Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1920-02-13
STATE FAIR DATES
WIDELY PROTESTED
Fair Board Gets In Deeper
When 1t Tries to Explain
Why Fair Date Was
Set for August.

The following statement has been
sent to county agents of Wisconsin,,
and others, by Secretary Oliver E..
Remey of the state Fair:
"a misleading statement concern
ing the 1920 Wisconsin State Fair
dates, prepared without regard of
facts, having been sent out recently,
the following facts concerning this
years State Fair dates, are presented
for your information:
1.-THE Minnesota State Fair, which
always takes the week in September
in which falls Labor Day, has taken
the week beginning September this
year. This is the week that right
fully belongs to Wisconsin. If Wis
consin were to follow Minnesota in
1920, it would be thrown into the
third week in September, which
weather bureau records show has
been rainy, cold week with but two
exceptions during the past fifty years.
Last year the EJkhorn and Water
town Fairs were greatly impaired be-
cause of bad weather. They came in
the third week in September.
During the past six years the at
tendance at the State Fair has $4,000
more than doubled, the attendance
last year being 242.095 against lob, 500
in 1914.
"The State of Wisconsin spends a
lot of money each year on the State
Fair, and officials of the State Fair
believe they are duty bound not only
to obtain as large an attendance as
possible but to return through re-
ceipts as much as possible of the mon
ey the state spends on the State Fair.
This year the State Fair will be
eight days earlier than that of 1919
The next legislature will be asked to
so finance the State Fair thai it can
be held ten days or two weeks, in
which event it will go back to its
place following the Minnesota State
Fair.
''The principal question involved in
this matter of selection of dates was:
Is it wiser to take chances of running
progress made by the State Fair by
- icing it the third week In Septena.
Der, or selecting dates when there is
reasonable assurance of favorable
weather and continued increased at
tendance?
"The State Fair welcomes fair crit
icism and suggestions, as majority
of county agents know. Its officials
do not propose to tolerate, however,
untrue statements concerning its
management.
"As matter of fact. the southern
section of the state was not represent
ed at either conference over dates.
The northern section was represented
at both conferences.
..The sole question discussed, and
the only question influencing the Sc
lection of dates, was the welfare of
the State Fair"
The above letter is published by re-
quest of O. E. Remey, secretary of
the State Fair, but it does not strike
us as being much of an argument.
After reading it and taking another
look at the protest letter of County
A nont GundnrcOn we fail tn see where
he made any glaring misstatement of
fact. 1t does not seem very consis-
tent to say that the fair is set ahead
for the purpose of securing better
weather conditions, and. that after
this year the state will be asked to
provide for longer fair when it will
follow the Minnesota dates and be a
week closer to the equinoxial period
Having lived all our life in Wiscon-