128 IOWA DE)PARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



I\Ir. A. C. Pabst: Mr. dhainnaii and Gentlement of tlic Convention: 

 I don't see very much more ground to cover on this subject. While my 

 experience has been along the lines of privileges and concessions, and 

 that is about all there is in connection with the fair except the ticket 

 business, I will say that since I have taken charge of the concessions of 

 our association we have had quite a good balance every year regardless 

 of what the condition of the weather might be. As to handling these 

 matters successfully, it has been pretty generally gone into as to what 

 we could and could^not do under the law. 



I have listened to some of the decisions rendered by the attorney gen- 

 eral along those lines as to what might be termed gambling or a game 

 of chance or an amusement. Xow, I will say this; communities differ. 

 In our small county of sixteen towhships we have a community made up 

 of all classes of people. Monroe county is the banner county of the 

 state of Iowa in the output of coal, so you may know about what class 

 we have to cater to in order to get them to attend the fair. You have to 

 supply something that will bring them to your grounds and at the same 

 time keep within the law so as not to forfeit your state appropriation. 



Now, it might be well to state about how we handle this thing. This 

 year in August we gave away three prizes — two automobiles and a buggy. 

 Now, when I say "we" I don't say or mean that the fair association did 

 it. We have a mess of boosters in our county divided into different 

 classes. We have the labor unions down there; we have the merchants' 

 organizations or the business men's association. The fair association 

 has nothing whatever to do with these automobiles. The business men's 

 association issues tickets with duplicate numbers; they issue them by 

 thousands, and for every dollar that is paid on book account or cash 

 they issue one of those tickets on the automobiles or buggy. They ad- 

 vertise that these prizes will be given away upon the fair grounds on a 

 certain day. The buggy is given away on the second day after the entry 

 day and the two automobiles on the next two days. The fair association 

 allows them to bring the autos and buggy out there and give them away. 

 The person who holds the correct number when it is called gets the prize. 

 If no one responds they wait twenty minutes and call the next one, and 

 so on until some one holding a duplicate number responds. This is done 

 by the business men's association. It is the only way they can handle it, 

 and I don't think the fair association is liable in any way whatever. 



In regard to engaging concessions, it is a pretty hard proposition but 

 I established a rule to answer all my correspondence and make a carbon 

 copy of each letter written. Quite often I answer fifteen to twenty-five 

 letters a day. Some man has written for information; stated what he had 

 and about what it was, clean and moral and perfectly safe. I answer it 

 and make a notation on the bottom of the letter as to date it was an- 

 swered and make a carbon copy of my answer. When he replies he will 

 say, "Your terms accepted. Will be there on time." What are those 

 terms? I turn to my file and find them on the carbon copy. And when 

 they come and try to slip something over on me I can nail them to the 

 cross. Before you get them, on the ground you have to take it for granted 



