The billboard (July-Dec 1897)

# i 16 THE BILLBOARD THE BILLBOARD PROCEEDINGS —OF— FOURTH ANNUAL CONVENTION —OP THE— Wisconsin Fair Managers' Association, HeldatMsu&on, Vis^ Feb. 2 and 3,1897. President— Johzt M. Tktjb, Baraboo. Secretaky and Treasurer— Akthbi Babbitt, Madison. BOARD OF Dl&BCTOKS— Geo. r_ EAimiGTOir, Etkhorn. Geo. Gailowat, Menomonie. Jesse r. Sharp, Chippewa Falls. M. F. Barteau, Appleton. ■\i INTRODUCTION. The publication, of the proceedings of the Fourth Annual Convention of the Wisconsin Fair Managers* Association is made possible through the courtesy and progressive advertising spirit of the TJonaldson Xithographing Company of Cincinnati. To this company the thanks and appreciation of our Association are due. 'While organization in many other lines of business and industry has been perfected years since, the org anizati on of Fair Managers is of comparative recent date. It is the belief of the undersigned that a strong association of managers will result in bringing up the management of fairs im all departments to a high order of excellence, and more thor- oughly popularize them as advertising, educa- tional and commercial factors in the communi- ties where they are located. It is with the hope that all societies which hold a fair in Wisconsin will become members of the Wisconsin Fair Managers* Association that its Se cr etary submits the , following for the perusal of those interested, only regretting' that it has been found necessary to abridge the valuable discussion in order to bring the report within a specified number of pages. - ARTHUR BABBITT. Secretary. Madison, 'Wis.. February 20,1897. Recommendations for J897. The following resolutions were passed unani- mously at the last meeting by this Association, and are hereby presented to the Fair Managers of this State for their careful consideration: RBSox-rrrioir I. Resolved* Thatthis Association recommend that the premium lists of all fairs in the State be printed on 24x36 inch paper, and. when bound, shall be exactly trimmed to 8% inches long by S>4 inches wide. REsoi-trriON n. Resolved, That this Association recommends to all fairs in the State the employment of grad- uates from theshort course of the University of Wisconsin as judges in live stock departments. - KzsoLunosin. Resolved, That this Association recommends that each fair association and society in the State place at the disposal of R. A. Moore, of Madison, a page, or a portion of a page, in the premium list, to be used by him for the purpose of adver- tising the short course. ; Resolution iv. Resolved, That the Secretary of this Associa- tion *c^ and he hereby is, instructed to corre- spond with all managers of attractions suitable for fairs and obtain their lowest figures for giv- ing exhibitions of one. two or three days at one - fair, and at circuits of two. three, four or five fairs, and that a list of such attractions be mailed to each member of this Association. Resolved, further. That the s ec r etaries of the different fairs in the State be requested to for- ward to the Secretary of this Association any cir- culars relative to attractions -that may come under their notice. Resolved, further. That each secretary of a fair be, and he is, hereby" requested^to furnish to the Secretary of this Association the name or names of any managers of attractions that have either brolcen_their contract or given an unsatisfactory I exhibition, and that such names "and facts be f furnished to the members of this Association each year, without comment. Note.— At the last meeting of this Association the annual membership fee was reduced from five dollars ($5.00) to two dollars ($2.00) per annum. PRESDENTS ADDRESS. , JOHN M. TRUE, Baraboo. I want to sav that I am pleased to see so many here this evening as ar= assembled, not expect- ing the opening meeting would be so largely at- tended. Noticing that my name was upon the programme for an address, I have hastily written down a few lines to-day. . lam exceedingly anxious that the importance of an organization of the nature of ours may be appreciated by the several county and district fairs of the State. The value of these fairs, when properly conducted, is coming more and more to be acknowledged, the appreciation seeming to be in direct proportion to the standard of excel- lence "attained. . ■ ; . In no work of a pnbhc character is criticism sharper and more discerning; inefficiency, un- fairness or dishonesty more quickly discovered and advertised; while the opposite qualities al- most invariably meet with due recognition and indorsement. - . The fair is supposed to be an educational fac- • tor—an object lesson of whatever may be worthy of encouragement and emulation in the general interests of the masses. Upon this idea it was founded; with this idea it has been fostered and encouraged by liberal appropriations from the State; with this idea it has been supported and patronized by the best elements of our citizen- ship: and only when it has been untrue to this idea has it met popular condemnation and con- sequent decline. Our most popular and successful fairs are those that bear reputations for clean management, high moral considerations, honest dealing: and complete fairness. Based upon, but not inde- pendent of these qualities, come in excellence of system, special features that attract interest, ed- ucate and please, and adroit generalship that so directs affairs that everv visitor is sent home good-natured, with none but kind words for the management and the event. To consider what constitutes the highest ideals in this work is the object of our meeting this evening; to draw from the experience of others, results they have gained, that we may pattern ■ after their successes and shun their failures. I,et no member selfishly withhold the knowledge of anything that may be of mutual benefit to the Association. We invite the greatest freedom in the discus- sion of the topics that may be presented. The chair begs leave to recommend that the annual fee of membership be so reduced as to make it an object for all fair associations in the State to join us in this movement, believing that the result of this action will give us a larger aggregate revenue than is derived under present rates: and. if the fees be so reduced, that the Secretary be" then instructed to solicit increase of membership. New Methods of Advertising'. By JESSE R. SHARP, Chippewa Falls. To the wide-awake fair manager there must be a continual procession of ideas pointing to the . successfnl culmination of his year's work He must watch for new attractions, and if they have merit secure them for bis week's exhibit. After having booked them, and satisfied himself that they will be produced as per contract be- yond a reasonable doubt, the next step is for him to place the news so that the public will learn of it without a doubt. It is not enough that he inserta-rard in the weekly paper calling attention to the fact that the "sixth annual exhibition of the county fair will be held," etc for many do not see such notices, and their very sameness lessens their value. It is not enough that we have some half-sheets struck off in blue ink, for when thev are pasted on the fences and old buildings they soon be- come dull and defaced by wind and weather. We have all tried the horse papers, and while by such advertising we read the circuit followers, we do not succeed in attracting the attention of the people who fill the money boxes at the pares. What, then, is the best way for keeping it be- fore the people? It seems to me that the best results, and those most far-reaching, are to be obtained through school advertising. By this, I mean interest the children and you -will gain the attention of the parents. Two years ago we borrowed from Mr. McGinley his idea of an educational exhibit at the fair, and that year we paid out book pre- miums which cost us about $150 in cash ' Hast year we expended in the same department nearly 5300, and from the testimonials since re- ceived* we are satisfied that it will do us more real good than we could derive by any other means.' We issue an advance sheet of the edu- cational department, which is sent to every school in the county with the request to the teacher that he circulate them among the pupils, who commence their work for the prizes. Their object then becomes a topic of iuterest at home and an incentive to the older people-to prepare something for exhibi ion It is needless to add tl-at it is the desire of each competitor to see his work when in place, and it must be a disinter- ested family, indeed, that will not share in his enthusiasm and attend the fair for the purpose of viewing this work, if for no other reason. We have a srecial building for school work, and each year it has been well rilled. The built - ing is sixty feel square, and the fact that all the space is occupied should prove the iuterest that it arouses. Afler the work is judged, the book prizes are purchased and sent to each school for uistiihution, each book havins pasted inside the "cover a label announcing that it isa reward from the County Hair, s 11J thereby remains as a stand- ing advertisement. * We now,have under consid- eration a plan for paying our education-«1 prizes in subscriptions to magazines and family news- papers. We propose to select a list of papers and offer prize winners their choice. These pa- pers coming into a family each week or month, as the case may be. are a constant reminder of the fair and the benefits derived are inesti- mable. We also offered a prize of a fire-proof safe to the township that would make the best exhibit of farm products on a float to be driven into the fair grounds. This offer attracted a great deal of attention, and the float which took the prize was a very fine production, upon which the con- testants devoted a great deal of time. The safe which they received as a prize is now in their town clerk's office, and serves as a lasting adver- tisement for the Chippewa County Fair. It is undoubtedly the best plan in advertising for an institution like a county fair to adopt some medium that is permanent in its nature. Dodgers and folders are all right for a daily an- nouncement of the racing programme, but as a means for inducing people to get readv for the fair they are a failure. Last year we delivered urc- minm lists to the houses of the farmers living within a distance of five miles of the city, and we are satisfied that this mtthod interested a great many. Our canvasser not only delivered the premium list, but he had instructions to urge the house- holder to show something at the fair. It must be plain to every one that in order to have a suc- cessful fair there must be an exhibit, and it re- quires constant work to induce a good showing. Many societies find that small cloth signs on sprinkling wagons, dray wagons, etc., give good satisfaction. -,..-: The cost of advertising the different county fairs varied from $100 to $500, exclusive of the premium list, which, in most societies, pays for itself. The general opinion, as drawn from the dis- cussion, indicated that the best advertised fair was usunllv the best attended one, and, there- fore, thatthis phase of management cannot be too strongly estimated. Discussion on Mr. Sharp's Paper. In the discussion which followed Mr. Sharp's paper, the following methods of advertising were each taken up and quite fully discussed, viz: Stickers, eight-page bulletins, newspapers, horse blankets, cloth banners, nettings, stream- ers on fences, posters, complimentaries. pre- mium lists and children. Children.—From the discussion it was clear to infer that the method of advertising by means of children was quite popular, many of the secretaries agreeing that tree tickets in the hands of the children were constant reminders to the parents of the date and the attractions of the fair. An Educational Department, where the children compete for prizes, seemed to have worked with good success at many of the fairs. "With regard to the distribution of tickets to the children, it seemed to be the sense of tho<=e pres- ent that the best distribution was effected by giving the tickets to the teachers who. in turn, gave them to the pupils under their charge. Giv- ing the tickets to superintendents of schools or district clerks did not seem to meet with so much favor. It was also thought well to give each teacher a complimentary ticket. Most of the fairs had admitted children one or more days free of charge: some of them charged ten cents admission. The method of advertising by means of children seemed to meet with much approval on all sides, it being the concensus of op'nion that the parents -would invariably become inter- ested in whatever their children were inter- ested in. Premium Lists.—In regard to the premium list, its use is two-fold. 1. To give the list of animals or articles on which premiums are of- fered. 2. Asan advertising medium for the fair. In all events, it should be made to pay for itself, either by the secretary soliciting the advertising for it or by letting the contract for its publica- tion to parties who will issue it free of charge and take the benefits accruing from the adver- tising. It is a much better plan for the secretary to retain the supervision of the printing of the premium list, as other methods are more apt 10 result in a poor job typogiaphirally. It is the plan of some societies to let one or two leading merchants publish the premium list, which -would coutam their advertisements to the exclu- sion of all others. With regard to the number of premium lists gotten out by the different societies, it was as- certained that from two to three thousand are usually printed by each of the associations, and advertising rates varied from {3 00 to $10.00 a page. The cost of publication varied from $1.00 to $3 00 a page. Some associations have decided to publish the premium lists without advertise- ments, claiming that people are tired of being worked for advertisements. The subject of special premiums came in for considerable discussion. In regard tothe distribution of premium lists, a house-to-house distribution -was much favored by many of the societies present. It is very little use to mail premium lists to county fairs in any large quantities into remote counties. It lessens the value of the book as an advertising medium to advertisers and as an advertising me- dium for the fair itself. Cloth Banners.—With regard to cloth banners, many societies are using them: others have dis- continued using them, claiming that their day has gone by. Complimentariesto traveling men were spoken Of as an advertising medium. Speed Department. By GILBERT RUTHERFORD, Lake Mills. The Speed Department is one of the greatest drawing cards of the.fair that we can have.and the better the department, the better drawing can' it is; and the better we can manage it and bring in the largest number of horses, the more we are doing for that department. Can we do without mixed classes? I speak from experience at our county fair when I say that we cannot 'do without mixing the classes. One thing is certain, the Trotting Association can't live without the entries, and he horses can live without the association. It brings up a tittle discussion sometimes during the fair. The trot- ting horsemen do not like to go against the pacers, and vice versa; therefore, I would say thatl do not believe that any county fair asso- ciation can exist and carry on Us Speed-Depart- ment without mixing the classes. Take special care in arranging the classes, and divide them so as to make the races come on different days. For instance, a 3:00 and 2-35 minute race—have one come one day and one another, and it gives the best of satisfaction. With us there seems to be a great demand for slow classes. We could nearlv double the entries in that class, and it is one of the best paying races we have. Do large purses bring the most entries? With us we have made free-for-all races for years. Scarcely a year goes by but what we fail to get five paid-up entries in that class, and I think that a large entry does not pay. Medium sized purses are more successful. In regard to a stake race, I would say, does a stake race pav? I have been struggling for years to get the gemlemen of the Executive Committee of our lair to think that it does, but I have failed to do so. I believe that it is a proper race to have at every fair. In regard to arranging a circuit, I think it would be poticy for a few fair managers to get together—that is, the secretaries from the differ- ent fairs—and arrange a stake circuit, so that horsemeu could come in and make an entry. It would save a good deal of shifting around, and a man would know about how many rices he was going to get in that territory. . One of the most important questions with us is the methods of race driving. We have been humbugged a good deal by put-up jobs during the latter part of the fair. We cannot get a free-for-all race driven on its merits unless we use great care. Fairs cannot be too strict. Peo- ple pay to go to a fair to see the race, and -1 think that they ought to get their money's worth of honest driving, if nothing else. In regard to the carrying out of the programme of the fair. I have insisted at our meets that the programme should be carried out as far as pos- sible, and think it is policy to do so. It is one of the best advertisements a fair can have—let- ting the people understand that its managers are honest and intend to do as they advertise. How are we to relieve a society of dead-head entries? In our society last fall over twenty- five per cent, of our entrance moneys have been unpaid, and are so yet. 1 have been thinking since I came np here to the State capital that it would be policy to pass a measure compelling men to pay their entrance fee, and I believe it is the onlv way we can ever relieve this great pile of suspended accumulations. We feel it in our fairs. I know of parties that came to our fair last fall and used our stables and straw, and would not pay their entrancejnoney. I made up my mind that if I ever had the opportunity .1 would have a measure passed compelling them to pav. This I merely bring up here to-day as a matter on which to get the feeling of the Fair Managers' Association. With the experience that we have had at our annual meets. I have come to the conclu-ion that we need something to help us along in that line. Discussion on Mr. Rutherford's Paper. Mr. Cox—I would like to ask the gentleman with reierence to the mixed lace. We have fol- lowed the line that he suggested, and have used the mixed races, but the practice was used in a neighboring fair of giving the trotters a little advantage of record over the pacers. Have you given it any consideration ? Mr. Rutherford—I have heard that suggested by horsemen, but the suggestion generally came from gentlemen who owned trotting horses in- stead of pacers. A trotter ought to have a little advantage in regard to distance When the classes go way down to the twenties, then their record depends upon a test of their speed. Mr Galloway—The gentleman made a state- ment about jockeying. Is there no way that we can prevent it? Mr. Rutherford—I would say that the only way I can see to get rid of that is to put judges in the stand who are as sharp as the Jockey. Mr. Sharp—In answer to that question, I would state that our experience has been this: Our first year's races were started by a local man, and one who probably would not have much ex- perience, and they were not very successful in preventing jockeying. We then put the races in charge of a man to whom we paid I75 00 for one week's service, and the contract was that we were not to pay him anything If not satisfactory. I think we had but one instance Where the jockeys scored more than twice. 111 regard to the large-sized purses. I think it ,« a mistake to have a huge-sized purse. It is vny difficult to fill them, and it was all we could ,1.1 10 fill ours. We get best satisfaction from 1 he r-io class and $250.00 purse. Mr. Scoit—I have been bothered iu thiscollec- ii. hi of entrance fees. Now, are we not a little in blame forthis? Mr. True—At our fair all entries were paid. Kvcry man paid all that was required of bim. Mr. Scott—While I am 011 my feet I would like to say just a word in regard to this matter of Iiirgc purses. We have had the poorest races that we ever had. I am of the opinion that we .!<> not want large purses. Mr. Cox—I see that Mr Sharp advises the em- ployment of a starter. Could you couscien- Mu'slv advise a small couuty association to em- ploys S75 00 slartrr for races? Air. Sharp—I believe that it is money well in- vented. We always get best results from men wJ-'pay for what they do. We kuow it will be dulue. I think the $75 00 we paid him brought us ucbd return, because the horsemen were very will satisfied. I do not think there was but one inhtauce where there was more than two false stilts. Nobody went into the stand but the timers, judges and the secretary of the track. Keep everybody out of your stand. New Features. By GEO. GALLOWAY, Menominee. Mr. Galloway gave a very interesting talk on "New Features." In the discussion which fol- lowed, all the features used at the different lairs held in the State last year were considered at length. Lee Richardson, the trick bicycle rider, and Happv Jack, the Appleton Wonder, came in for considerable praise. The sextette was denounced as a fake. One fair, which had "A Shot from the Clouds." was disappointed because the manager failed to keep his agreement. (They had a shot from the clouds in the nature of a three days' rain In- stead ) The whole attraction proved quite un- satisfactory. One fair gave a gold watch to the farmer bringing the largest load of people to the fair. Chariot race*, sham battles, bicycle meets and political discussions seemed to have been the orders of the day at last year's fairs. One point that was brought out in the discus- sion was that it would not do to have bicycle races and horse races on the same day. Tickets, Ticket Sellers and Ticket Offices. By ARTHUR-BABBITT, Madison. The question of tickets, ticket sellers and ticket offices is, perhaps, the most important one that the fair managers have to deal with, for upon its right solution depends, in a large meas- ure, the financial success of the fair. First, as to tickets. A model fair ticket should have three requisites. 1. It mu-l be a ticket that an be easily counted. 3. Easily sold. 3. Hard to duplicate. A common pasteboard ticket is a very good ticket to selL but very difficult to count and is easily duplicated. What is called the notched- strip ticket is about as good a ticket for general purposes as can.be used. This ticket comes in reels of one thousand tickets in a reel, consecu- tively numbered from one to one thousand, in- clusive, and so rolled that ticket No. x.ooo reels off first,--This method of numbering and roll- ing shows the secretary at a glance just what to credit his ticket seller with when the tickets are returned to him at the end of the day's work. Ticket Sellers—The question of whom the sec- retary engages to sell his tickets is of the utmost importance, and, as a general rule, I believe it advisable to select such men as have some weight and influence in the community in which they live. Young men who are connected with banks, or hold other positions of trust, and es- pecially young men who are used to handling money, should be chosen in preference to otheis of. equally good character who lack the ex- perience that a connectiou with a good business house or banking institution gives to a young man in theway of enabling him to make change accurately and quickly. There are two ways of selling tickets. One is for the ticket seller to take the money from the party who wishes to purchase a ticket, hand him the ticket or tickets .he wishes to purchase, and then, by another movement of the hand, hand him the change. The other method would be for the ticket seller to hand the party who pur- chases the tickets the tickets and change at the same time. This latter method should be iuststed upon by all fair manager*, as it is surprising how many people will go away and leave their change at the ticket office window unless it is handed to them at the same time the tickets are handed to them. Ticket Offices—I believe there is too little at- tention paid to ticket offices. A ticket office ought to set out away from the fence and be capable of being readied from two sides, as it is ihe common experience with fair managers that when a rush occurs it'occurs at the ticket office, for the reason that the tickets cannot be sold fast enough. The ticket office window should not be very high; it should not be high enough for the ticket seller to see the party who is purchasing (he ticket, or vice versa. It should, however, be quite wide. Good ticket sellers sell by looking at the man's hand rather than at his face. The ticket offices should have a door and good boll. Discussion. In the discussion which was brought out, sev- eral styles of tickets were brought up, discussed! and criticised. The plain cardboard ticket met with considerable favor, the one objection to it being that it is a difficult ticket to keep track of and it is hard to count. ' •i. 11 ^.". Ieained tn at one firm in Chicago was in the habit of furnishing fairs with tickets free of charge,this .firm using the advertising space on the back of the ticket. The question as to the proper use of compli- mentanes was considerably discussed. Benefits of Forming Fair Circuits. By J. c. BONNELL, Richland Center. Mr. President: In the programme of your annual convention of 1P97 I find my name in connection with the subject. "Benefits of Forming Fair Circuits." Why this should be the case I am at a loss to comprehend, as the Richland County Agricul- tural Society, which I have served in the. unde- sirable capacity of sect eta ry for the past three years, has had a very limited experience of the benefits of fair circuits, and, I may truthfully add. a very unsatisfactory one, a condensed statement of which will at this time answer the purpose. AVthe organization of the Southwestern Wis- consin Fair and Racing Circuit, in 1894, our so- ciety was enrolled as a member, and the man- agement of our fair, with the mirage of an uncommon attraction in the Speed Department, made more than -ordinary preparation for the annual fair. Additioual box stalls were built and ti.ose already erected were repaired. The track was put iu good shape, and all man- agements made iu anticipation of a big field of horses for our races. Our date.* were about the list of the circuit, but as our purses were larger than the rest of the meetings we confidently ex- pected, barring accidents, to get the bulk of the entries at the other meetings in the circuit. Our 9 fair was held, the weather clerk dealt kindly with us, but when I inform you that when our entries closed, about four days previous to the fair, only one or two races were filled, compell- ing us 10 make new races, paying the original amount of purses offered, together with the fact that the small field made it necessary that the same horses were, contestants in different classes, you can realize the benefit of a fair circuit to us both financially and in our speed attraction for lS9»- You will observe that I am speaking wholly with reference to benefits denved from the Speed Department, as I can conceive of no ob- ject in a circuit to an agricultural society that is alone in its couuty and limits competition to its residents, except in trials of speed. But to coutinue our experience, or. rather, our tale of woe Full of hope, 1895 found us again • one of the circuit, increased to a membership of eight, all in contiguous territory, requiring but shipments or easy reading, and giving horsemen eight weeks of continuous racing, which we con- fidently expected would settle all question of entries for that year. In making up our speed programme we con- cluded that our reverses ot the year previous was the result of the amount of the purses of- fered, as well as a clause in our conditions re- quiring horses to be eligible to their classes at tne date of entries closing; and to obviate those features we doubled our amount of purses of- fered, making them from $200 to $500, about twice the amount of any other meeting in the circuit, and changed our conditions so that rec- ords made after August 1st were no bar, which date was prior to the first meeting of the circuit. Our advertising was well attended to, and en- tries to our races extensively solicited: and what • was the result for i$95 ? While the early meetings of the circuit weie well patronized by horsemen, we at Richland Center, being next'to the last meeting, had when our entries closed, about five days before the first race was due, onlv fcur out of nine classes filled, and had the same performance making up races as in the previous year. Although we had a few more and some speedier horses to work with, yet the same fact presented itself as in the last fair. The original entries had been made for specified purses, and we felt it our dutv, in justice to the parties making them, to pay out the amount offered in our speed programme. And. further, the patrons ot the grand stand had been promised an unusual at- traction in racing, based on the delusion of the "circuit," and our promise had to be kept- Such has been our experience on the "Benefits of Forming Fair Circuits." Last year we were not in the circuit, and, al- though our purses were cut down in the aggre- gate $500, yet at the closing of the entries, which was about the same time previous to the fair as in the year before, our classes were all w-ell filled except two, and we bad the most success- ful race attraction in the history of the society, both as to quantity and quality of entries, as well as in financial results. Such is my expe- rience of the "Benefits of Forming Fair Cir- cuits." and I am confident you will admit that, based upon it. my attitude must from necessity be unfavorable. No doubt the managers of fairs who do not limit competition to their own county, and those who are one of three or four holding fairs in the same county, as instanced in the case of an ad- joining county to Richland, as well as those who furnish the opening meetings of a circuit, are able to speak favorably, but to us of Richland county, the legatees of "blasted hopes," do not ask it. I shalt not attempt to analyze or show cause why our efforts were non-productive of results sought for. Conversation with fair managers and horsemen has brought forth a diversity of reasons, and while I am prone to believe that with the assistance of horsemen who are not patrons of the big trotting circuits, it is possible to make it mutually beneficial, until you can se- cure their co-operation it is on the order of the lotterv. As I said before, I speak on this subject not strictly with relation to the aim and object of the County Agricultural Society, but as we have found it impossible to conduct a county fair suc- cessfully without the aid of attractions that are interesting and furnish amusement, we natur- ally turn to that class least objectionable that will "draw the crowd" and come the nearest to paying for itself. The racing attraction, or Speed Department, furnishes this feature, and the idea of the "County Fair Circuit," I have no doubt, origi- nated entirely with a view of increasing the rfc- ceipts by a larger entry list in the races, but such, you observe, was not our experience. In connection with this, let me remark that I find many members of county agricultural so- cieties harbor the idea that too much attention is paid to horsemen, and claim that the real pur- pose of the fair is always made subservient to their guild, and all that sort of thing; and I am clearly of the opinion that their action, based on that impression, has destroyed in a measure a source of revenue that is now sor-ght for in the "Fair Circuit;" and. in conclusion, would sug- gest that a disposition to deal liberally with the horseman, according him all his right as an ac- knowledgment of his instrumentality in pro- moting in a financial way the interests of agri- culture through the countv fair, would be fully as beneficial to the county society as the "Form- ing of Fair Circuits." Discussion on Mr. BonnelTs Paper. Mr. Cox—I have happened to be secretary of a Northwestern Fair and Racing Circuit. In our personal experience it has been successful, but whether all the fairs in the circuit could feel as favorably towardsthem as I do, I cannot say. I think we succeeded in attracting a large number of horses to our part of the State. Our purses in 1895 were uniform. In if 96 we made the purses as we pleased, but made the races uniform. So far as I know, we all consider ourselves fortu- nate in being members of the circuit. We had seventy-five entrits at our fair, and thought that was doing very nicely. Mr. Barteau—There is one thing to be ob- served— uever form a circuit just because they ask you to. In our portion of the State we formed acircuitof six societies. There were only three that paid their purses. We had bad weather and the gate receipts were small, so we simply declared the races off. What a society ought to have is a guarantee from each society in the cir- cuit, saying they will pay their purses. One ad- vantage in the circuit is this: that you save so much in advertising through the horse papers, S icieties save a good deal 01 money in that way, aud it certainly brings the horses into that part of the country. Horsemen want to go where they can get constant racing. Mr. Cox—Another advantage is, that in a cir- cuit you can advertise $10,000 in purses, where a single society advertises only $1200 to $2000. You can get the benefit of all pulling together. We ex- pended about $200 in advertising last summer, and by dividing that by six there -was no great expeuse for auy one society. Mr. Scott—Do you think that advertising in hDrse papers paid you? Mr. Cox—Yes; we think so. Mr. Scott—I am satisfied that our society got more benefit in that way than it cost to belong to that association. Mr. Barteau—The real advantage of advertis- ing in a horse paper is this : A man will read a horse paper where he won't notice programmes, etc. The horsemen are always watching the papers, and so always see the notice. Suggestions on Fair Management. By T. J. FLEMING. North Greenfield. I certainly feel that an apology is due to you from me for my neglect in not making any prep- aration upon this subject- I think I am some- what excusable, however, on account of the press of so much business of our own. I will only make a few remarks that I hope will bring out some of the important points on this question. To start with, I believe that this organization that you have formed has started out to have perfect management of fairs by your getting to- gether and exchanging ideas upon this as upon other subjects. Now. then, being cut down to ••The Management of Fairs," I believe that one of the first things to receive attention after you have elected your officers would be close scrutiny of your premium list. We do too much copying. We take the previous s-ear as our guide for the second and then get into a rut, which is not for the advancement of our societies. I think there should be one standard for the compilation of the premium list—that is. the number and char- acter of the entries in your different depart- ments and classes. This thing of putting all classes on a parity, regardless of the number and character of the exhibits in those depart- ments, is an injustice. Now. for instance, when there are but two or three exhibitors, I do not think you are justified in giving to that class as large premiums as to the class where there are a great many competitors. After your entries have been received, of course the work of carry- ing on the fair then becomes incumbent, princi- pally, if not wholly, upon your superintendents, and. I care not how efficient thetpnncipal officers of any agricultural society are. unless th""y have good support in the personnel of their Board of Superintendents^ they are going to have diffi- culty. Get in touch with the exhibitors, and see that their wants are met with. I do not know what the custom is among county societies of paying their premiums, but I will say along this 17 hnelhat if you Can pay your premiums especially your live stock premiums, during the fair, there is nothing that will plesse the exhibitors so welt 1 cannot wholly understand it. I would not say that it is because those men are poor, but they always seem delighted to get their cash, and I can say to you that m our last two years of experience there is nothing that came to my no- tice that gave so much satisfaction to exhibitors. Of course, it makes extra work, but with a little precaution, possibly an extra clerk, the trouble will not be so great and the results are good. Next to this, I presume, in the conduct of a county faircomesattractions. Now,! amonecf those who insist the time is past when a county or State fair can be run wholly upon lines of ag- riculture; and if we find that by clinging to agricultural lines we do not get enough people to meet" current expenses and give us money enough to make the following fair better than the preceding, we had better procure som« at- traction. Barnum once said that people want to be humbugged. I will substitute for that, that they want to be entertained. In doing that, I do not believe it is necessary to have the petri- fied woman, the woman with snakes around her neck, cane racks, aud those things, but we must have some strong attractions. I believe that if we could have a circus upon the grounds it would draw the people. I do not believe that all societies pay as much attention to the Speed Department as they ought. A society that gets up a strong premium list in the Speed Department must expect that it will cost them some money. The better the horses, the more people you will have. Now, we had a splendiu illustration of that in 189s upon our fair grounds. The president and my- - self put up £3,000 for one pace. It was the most marked success connected with the entire fair. People came from all over the State. The city of Milwaukee .was full of strangers, and the hotels crowded. I attribute it almost wholly to that feature. Now, that is an attraction. Last, but not least, in the management of the fair, comes the subject of gate-keepers. The old term, "good fellowship," comes m too much. There are lots of good fellows that do not make good gate-keepers. There are many departures of this subject that have been handled, or will be handled, by individuals, and I have no desire to touch upon any one of these points. Purely Personal. E. J. Kilpatrick is the assistant Secretary and General Manager of the Danville (Ills.) Business Men's Fair. John S. Eaton, secretary of the Fair at Woodstock. Vt. in subscribing for The Billboard , says: "I think it is a bright, clean and exceedingly useful publication " FOR PRIVILEGES AT RIPLEY, OHIO, FAIR, Aug. 24, 25, 26 and 27, Write to L. H. WILLIAMS, Secretary, Ripley, O. Merry-Go-Round privilege for sale Delavoye & Frits, THE CONTINENTAL NONDESCRIPTS. Greatest act of them all, bar none, for Theatres, Parks, Fairs, etc. Don't forget. Get the original act, DELAVOYE & FRITS, A COMEDY FEATURE For any kind of a show. Also our Big Burlesque Magic and Strong Man Act, as STIRF & YOVALED. Two Big Com- edy attractions. Address WILL. DELA- VOYE, or representatives Henderson & Sons, Coney Island, N. Y., nntil the end of July. ATTENTION, Fairs. Parks, Expositions and Summer Resorts. Outdoor Attractions at a reasonable figure. Write for list of attractions, circulars, prices, etc. BALDWIN BROS., IONIA. MICH., PROFESSIONAL BALLOONISTS AND PARACHUTE ARTISTS. 1