324 Missouri Agricultural Report. 



A SUCCESSFUL COUNTY FAIR. 



(J. D. Johnson, Monticello, Mo.) 



We started our fair seven years ago. We are twelve miles 

 from the railroad at one point and seven miles from another. 

 When we said that we were going to Irave a fair without races 

 most of the people threw up their hands and declared that such 

 a thing was not possible. But with one exception, 1911, when 

 it rained all week, we have come out on the right side of the 

 ledger. 



We organized by selling our shares at $25 each, and, with 

 one or two exceptions, none of our shareholders have more than 

 two shares. So you see, our capital being $4,000, we have quite 

 a number of shareholders in our own county and a few in an 

 adjoining county. 



Then our next move was to charge every one at the gate, 

 directors, shareholders and the public alike, all except stock- 

 men. And right here I want to emphasize the fact that to have 

 a fair you must have stock, and to get the stock you must have 

 stockmen to take care of and show the stock. You must not 

 get into a controversy with the exhibitors over a small gate fee. 

 If you can't get them any other way, let the father and two or 

 three boys in with a colt; get the farmer and his boys interested. 



Another great feature, we think, is that we allow no animal 

 (unless a colt shown with dam or a horse shown double) to win 

 more than two first premiums. By this means you will see that 

 with a $3,500 list, by the time the week is over, most every horse, 

 colt or mule has some kind of a premium. You meet the owners 

 going home from the fair with their stock and ask them what 

 they got; they can and will tell you "first" or "second," as the 

 case may be, and tell you the truth. Of course they do not tell 

 you how many times they had to show. 



We show our sweepstake colt rings before the regular rings, 

 then in the shows that are to follow bar the colt winning first. 

 We also aim to use a different judge. By this plan we have 

 every colt on the ground, in the sweepstake ring, which is a $50 

 premium. To make this plain, I will explain how we arrange it. 

 For the best colt of either sex and other than draft we give a 

 premium. Then we give a premium for the best harness stallion 

 under one year and the same for a harness mare under one year. 

 The same rings are also made for a saddle colt and all-work colt; 



