Mexico weekly ledger., 1914-11-05
BEST ENTERTAIN.
MENTS STARTED

What promises to be the biggest
and best entertainment ever held in
this section Of Missouri opened with
the band concert Monday morning.
Mayor J. W. Dry delivered his adj
dress of welcome, all of which is
printed elsewhere in this paper
at II a m and Judge Alex Carter re-
sponded in the absence Of Col. J. T.
johnson. Judge Carter made a most
excellent response to Mr.. Dry's well
come, in behalf Of the citizens Of
this county.
In the afternoon, a farmers meet
ing was held in the tent on the Court
House lawn and talks on farming
were made by the following; Sam
Jordan, farm adiser of Pettis coun-
ty; Kelly Wright, lecturer for State
Board Of Agriculture; B. P. Smoot,
Of near Centralia: G H Morthland,
Moline; Theodore Selb, Mexico, and
Furman Parker, Laddonia.
/ Mayor Dry's Address
The most of you have attended our
street fairs and our ~carnivals in the
past but to my knowledge, this is
the first "Round. Up" you have had
the pleasure of attending in the State
of Missouri. No doubt, some of you
have witnessed a roundup in the
West and you are acquainted with the
program that is carried out on such
occasions, in Montana, Colorado, Okla
homa and Texas. The cattlemen meet
and set a day for the roundup. Every
fellow that has had cattle grazing on
the prairies all spring. summer and
fall, meet at a certain place on this
day with their cowboys and the job
of rounding up all the cattle on the
prairie and collecting them in some
corral OF well-fenced pasture, where
the cattle are separated and each fell
low takes his WI cattle, either to the
railroad for shipment or to their win
ter quarters. The cattle that remain
at home must all be branded at this
time. Occasionally an outlaw who has
defied the cowboys lasso for a num-
Der of years is captured and after he
has been securely tied, the red-hot,
branding iron leaves its impress upon
his side for the balance of his days,
and greatexcitement often prevails at
this time.
Now in the very beginning of this
weeks program, | want you to under
stand that it was made possible by
the business men of this town. They
are the e who have put up the mo-
ney; the broad-minded, liberal-heart-
ed business men of Mexico. They have
not sent out cowboys on bucking
bronchos, but did send put representa-
tive business men in motor ears and al
so sent out invitations through ;hs
newspapers,by handbills, posters and
printed programs, insisting on your
spending the week, in a general Round
Up, with ell your neighbors and
friends from Audrain and adjoining
counties.
You will not have the pleasure Of
witnessing broncho-busting. cattle
roping. etc, this week, as you would
if you were in the West but a program
Of education and pleasure combined
has been arranged and | trust it viii
meet with the approval Of all. | do
not see how anyone can go away from
here at the close of a single days pro-
gram and say there was nothing on
the program that appealed to him.
In the first place, the program COM
mittee has engaged for the week, this
most excellent band. You have seen
and listened to uniformed bands be-
fore, but none like this, and ! am sure
that if you would express yourselves
at this time, you would say that you
are delighted with the music, and I
congratulate the committee upon be-
ing able to contract with them for
this weeks engagement. The pro-
committee knew it would be
hard to please a gathering in Audrain
County entirely, without having a lit
lie horse in it, so they have put some
the program. You have been enter
aimed many times in Mexico and at
,ur County Fairs, with fine horse ex-
You have attended our COM
sales for the last five or six
years and have seen some of the nest
hat trod the earth exhibited and dis
posed of under the a~uctioneer's ham {
ner, but if you will arrange TO be !
present this week when Tom Bass ex-
his %highschool mare Bell Beach {
'ou will say that you hae witnessed I
me of the finest performances it has
'ver been your pleasure 10 attend. {
The music, the horse-show, the stock l
Judging, the doll and jack G. lantern
,arades, the Good Roads meeting,
he lectures and a hundreds other
hings ] cannot mention at this time,
will, ] trust, please you and be a
-reat benefit to you in the future.
One thing | want TO ask of Won !
is this: If you enjoy
Program day after day, won't
.rop in and tell the merchants a
t? The chinch-bugs, the hot winds
nd the dry seasons for tho last few
have made their business Il
title slow. 1t has taken nerve, as .
,ell as the long green" 10 attempt
UGH a program as this, and ] think
on should tell them il you enjoy it. J
he man behind the pillow and the .
H IA