the line of the Great Nor
thern railway in northwestern Mon
tana. They looked in open-mouthed
wonder.nent at the beautiful scenery
shown by this striking art collection,
and the "See America First" slogan
went home in Il most effective man
ner.