694 
THE RUBAI- NEW-YORKER. 
OCT 20 
ripened condition, went far to prove that this 
variety is well suited to the climate and soil 
of Western Michigan. 
I wish I might stop just here with only 
words of commendation of this fair; but com. 
mon fairness and decency alike forbids. On 
the grounds, and liscensed by its officers, were 
fakirs, fortune tellers, hucksters, peddlers of 
cheap brass jewelry, organ grinders, beggars, 
cheap, low demoralizing shows without num¬ 
ber, beer sellers innumerable, and in nearly 
all their places 1 was informed any kind of 
strong drink could be easily obtained. Worse 
a hundred times than any of these methods 
of fleecing and corrupting the public, more 
than a score of gamblers of different soils 
were licensed by the society and protected by 
its officers. There was a wheel of fortune for 
the presence of which the society received a 
fee of £800, and other swindling devices 
all the way down through every grade, to 
the boy with effigies at which he solicited the 
1>oys to throw balls to wiu cigars. Three-card 
monte, thimble rigging, fortune pointing, 
w-ere in every coiner and by every hall. In 
fact, in Poultry Hall (so named because the 
youth got plucked, I suppose), at both ends, 
taking up nearly the whole passage-way, w as 
a show-case filled with cheap, showy articles, 
and all visitors were loudly solicited to 
buy a chance to draw one of these, 
by paying four or five times what the things, 
on an average, cost. This was not by any 
means the worst, for one of the halls owned 
by the society itself, was actually occupied as 
a low dance house where painted and gaudily 
attired females were soliciting the young men 
to dance with them. Can it be possible that 
the officers of the V\ esfc Michigan Agricultural 
and Industrial Society are so avaricious and 
so lost to all sense of decency, or so heedless 
of the welfare of the rising generation of 
Michigan, that for a few dollars paid by the 
proprietors of such games and such shows 
they are willing to sell the privilege of de¬ 
bauching the youth of both sexes? Are not 
these officers fathers or brothers, and can 
they not see what a fearful responsibility they 
assume by doiug these things ? Even if these 
men are so lost to decency as to be willing to 
reduce their fairs to so low a level, then have 
the law officers of Kent County no desire to 
see the laws of Michigan enforced and Michi¬ 
gan children protected? Or was the story that 
was so cuiTent among reporters, only too true 
—that the sheriff and his deputies had been 
bought up by the gift of a few free passes to 
the fair, and would not do their plain duty? 
I am glad this is the last year the present 
rganization has a lease for the Kent County 
Agricultural Society’s Grounds, and I do hope 
that the honest people of Kent County, if they 
are not already members of the society, will 
become such, if for no other reason than to 
secure the right to prevent the leasing of 
these beautiful grounds to any organization 
that has so little moral decency as to permit 
such practices as have been allow'ed by the so¬ 
ciety for the past three years. It is a disgrace 
to our civilization and especially so to the en 
lightenmeut of Western Michigan, that such 
things should be permitted. Fail's should be 
educational and elevating, and not demoral¬ 
izing in their effects. j. s. w. 
-- 
THE GREAT ST. LOUIS FAIR. 
(Rural Special Report.) 
For the twenty-third time annually, the 
gates of the St. Louis Fair Grounds were 
thrown open to the public on September 30th 
and the fair continued until October "th. The 
Fair Association has made several valuable 
improvements in the way of sheltered gates 
and car depots, and otherwise beautified the 
entrances to the grounds since last year. Rain 
on September 30 1 h and October 1st caused a 
sea of mud on the 2nd which the warm sun 
soon dried up, and on the 3rd there were at 
least 50,000 people on the grounds; but on 
Thursday—St. Louis Day, as it is always called 
—when 100,000 people are expected to visit the 
grounds, rain fell early in the morning and 
continued all day, cutting down the receipts 
fully £20,000, aud damping the ardor of both 
visitors and exhibitor. The loss, however, 
was partially made up by good attendances on 
Friday and Saturday. This is the fust time 
in ten years that this fair has suffered by bad 
weather. Exhibitors were all ready on Mon¬ 
day morning and everything was in place 
early. 
The Agricultural Implement Depart¬ 
ment was, as usual, the most prominent fea¬ 
ture of this fair, containing, as it did, the 
largest and finest exhibit of machinery ever 
made in this country. Implements are shown 
here suitable for all sections, and by manufac¬ 
ture! s from all parts of the country. The 
principal dealers have fine buildings in which 
they show the goods they handle for man ufac- 
turers. Many large manufacturers, also, have 
handsome buildings of their o«u; uud the 
gl'ouijrtfifH'pjiftd tiie*a structure* are enured 
by exhibits of larger machinery and the dis¬ 
plays of smaller dealers who have not as yet 
erected buildings. Here can be seen buyers 
from all parts of the West and Southwest 
who come hither annually to make their Fall 
contracts and get agencies for their respec¬ 
tive localities. I saw a number of large buyers 
from California, Oregon and even as far off as 
Mexico. The show of cotton and sugar 
machinery added to the large show of thrash¬ 
ing engines, separators, clover-bullers, hay 
presses, etc , all in full operation in the field, 
made n graui sight, and a close inspection 
would lead one to believe that the inven¬ 
tive power of American genius could go no 
further; but every year adds to the number of 
newly invented devices, and the fanner will 
soon find that machinery on the great Western 
farms will nearly do away with manual labor 
—certainly, with all the very heavy part, of it. 
In Dairy Hall I saw the finest show of 
dairy goods—cheese, butter, etc.—that I have 
seen at a Western fair this year, but all the 
products came from other States. Wisconsin, 
Iowa and Illinois are all bidding for the trade 
of this great State in this line, and there is no 
home competition. The large display of dairy 
implements showed that the implement men 
were ready to instruct the farmers and show 
them the most improved appliances for the 
dairy and creamery, seeking in return only 
an enlargement of the market for their goods, 
and the consequent profits for themselves. 
Our old frieud Curtis, of Cornish & Curtis, 
feels proud at receiving the gold medal of the 
association for his display of rectangular and 
other churns. He says the people of this sec¬ 
tion are beginning to see that they can make 
good butter and cheese just as well as let 
the other States make it for them. Fargo's 
June Butter Color was awarded first pre¬ 
mium. Hamy & Campbell showed a new 
creamer and a cream-gathering can. These in¬ 
troduce a new mode of setting and gathering 
cream, which attracted a great deal of atten¬ 
tion and of which I will have more to say 
later. The Danish Western Centrifugal Milk 
Separator was shown in full operation. Al¬ 
most ail of our large dairy implement manu¬ 
facturers were represented here, making m 
all a handsome and very instructive display. 
Horticultural Hall was fairly filled; the 
show of vegetables was very large and line— 
the best by far to be seen at any fair 1 have 
visited this season. There is a very large 
German element around St. Louis and they 
believe in showing wbat, they can do at the fail’s; 
in this they shame the natives. The show of 
grapes was small and in poor condition—too 
ripe. This fair is too late for a good show of 
grapes, as all grown in this vicinity ripen 
early, j be Prentiss, however, from Fredonia, 
N. Y., and some grown near here made a 
good showing. There seems to be a great 
demand here for a good table grape, one that 
will ripen about September 15th or later. 
Of apples aud pears there was an excellent 
display. Colorado had a very fine exhibit of 
grains and vegetables in the center of the hall. 
Among them was the Paradise Triple-headed 
Wheat grown at Loveland, Col., which is 
claimed to have yielded (10 bushels to the acre; 
also Blount’s Ho 10 Wheat that, took the Ru¬ 
ral New-Yorker premium, yielding this 
year 56 busuels to tlie acre, there being 65 
pounds to the bushel. The growth of potatoes 
in Colorado is enormous. Specimens aver 
aging two or three pounds each filled many 
baskets. 
The Floral Show was about the same as 
usual. One building was filled with rare exot¬ 
ics and shrubs neatly aud artistically ar¬ 
ranged. The only show of cut flowers that 
amounted to anything was made in another 
building by James Vick, who duplicated his 
excellent exhibit at Rochester. The associa¬ 
tion, however, failed to appreciate the cost 
and excellence of his exhibit, giving him a 
very poor position in a dark aisle, bo that the 
display made was much less handsome than 
could have been produced, under more favoi- 
able circumstances, by the beautiful flowers 
shown. 
The Live Stock Show’ was not up to my 
expectations. This society is very liberal with 
its premiums and these should bring out larger 
exhibits. The Short-horns numbered 64 head, 
embracing three old aud four young herds, 
including the fine herds of J, H. Potts & Sous, 
Thomas Wilhoit aud Henry Sodouslcy. All 
were in prime beef condition, as no attempt 
was made to exhibit the boasted dairy quali¬ 
fications of this breed. Messrs. Potts & Suns 
carried off both the old and young herd pre¬ 
miums in this class. There were 36 Here- 
fords, including the very fine herds of the 
W yoming Hereford Association that carried 
off both the old and young herd premiums 
and all the sweepstakes. The Holsteins 
numbered 59 aud made an excellent 
showing. They embraced the fine herd 
of the UnadiJlft Valley Associfi^jofi, and that 
of R. S, Stevens, both frpni New York; 
•f. w . Stillwell ft Co'sherfi freii) phif>l John 
4 ; herd from 111,, and tji* bipj pi 
Thos. B. Wales, Jr. of Iowa. In the latter 
herd w as the cow r “ Mercedes,” with the 
champion record mentioned in the Fair Edi¬ 
tion of the Rural. Thos. B. Wales, Jr- 
carried off the'premium for the best old herd 
and the Unadilla Valley Association that for 
the best, youug herd. Ayrshires made a finer 
show at this fair than at, auy I have seen in 
the West. They seem to be better appreciated 
here than elsewhere. The total entries 
numbered 41. The old herd premium was 
carried off by Ormistou & Jardine with their 
fine New r York herd, and the young herd pre¬ 
mium by' Win. Fairweatlicr, of Pa. The en¬ 
tries in the Jersey class were very numerous, 
but only about 8u filled. The old herd premium 
was a w arded toK. W. Douglass, of Mo. ,and tho 
young herd premium to R. R. Foster, of St. 
Louis. The Devons numbered 46, and were 
in fine condition. They attracted a great deal 
of attention and seemed to be a very popular 
breed south of here. Fine herds were shown 
by Younger & Whitmore, of Ill.; Irving 
Y'ork, of Ohio; Robert H. Hume, of Mo., aud 
N. B. Choate, of Iowa. The exhibit of Polled 
Angus-Aberdeen cattle grows larger and 
finer y'ear after year at, this exhibition. This 
year there were four herds embracing .31 head. 
These consisted of Harvey’s fine Nebraska 
herd, aud the herds of Gudgett & Simpson 
from Mo„ and Andersob & Findlay from Ill. 
The cattle are shown, as a rule, in the 
ampitheatre, which is an immense struc- 
i ture one quarter of a mile in circumference 
with a seating capacity of over 50,000, This 
attacts most of the visitors, and the cattle men 
have a better chance here of sbowiug their 
animals to all, than at any other lair in the 
country. This year on account of the rain 
and mud, several classes had to be shown out¬ 
side in an improvised ring. There is consider¬ 
able dissatisfaction here in reference to the 
decisions of the judges, especially among the 
breeders of dairy cattle. This subject should 
be more thoroughly looked into aud the ap¬ 
pointment of judges at the important fairs 
should be made in such a way that uoue but 
men who are well posted ou the breeds ou 
which they are to pass judgment, should re¬ 
ceive appointments, aud then these should lie 
well paid for their services. 
The Horse Department is alw r ays a fine 
feature of this show’, saddle and carriage 
horses taking the lead. There was also a fine 
display of heavy' draft horses, but not as large 
as usual. 
The Sheep Show w’as not as good as that 
a year ago. The long-wools were about as 
numerous as usual aud some very' fine flocks 
were shown, but for some reason the Merino 
exhibit was confined to a few flocks. 
The Swine Show was about an average in 
quantity, but very superior in quality. 
One groat feature of this exhibition is Chil¬ 
dren’s Day, Monday, On that day all the 
schoolchildren are admitted free; aud the way 
they scampered around and had a good time 
in the mud ’’was a caution.” On Children’s 
Day all the ponies and donkeys are shown in 
the ring for tlie amusement of the little ones; 
but, woe to the exhibitor who leaves his cir¬ 
culars around loose ou this day; the rule is 
that circulars are free, and the children help 
themselves liberally. The thanks of your 
correspondent are due to Secretary Wade for 
many favors. w. h. k. 
FAIR NOTES. 
A little too much rain aud mud. The Rural 
T ent was about drowned out. 
Prof. Tracy, Prof. Sanborn and many others 
of the Rural’s friends visited the Rural 
Headquarters on the grounds. 
The beef interest will get into the judges’ 
stand whenever dairy cattle are being judged 
out West. Why? 
— 
HEREFORDS3 AND POLLED ANGUS AT 
THE CHICAGO FAIR. 
It must have been a proud day for the 
Hereford breeders w hen the decision of the 
committee was made known that the White 
Faces had drawn the grand prize of £500, 
awarded as the sweepstakes premium to the 
best held of the beef breeds. Aud hardly 
less could have been their satisfaction when 
it became known to them previously thut 
the Short-horn men had (in their view) prac¬ 
tically given up the contest, by failing to send 
to Chicago but three representatives among 
the filty superior herds in the State and imme¬ 
diate neighborhood. The total reported en¬ 
tries of Short-horns wore about fifty,and they 
were all high-bred, fIl’St-class animals; but 
tlih Herefurds outnumbered them two to 
one, and were the choicest selections both 
from home and abroad that, could beobtaiued 
by skillful breeding und feeding und the lavish 
use of monuy. It is now known thut the 
Bbort-Jiorp men, as a body, opposed the pro¬ 
ject of bolding lbp Illinois Buffo Fair at Uhl- 
cajfoi bfit levy suapepti’d, at fiiauy do noW| 
that fear of open competition with the Here- 
fords, on neutral ground, may have been the 
motive of tho opposition. At any rate, the 
Herefords have w’on, after a short but bitter 
contest, and having attained great, popularity 
aud prominence, I will proceed to give some 
of the reasons for it. 
The first aud foremost is their superior 
adaptability as crosses for the half-wild cat, 
tie of the Plains, on account of their nnequaled 
grazing qualities and hardy constitutions, 
which have not been undermined by too high 
feeding,and breeding to inferior sires and dams 
Another cause for the surprising advance of 
the White Faces in public favor, aud one that 
grows out of the first, is the present high, 
and even w hat seems to be, the extravagant 
prices asked and paid for them. For example, 
$50 are a good price for a Short-horn bull 
calf of stainless pedigree at w r eaning time; 
but a grade Hereford sells quiekly for the 
same money, and a registered one for six times 
these figures, such is the demand for top 
crosses in the Far West. Looking at the Here¬ 
fords as they now appear at the fail’s, it is 
easy to see the same danger ahead threaten¬ 
ing them, upon which the Short-horn men 
have been, if not wrecked, at least damaged 
in a serious manner, aud that is, feeding to 
excess and breeding to inferior individuals. 
W hile a good Short-horn aud even a first- 
class one, like a blooded horse, may be of auy 
color, the true-bred Hereford sticks to bis 
colors to tbe latest generation, a white face, a 
line back and white belly beiug nearly as 
universal as t he dark or light ebestuut of the 
body color, or the entire uniform red of 
the Devon. 
But if the Hereford sticks to his colors, 
what shall be said of the Polled Angus, a spot¬ 
less, uniform, shining black enveloping him 
w'holly ? He is evidently soon to take a lead¬ 
ing position among the beef breeds, and sooner 
or later may w’in as decided a victory over 
the Herefords as the latter have over tlie 
Short-horus Those of us who in Illinois w ithin 
the last 20 \ ears, have seen the rise and de¬ 
cline of Durham cattle and the Berkshire hog, 
or at least, have seen honors awarded to others 
which formerly were supposed to belong to 
them for all time, are prepared for almost 
anything. They remember how contempt¬ 
uously the Jersey was spoken of twenty- 
years ago; they recall the scorn with which 
the Thoroughbred Horse men treated the fii st, 
exhibitors of the draft herds, and, later, they' 
have w itnessed the contest betw een the Here¬ 
fords and the Short-horns, and they are there¬ 
fore prepared for anything that may happen. 
But certainly, though few in numbers, noth¬ 
ing in the neat stock line so well conveyed 
the idea of a distinct, high-bred aud ancient 
race, as the black Polled Angus herd at Chi¬ 
cago. It seemed to be the opinion of intelli¬ 
gent observers that they are to be the beef 
breed for the mountains and cold climate of 
the Northwest, the Herefords taking the Plains 
and still holding equal blit divided empire 
with the Short-horus ou the prairies of the 
corn aud cattle .States. Here for a long time 
forward will lie fed aud bred the choicest 
specimens of each breed, and here the de¬ 
mand for export cattle will find the largest 
aud best supply. 
Having won so conspicuously’ at the State 
Fair, it behooves the Heieloid nun to ap¬ 
pear at the Fat Stock Show in force, and 
carry off for a third, as they have for a first 
and second time, the honors, among others 
scarcely less valuable, belougiug to the prizes 
for the best show of dressed beef. Ou this 
occasion representatives of the full-blood 
Short-horus will not be absent, and Mr. 
Gillette, the suceesful champion of the grades, 
has too much both of courage and audacity to 
be deterred from competition by the fear of 
any consequerce of defeat or victory. Under 
these circumstances, tbe coming Fat Stock 
Show even more than tho last one, is likely’ 
to be the leadiug agricultural event of the 
year and season. 
It is to be hoped umong other advanced 
ideas which may have seized the exhibitors, 
they will not refuse the representative of the 
Rural New-Yorker, whoever he may be, 
as they did last year, tho opportunity' of hav¬ 
ing photographs of prize animals taken for 
the purpose of procuring engravings which 
w ill be a valuable part of u permanent record 
of the progress of one of the greatest indus¬ 
tries of tho times. b. f. j. 
THE DANBURY (CONN.) FAIR. 
(Rural Special Report.) 
The 15th annual fair aud cattle show of the 
Danbury Agricultural Society was held at Dan 
bury r , Conn., from October 1st to 6th inclusive. 
This society has been self-sustaining since 
its organization, aud this last exhibition 
eclipsed those of former years, The atteu 
dunce was greater than ever before, und tho 
display ip the different classes was excellent, 
Ou Tuesday, owing io the iuclt jin ocy of the 
WeaVhri'i.fM’ifiM'K baft flpJW If) * fU(I mreegifig 
