Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 183, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 13 August 1918 — COMMUNITY FAIR FOSTERS RIVALRY [ARTICLE]

COMMUNITY FAIR FOSTERS RIVALRY

. ; > Farmers and Families Co-oper-ate With Neighbors in Exhibiting Best Products. PEOPLE BROUGHT TOGETHER First Step la to Interest Leaders, Then Elect Officers and Appoint Committees Ribbons Usually Awarded as Premiums.

John Jones’ basket of potatoes takes the blue ribbon at the fair, and immediately every farmer in the community secretly plans to take that prize away from Jones next year. And Jones, seeing Jim Brown’s winning corn, resolves that next time he will add that premium to his other trophies. And so on down the line of all exhibits, the community fair fosters the spirit of friendly rivalry. It calls not only for the exhibition of the best products that have been grown and the best work that has been done, but it Includes as well games, athletic contests, pageants and other features which bring the men and women and the boys and girls together for wholesome recreation.

The first step toward holding a community fair is to interest the leaders of the community; the second is to call a meeting of the whole community to elect officers and appoint committees to have charge of the work. The fair should be well advertised, and effort should be made to secure exhibits from* as many persons as possible, rather than to secure exhibits of exceptional quality. For premiums ribbons are usually .awarded rather than cash payments. AS 1 didst of the preparations for the fair "are made by volunteer workers, the small amount of money required for Incidental expenses can be raised by subscription or by the sale of advertising space in catalogue of on the program. There should be no entry fees or admission charge. Grouping the Exhibits. While it is to be expected that the exhibits at a community fair will receive special attention for the purpose of exhibition, nevertheless they should represent as nearly as possible the normal production of the community, for one of the purposes of holding a community fair is to stimulate a desire to increase the quantity and to Improve the quality of the average product. Freak exhibits of all kinds are to be avoided. Personal solicitation has been found to be the most effective means of inducing people to make exhibits. Each exhibitor should realize that he is in competition only with other members of the community and that it will not be possible for some stranger to take dll the prizes. Satisfactory results are usually obtained in community fairs by group* Ing certain classes of exhibits. Thus, In the live stock department, horses, cattle, swine, poultry, and pets are exhibited- In the farm products department are shown different varieties of grains and seeds, grasses and forage crops, field beans and Teas, peanuts and potatoes, together with dairy products and bee products. The Orchard end garden department includes such exhibits as fruits and vegetables, omamentnl shrubbery, and flowers. The woman’s work and fine arts department Includes prepared foods, canned goods, jellies, preserves, and pickles, and all kinds of needlework, together with such exhibits as paintings, metal work, raffia and reed basket work, pottery, painted china, and handmade jewelry. The school and club department In-

eludes all exhibits from organizations in the community which wish to bring the results of their work before the community in this way. The historical relics department includes firearms, swords, caps, and other war relics, old looms, spinning wheels, and articles produced on them, old pictures, drawings, documents, Indian relics, family relics, geological specimens, and objects of interest from other lands.

Ribbons for Prizes. Experience has proved that the awarding of money prizes not only makes the cost of a fair prohibitive, but, by placing the emphasis on money instead of On the honor of achievement, defeats the purpose of the fair. The best" results have been obtained where ribbons have been awarded, the color of the ribbon denoting the grade of the prize. If money is available fpr printing the ribbons, each one should be so printed as to' show the occasion, place, and date. Awards should be made on the basis of the excellence of the exhibit, and no premium should be awarded to a poor exhibit. Accordingly, for the information of exhibitors, it is well to publish for each class of exhibits the requirements that are to be considered by the judges in awarding premiums. The managements of county fairs are beginning to realize the value of the community exhibit as a factor in making the county fair serve its purpose as an agricultural exhibition. Liberal premiums - have been offered for these community exhibits, either in cash or in such form as to be of community use, as, for example, reference books on agricultural subjects to be kept in the community library', a watering trough conveniently located, or a drinking fountain. One state has recently passed a law providing for the holding of community fairs and appropriating money for the purpose of packing community exhibits and transporting them to the larger fairs.

Honey in Place, of Sugar. The simplest way of using honey Is to serve it like jam or- sirup with bread, breakfast cereals, boiled rice, pancakes, and other mild-flavored foods. As ordinarily used on bread, an ounce of honey “spreads” as many slices as an ounce of jam. When it is to be used in the place of sirup some people dilute it by mixing it with hot water, which has the effect of making it no| only less sweet but also easier to pour. Honey or a mixture of honey and sugar sirup cpn be satisfactorily used for sweetening lemonade and other fruit drinks. Sirup of any kind is more convenient for this purpose than undissolved sugar, and when charged water is to he" added it has a further advantage, since it has less tendency to expel the gas. The fact that honey consists principally of sugar and water and is slightly add suggests that It is a suitable substitute for molasses In cook-