New Britain herald., 1917-09-10
BERLIN CAPTURED
BY ARMY OF FUN
Fat Lady and the "Hot Dog"
Vendor Are Back Again
BIGGER AND N0ISIE R

The Oxen, Cows and Other Farm
Animals Are There, Not to Mention
Big Auto Show-Horse Racing Pro-
gram Opens Tomorrow.
Especial to the ~Herald).
State Fair Grounds, Berlin, Sept.
10.-Bigger, better and buster than
ever before, the annual fair of the
Connecticut State Agricultural So
ciety, popularity known as ''the Ber-
lin Fair" opened here this morning
with weather conditions that were
ideal and which bid fair to continue
through the six days and night that
the big exhibition will be in progress.
The midway this year Is bigger than
ever. with score or more concession
lists that were here q year ago. The
cattle show is the largest ever held
in this section of the state and the
various other exhibits, from that sent
down by the city Of New Britain to
the little drawing sent in by a little
school girl, are all Of the best As
usual, the opening day of the fair
did not see such large crowds as will
the succeeding days, but there were
several thousand in attendance during
the day and another large crowd is
expected tonight. The Connecticut
company in endeavoring to handle the
big crowds and is putting number Of
extra cars on the Berlin-New Britain
run. The horse racing, which begins
tomorrow, will also attract hundreds
of racing enthusiasts and others who
enjoy the keen excitement OF a neck
and neck finish. The entries for to-
morrow's race close at 10 o'clock to-
night and Manager George Greene
expects to have the best card that has
trotted on the local track in many
years.
On1c1als Optimistic.
Col Charles M. Jarvis, president of
the AGRICULTURAL society, and Leland
Gwatkin, treasurer, were among the
first men on the grounds this morn
ing and both expressed themselves as
delighted with the prospects," This
year we've got a fair that is bigger
than any we have heretofore attempt-
ed. The weather outlook is good and
we expect to wind up on Saturday
night after the most successful week
we have yet experienced" stated Col.
Jarvis. ''Ditto,v remarked Mr.. Gwat-
kin. William H Gabsresny town prose-
cutor, is at the grounds at all times
and aided by a detail Of policemen
from New Britain and the local con-
stabulary he has the place amply pro-
tected against any forms Of rowdyism
or lawlessness I'VE have not had
one bit of trouble" stated the prose-
cutor this morning.
Pandemonium in Midway.
Several thousand people visited the
fair grounds yesterday afternoon,
watching the various exhibits being
brought in and the scores OF workers
hurrying to set up their tents and
booths preparatory to an early start
this morning. Elmer Stearns, who
has charge of granting concessions on
the midway, has handled his part Of
the work in an excellent manner and
the brilliant sights and the bedlam of
noise that greets the eyes and ears of
the wanderer down that thoroughfare
convinces him that he Is visiting a
fair that ts a fair. From the time the
visitor walks through the front gate
until he finds shelter in the exhibition
building at the rear end of the
ed by a perfect pandemonium. The
leather lunged barkers are insistent
in calling attention to their. wares,
the bearded lady glances' coyly at you
from the corner OF her eye, while the
fat girl, "only FL but weighing a.
ton, more or less'' laughs and chickles
with glee as she tells the crowd Of
animated toothpicks which gaze at
her in open eyed astonishment that
she attributes her buxom build to the
fact that she never drinks milk : or
eats butter, thereby contradicting the
scientists who declare that quart Of
milk each day will make the thinnest
person look like a ''rolly polly in a
month. Then too, there are the nat
ural freaks. There is the man who
lays calmly on a table while an anx-
ious throng bends over the railing to
watch his heart beat. This man
claims to be the only person in the
world who can have his chest cut
open, exposing his heart, and still
live. That's what he says, but we
didn't visit that exhibit. The fortune
cellers are also present, ready and
anxious. always for consideration,
to tell your past, present and future.
They are said to be particularly clev-
er in telling the future and have
caused cold chills to run up and down
the spine of more than one young
man between the ages of Fl and 81.
The hot dog man too, is present and
SO is the ice cream cone dealer and
she ever popular sweet cider dealer.
This last named has to share his pop
ularity this year with the pretty lit
tie girl selling orangade and the other
dealer with a new drink made from
the juice of pineapple. Soda water
and ginger ale is also for sale, but
that seems to be the extent Of the
wet goods.