174 IOWA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



Now, Mr. President, I am going to open the discussion with a very few 

 words, but I am going to leave it up to you if it gets too warm. If Mr. 

 Moore or Mr. Bechner would like to have their time occupied this after- 

 noon I am sure I can see to that very easily. 



Really, gentlemen, I hardly feel in a position to discuss this subject 

 with you as probably some of the other men might be able to do. My 

 experience in this line has been with the I. S. F. and the questions that 

 confront such a fair probably would not be of so much importance to 

 you in your county fair work. However, I will endeavor to outline for you 

 something along the line of the system that has proven very satisfactory 

 in our work, and you may find something that will be of value to you. 



There is no doubt that a great deal of responsibility is placed in the 

 hands of your admission department. I feel that there are two things 

 necessary in making this department a success. First, and the most im- 

 portant, is the selection of your men. You men in your County fair 

 work probably do not find this such a difficult matter as you do not need 

 many men and in most cases you are personally acquainted with them. 

 This is not the case in selecting some 125 men as Mr. Sheldon has to do 

 each Fall. Men come to him from all parts of the State and in many 

 cases, while they are well recommended to him, they do not always prove 

 satisfactory. 



May I, at this time, just speak a few words to you men who recommend 

 a good many men to Mr. Sheldon each year. Do not recommend anyone 

 to him that you do not know is a good live wire, willing to work and 

 able to do a good hard day's work. You must realize that we handle be- 

 tween three and four hundred thousand people in a very short time and 

 to do this means a very strenuous week for the men in his department. 



Each year we find we have on our hands a few men who are too old to 

 be good and active on their feet and in many cases walking with the as- 

 sistance of a cane. Send good strong men and he will put the cane In 

 their hand before the week is over. You will also find the older men are 

 unable to see as well as the younger men and this is a great hindrance 

 to a good gate man. 



I will never forget my first day on a turn style. Mr. Legoe, who is still 

 one of the Directors of the I. S. F., was at that time Superintendent of 

 admission. I remember a little talk he made to his men before we were 

 sent out to our different gates. The one thing that always stayed with me 

 was — "Boys, read your tickets and know what you are taking. I want you 

 boys to keep your eyes open and if possible look clear through a ticket 

 and see what is on the other side." This you will find is not always true 

 with the older men. We also found some trouble in taking care of the 

 boys. While this is not so difficult, do not send boys that are too young. 

 We find the boys under eighteen or twenty are not quite so good as the 

 ones that are a little older. If you men will just remember these things 

 when you make your recommendations you will be doing a great favor 

 to the man who will have this department next year. 



In selecting your men for your admissions department, select only those 

 who you know are honest and willing to work for the good of your fair. 

 You will always find a number of men looking for a job around the fair 



