The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1922-12-31
THE STATE FAIR.

L
NO means least among many ways that have NAV
BE- devised to advertise Florida and to build bigger the
productive power OF this great state centrally located
ana Weltpanned and wellmanaged State Fair The So
called state fair which recently held Jacksonville was
reported to be great In many ways it was but in
some ways could be made much better No fair can be
goeo as success that has depend upon the financial sup
port of gambling devices The socaed state fair RECENTLY
held IN Jacksonville overloaded with nexcusabe gamb-
mig games all of which gave to the imaginative youth
wrong impulse fostered unwhoesome appetite and DESIRE
we are on the threshold of a year. Each new wear
brings its hopes its aspirations its new determine
tons to do better and build better socaed state fair
at Jacksonville is months ahead of fortunately
So Let begin NOW to make state fair in fact real
State Fair worthwhile State Fair, State Fair that
phaszes the productive power of the cultural
possibilities of this peninsuar empire
Let us have state fair that rep % hts the benignant
things Of friendly Florida and throw all these damnabe
games OF chance They're nothing ii dignified State
Fair 1t well not speak them when the spoken
word would hurt the fair But that the Fair past it
altogether fitting that the public demand fine clean Fair
as worthy State Fair any Fair in the United States
That what Florida has had 1t is what Florida de-
serves, needs, must have and will have.
In planning for real State Fair first bear in mind
tha Florida has no official state fair Neither the
vile Tampa fairs State Fair of the state by the state
and for the state such famous State Fairs as those
created and conducted by the state of New Syracuse
by Ohio at Columbus by Indiana at Indianapolis by Illinois
at Springfield Minnesota at Saint Paul. Iowa at Des Mones
and Kansas at Topeka Those the best and the most ia
and the most successful State fairs in the nation
They exist by legislative authorization and appropriation
They governed by official State Fair commission and
in all of them they have thrown the snakechaer the
the and the
all the gambling devices.
The merry-go-rounds are of course, allowed That's
good wholesome fun. Everything that is good fun al
lowed and you'd be amazed how much fun there
had when you get rid of the dirty junk The best of
acrobac stunts and the best of band music and the best of
of entertainment is fostered by those states
has be clean to in and has pay well for the priv
lege of getting in.
Florida should have state fair commission Florida
should create official State Fair not three fairly
good fairs different sections of the state 1t should
shall all the strength of the state to build State
Fair
If we are going to build great state we must oct rid If
this sectional spirit That hurts the state We must stop
talking East Florida and West Florida South Florida
We must talk FLORIDA We must think FLORIDA. We
must work for FLORIDA. We must weigh the state as
whole and work for that which the best interest of the
state whole Therefore would have the State Fair
centrally located.
What a central location? The central location is not
the geographic center The central location is the most &C
cessibe point in any state The most accessible point in
Florida is not Tampa it is not Miami it Orlando The
most central point in Florida Jacksonville Jacksonville
equally accessible to Pensacola and Miami. More than
either Tampa and Orlando. No other point in the state
could be equally accessible to all these points.
The Florida State Fair should be at Jacksonville 1t
shod be place for wholesome fun merrment good time
place to gather information; should be educational
should be FREE.
The time past when Florida can afford to be trailer
Florida must lead Florida must put itself into the lead
modern the most progressive and the most sue
cessul State Fairs in the country today Their
gates are wide open, COME ON IN.
The open gates of welcome to all has proved to lure from
three to four time the charge attendance at State Fairs
The multiplied attendance equally multipies the earn
ing of the concessions that the field The free fair
charges a percentage to all concessions.
Suppose fellow to the payfair with two dollars in
his pocket He pays fifty cents to get into the fair and he
spends a dollar and half
Suppose the same fellow goes the free fair he finds
himself inside the gate with the whole two dollars. He
spends his dollars at the concessions the ground If
Me State Fair takes twenty-five cent and they usually
take more they've got that fellows gate fee right there and
they have got more because the attendance is multiplied
three to four times and the fellow with the
got because he has three to four times many
patrons The whole thing is the simplest form of mathe
MATES. It's MODERN Let's be modern.
All exhibits of agricultural machinery, all exhibitions
that purely advertising displays made to pay substantial