ELEVENTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART XII 841 



CHESTER WHITES. 



Bulk of more desirable prizes in this class went to Nagle & Son of 

 Iowa, and D. H. Lewis of Illinois, the breed affording one of the best 

 shows made in years. James Stewart of West Liberty, Iowa, was judge, 

 to apparent satisfaction of exhibitors. 



FARMERS' TRIBUNE. 



SIOUX CITY, IOWA. 



Iowa has reason to be very proud of her annual fair and exposition. 

 It is a great institution. It is one which not merely amuses, but instructs. 

 It is a gigantic 10-day educational institution organized to aid in keeping 

 farmers and stockmen in touch with each other's work, as well as to aid 

 people of the cities to learn something about the country and its products. 

 In this it is succeeding beyond the fondest expectations of its most enthusi- 

 astic admirers.' For the man engaged in farming it is unquestionably the 

 most valuable institution in the state for stimulating interest in his work 

 and spurring him on to better things. It is to be regretted that the 

 attendance from the country is not several times as large as it usually 

 is. Thousands of farmers are annually missing much because they will 

 not take a few days off to study the improvements that are being so 

 rapidly made in the agricultural field. While the management is not 

 complaining about a small attendance, yet we cannot help but feel that a 

 comparatively small percentage of farmers attend the magnificent state 

 fairs that are annually being held all over the country. 



The attendance at the fair this year was over 220,000, or nearly 25,000 

 larger than last year. Money receipts from all sources exceeded those 

 of last year T>y close to $15,000. This speaks well for growth. One should 

 not complain at this; nevertheless, more Iowa farmers could to their 

 own advantage, attend this fair and exposition more liberally. It is im- 

 possible to convey a satisfactory impression of this great educational 

 institution in a short article, if indeed it could be done in a whole book. 

 To be appreciated the fair must be seen — not in a superficial manner, but 

 in a careful way. It must be studied. A whole week can easily be 

 spent in study. Exhibitors are always glad to answer questions about 

 their exhibits and make detailed explanations concerning everything under 

 their charge. 



When one sees the magnificent show of pure-bred live stock at this 

 great fair — the horses, cattle, sheep, and swine — it is almost impossible to 

 realize that there are more farms in Iow r a where live stock is neglected 

 than there are well stocked farms, the fertility of which is maintained 

 through the aid of barnyard manure and intelligent crop rotation; yet 

 such is the case. Iowa is a great live stock state, and her fair bears 

 witness to that fact; yet were her supply of cattle doubled, her farmers 

 would be still more prosperous and the time for the purchasing of com- 

 mercial fertilizers would be still farther removed. Judging from the 



