Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1919-08-08
IT WAS GREATEST FARM MEETING
EVER Hell D IN ADDISON COUNTY

EYER I1ul
Outside of the Addison County Fair
the greatest gathering of farmers evel
known in this county was that which
assembled on the broad acres of the
United States Government Morgan
Horse Farm in Weybridge Tuesday fol
the second annual joint field meeting
Of the Addison County Farm Bureau
Association a9d the Pomona Grange,
Early in the forenoon the procession
of hundreds of cars crowded with
farmers and their wives and children
raised the dust on practically every
road in Addison County, and by after
noon when the last of the late-comers
were on the scene there were probably
over 400 automobiles parked at the
Government Farm. The conservative
estimate is that over 2OOO persons were
present, whereas on the day before at
similar meeting held in Rutland
County an attendance of only 800 was
reported
A remarkable thing about the meet
ing was that it attracted not only
every farmer of prominence, but a
large number of people from the vii
lagos, and over two score visitors from
other counties, even some from the
other side of Lake Champlain
F. H. Abbott of Montpelier, repre-
senting the Eastern States Exposition,
who has attended practically all of the
1, ~, ba
clared without reservation that last
Tuesdays gathering here was not only
the largest but the most successful
event of its kind he had ever known in
Vermont, and it is to Mr.. Abbott that
The Register is indebted for several
Photographic glimpses of the holiday
scenes which will be published in next
weeks issue.
The original plan was to hold the
meeting at the c. NJ. Remele farm in
Middlebury, but this had to be aban-
doned on account OF the serious acci-
dent which Mr. Remele suffered this
week. The eleventh-hour change in
the plan caused little inconvenience as
practically everyone who attended
Travelled by auto and those who had
been misguided to the Remele place
eventually turned up at the Govern
ment Farm to spend the day as the
guest Of their Uncle Sam, Superinten-
dent Fred w. Hammond turned things
over completely to the enjoyment of
the visitors, and in the forenoon had
many acres of the Government land
plowed up by the tractor demonstra-
tion.
This feature OF the meeting was re-
markably interesting and successful
and it was undoubtedly the best exhi-
bition of tractor work ever arranged
in Vermont. Shortly before eleven
O'Clock eight machines lined up at the
foot of the sloping field on the west
side of the Government Farm, each
machine assigned to plow half an acre
of the meadow. There were represent
ed the Fordson, the Cleveland, two
Averys, the International, the Moline,
the Waterloo Boy, and the Wallis
With the exception of the Wallis,
which was unable to start owing to
the flooding OF the clutches by OIL
during the transportation OF the trac-
tor to the grounds, all of the machines
started off together and had a large
crowd of followers as they tore on at
speed up the meadow slope
and down again with their even burrows
developing so rapidly that within less
than two hours the entire field of over
three acres was plowed and some of
it narrowed.
There was no official judging of the
contest but under the conditions OBJ
tanning, which included dry soil, the
Fordson and Cleveland machines re-
ceived the most popular approval The
little Cleveland the only machine with
a caterpillar action, was the speediest
and attracted a lot of atten-
ton, while farmers discussed its rela-
tive merits as compared with the Ford
son and others. Considering price,
with the result of the demon
stration, Mr.. Ford's product was a
popular favorite, but there was no
question but that the Cleveland a
newer machine in these parts, had a
spectacular demonstration, even in
,luding its running alone, and blowing
the whole length of the field without a
driver.
Although number of women also