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THE ILLINOIS FAKMER. 



Nov. 



The State Fair. 



The State Fair, held at Brighton, near 

 ChicJ^go, has, from several causes, proved a 

 bitter disappointment. The city papers are 

 now wise beyond the age in accounting for 

 the failure. Some charge it to Mr Gage, 

 some to the President, Mr. A^an Epps, and 

 others to the Executive Committee. 



From the day that Brighton was selected, 

 we trembled for its success, and yet we dare 

 not make such a prediction, for, with ener- 

 gy, good management, and fine weather, we 

 hoped that all would go right, and it would 

 have done so, had all things turned out as 

 anticipated. George Gage is not to blame 

 for offering the grounds, and, under the cir- 

 cumstances, few men would have accomp- 

 lished as much as he has done. The Presi- 

 dent has worked faithfully and to the best 

 of his ability to make the Fair a success. 

 That there has been errors of judgment in 

 many respects, no one will deny, but we 

 have yet to see on the part of any person 

 connected with it any marked dishonesty of 

 purpose. 



The selection of the grounds was unfor- 

 tunate in many respects, and as the attempt 

 to use them again for this purpose may be 

 repeated, we will point out their defects. In 

 the first plBce, the distanc from the business 

 part of the city, (six miles) is too great for 

 the convenience of city exhibitors, who 

 wish to use their own teams to haul goods 

 to the grounds. Six miles out and return, 

 is a round half a day's work, and too ex- 

 pensive to suit the views of those wishing 

 to compete for the smaller premiums. The 

 railroad facilities are all too inadequate, and 

 from present appearances, are likely to be, 

 had Col. Mason continued in charge of the 

 road, a diflFerent result would have been 

 reached. Mr. Hewett, the train master, 

 did all in his power, was at his post early 

 and late, but the rolling stock at his disposal 

 was on a scale that reflects no credit upon 

 the foresight of Mr. Eobb. 



Bridgeport and Brighton have no features 



in their. past history to attract large crowds 

 of visitors from the city, especially when 

 open cars and a shower of cinders from the 

 locomative are offered in addition. 



By under draining and the planting of 

 trees, these grounds could be made valuable, 

 but as they are, the risk of a heavy rain is 

 too great, in connection with the other 

 drawbacks, to make them at present desira- 

 ble. 



We can trace the want of good fixtures 

 and accommodations in a good degree to the 

 croakers, who avered that the Fair was 

 bound to be a failure; and so strongly was 

 this impression made that all those who had 

 the management, firmly believed that the 

 exhibition and attendance would be on a 

 limited scale. Had the roofs of the build- 

 ings been water proof, according to the con- 

 tract, the show of staple and fancy goods 

 would have been larger. But few persons, 

 upon examination of the board roofs, would 

 risk their valuables to the tender mercies of 

 an autumn rain. Mr. Robb, of the C. A. 

 & St. L. Road, could not be made to realize 

 the fact that more than a corporal's guard 

 would be in attendance, until Thursday, 

 when eighteen thousand persons were in 

 attendance. Thousands of these carried 

 back to the city an account of the discom- 

 forts of the ride, to and from the grounds, 

 and the next day, which should have in- 

 creased the attendance, it fell off to twelve 

 thousand. Had there been ample railroad 

 facilities and ordinary weather, the State 

 Fair, even at Brighton, would have been the 

 most successful ever held in the United 

 States. Never before was there such a bill 

 of attractions offered, and never before have 

 wo had so large an exhibition of the pro- 

 ducts of the farm and the work-shops in 

 the useful departments of labor. The more 

 costly manufactures, liable to damage by the 

 weather, were not on hand for the reasons 

 above given. We put most of the blame on 

 the want of good roofs, and to the railroad 

 for the want of facilities to get to the Fair. 



