Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1920-03-05


horse show as the main attraction, the
display of horses has fallen off for severa
reasons. One Of them is automobiles. which
have displaced the driving horse on most
farms, so that now it is almost useless tC
try to get up a show. but we have plenty
OF heavy drafts yet, and since the State
roads have about become impossible to
teams the farm teams look better than
ever. When we look back to twenty-five
years ago and see the $50 to IT'S head Of
horses in the parade. the IS head that
walked around last year looked very small
indeed. This is another case Of lack Of
push as much as anything else. as most of
those shown were collected by telephone
on Monday or Tuesday of fair week from
farmers who just had never thought OF
such thing as showing the teams and
colts. Most of them were well paid for
their trouble and will likely be back II
some one reminds them of it. To make a
better one next year, everyone who sees a
good-lo0king horse had better make cir
Gle around him with his owner some Sum-
day evening when he is not burning Ga o.
line, and remark, Pretty good colt. Jim !;
better take him to the fair. not likely to
have much competition" But for good
ness sake do not persuade any man to put
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1.l0O-pound horse, because you will not
help yourself and will make fair-knocker
forever. So much for the exhibition side.
The matter Of amusements. something
to fill up the time before lunch and the
races. forgot the races. But then I'm a
farmer first and a racing man afterwards
For some reason the farmer wants races.
He seldom looks at the kind that comes off
at the fair. but he thinks If there are no
races 1t is not q fair, and, of course. the
demand must be met
The racing end at Rockville has put the
society behind. When the premiums paid
were more than the race purses. 1t was an
agricultural fair: but when the reverse
becomes true, it Is a racing association. In
my first year. $745 was paid for races
and about $1,000 for prem ums. There
was one purse Of $3.50, free-for-all, and
there was always trouble to get 1t to 60.
but some Of the best-enjoyed races ever seen
were between Washington horses for this
same purse. remember on one occasion
it was not filed when the entries closed
and was told to fill it. Well, found
some horses at the old Bennings track.
and the drivers and sat down on the old
clubhouse steps and made the deal.
There was dark fellow, named Trow-
bridge, John Dugan and third man.
They were to bring three horses out. drive
closely contested race for the money, with
split heats. They came out with Bunch Of
Roses. Kate Clark and another horse and
gave an exhibition that drew more COM
pliments than any race for many years.
and they got their money. In twenty-five
years that helped to arrange races at this
and other fairs, have found that there
are only one or two races, harness races
especially. that are bona-fide races. The
results Of all the rest are known before
the start, except in the local races and
where a new man joins in circuit for the
first few fairs, before the bunch that have
been travelling together takes him in.
We are unfortunately situated for any
kind Of racing. We have not the horses
for local races, and must depend on Wash
ington and Baltimore. There are plenty
there. but they get over on Eastern Shore
in August, and we have to get them from
Cambridge through Baltimore. After our
fair they 60 right back to Baltimore. and
through Delaware north. The easiest ship
ment is from Cambridge to the Delaware
fairs. and it takes persuasion to make
them come our way.
The usual amount for races has been
about So 1000. and it looks like an easy
problem to cut this down, but 1t Is not
The travelling horseman with three horses
has an expense bill for freight, feed. entry
fees, etc., of about $3.50 per week. To
make this he relies on getting first money
or a couple Of seconds, and the purses
must run close to $500, or he cannot come
out. All fairs must offer enough different
classes so he can put all his nags in, and
there you are. was a sort of manager
for Lynchbure fair races for four or five
years. and got as much for two weeks
work as our secretary got last year. besides
being sent to all the fairs in Maryland and
nearby Virginia that came off before the
last week in September. They made the
effort to have high-class harness racing
with about $500 in purses up to 1914.
They belonged to a circuit of Virginia
fairs that ran from August to November.
all before them were on one railroad II
was no trouble in the world TO get GER
tain number Of entries from those who
were going all the way down the circuit,
but there were very few good races, as the
! drivers knew each other too well. Ship
ping became a problem in 1914. and they
dropped their high-priced help. cut the
race money to $500, for local horses
only, and some running races. Since then
they have invested nearly $4,000 in lib
erty bonds. and paid more for premiums
and amusements than before.
BY the way, who among this crowd knows
whose horse won the county race at last
fair Well. frankly do not. | was at work
at the other end Of the grounds and nothing
took me down to the track during the
whole time. But that shows how much
the races really amount TO as something to
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der which very small amount might be
spent in races and we have the crowds we
had when the new track was first built.
Time will show.
Other amusements. side shows. games OF
skill and games Of chance. No fair Is
complete. and in fact no fair can pay ex-
penses with the present admission fees
without the midway. but there Is such a
thing as decent midway and one that
will pass muster While as a usual thing
the worst part Of the strong" sideshow,
as they call 1t. is shown on the platform
out in front. have seen would not care
tolhave around. The rule among the officials
who try 10 weed out the bad ones is to see
the show before any deal is made, without
letting the the owner know who is inside.
for they run the performance very much
according to the audience. There have been
few extra good ones at Rockville but
there have been so many Of the other kind
that people are getting leary Of them and
they fail 70 get the patronage. That makes
them hard to get hold OF, and unless can
run across some Of the old men do not
expect to have many this year. The diff
ference between games Of skill and games
Of chance. who can give 1t There Is al
ways one thing certain on fair grounds.
outside OF the raffies. there are no games
Of chance.
The farmer is the only really, truly, all
the year-round gambler the world supports
in large numbers. He begins in early
spring to wager his capital and labor
against long odds that he will make enough
crop to carry him the year, He puts up a
bunch Of steers against the pasture and
market, he bets he can furnish feed for a
bunch Of hogs and have more than 1t cost.
and so on ad infinitum. And yet with