Norwich bulletin. [volume] (Norwich, Conn.) 1895-2011, 1915-08-05
New London County Fair.

The officials Of the New London
county fair counsel all mothers in the
eastern part of the state to begin
grooming their offspring for the big
gest event of the fair to be held in
Norwich in September. the first scien-
tito or healthy baby contest. For
the past two years the baby show has
been the biggest feature Of the fair
and this year it will outstrip all pre-
vious contests. The former contests
were judged on q pretty baby basis,
but this year the judging will be pure
ly on q competitive basis. points being
marked Off as the child examined be-
ing found below the standard of babies
at that age.
In Iowa, where this feature was in
augurated a. few years ago, the farm
ers Of the state who had become rich
from the keen competition arising from
the raising Of choice crops of corn
and livestock, found that the possess
sion OF few blue ribbons for choice
cattle or crops did not counterfeit the
they found that their babies, their
most priced possessions, were below
the normal standing for healthy chill
dren- And the raisers of blue blooded
cattle and grains went after a crop
of better babies in the same earnest
magnificent crops of corn and grain,
New York city saw in the move
ment a new and appealing method for
fighting that dread foe among the
children of the city-anaemia in con-
gested quarters. Social workers and
board of health physicians and nurses,
who year after year reiterated warn
ings of dire disaster to underfed or
ill-fed babies, are now inspiring moth
ers to feed children better by offering
Better Babies medals to better babies.
Already throughout the country thou
sands upon thousands of babies have
been examined in these health con-
tests.
This movement has the hearty en-
dorsement Of all the oranges in the
country and the Norwich grange has
taken up the matter and appointed
Mrs. Frank Barber. a member of the
grange, to take charge of the show
and arrange the details. Lectures will
be given and literature concerning
the care and feeding of children will
be given out by the grange repre-
sentatives. 1t is not yet known who
will be the judges, but it is under
stood that they will be physicians who
have already acted as judges in sim
liar contests held elsewhere.
The installation of the coin con-
trolled turnstiles at the gates of the
fair grounds this September will see
the doing away of the old ''pass-out
checks" given to any person within
the grounds who wished to go out
again. These checks were sometimes
given to other persons by the one go
ing out allowing two persons to see
the fair for one admission. AS each
and every person who enters the turn
stile is automatically counted by the
machine and the coins in the box
must agree with the tally it is i'm
possible to use these checks So that
any person who, after paying his way
through the stile, wishes to leave the
grounds and then return later will find
it necessary to pay a second time.
You can argue with one of the human
ticket collectors. but the only way
you can talk to the turnstile will be
with quarter or a half dollar 1t
proves the old saying that money
talks
Persons who buy seat tickets for
the grandstand, however, will be given
pass-out checks if they wish to leave
the stand and walk about the grounds.
Last year there were quite few peo-
pie who bought seats for the grand
stand for the afternoon show and then
camped out there and waited for the
evening fair to open. This year after
the close Of the afternoon fair the
ticket collectors will pass about
through the stands and any Of these
persons who have become glued to
the seats will have to pungle up the
price Of the evening show or vacate.