Law and Order in the Ozarks (Part XXX): All about the Elk Fest

No crime is reported in the June 25 and July 2, 2009 issues of the Newton County Times, which are both full of news about the recent Buffalo River Elk Festival. Among the headlines are these, many of which are related to the festival:

• Elkettes 2009. This features a photo of three young women in swimsuits and apparently refers to a division of the beauty contest associated with the Elk Festival. The photo is of Miss Elkette and the alternates are shown. They are from as far away as Everton and Mountain Home. The later edition shows the winners of the Miss Elk Fest division, which apparently includes slightly older women, up to the age of 20.
  
• Three jobs clubs formed for summer youth employment. This reports on a six-week program funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and overseen by the Arkansas Workforce Center. The program mostly familiarizes participants with child labor laws. The program also offers youth transportation to get jobs.
  
• New 4-H Dog Project meetings start Thursday. This reports on a program to teach people proper dog care and dog training techniques.
  
• Post Offices observing Independence Day early. This is the lead story in the 2 July edition and simply reports that post offices around the county closed at noon or 12:30 on July 3.
  
• Elk Summit conducted during festival. This "summit" was part of the state Game and Fish Commission's process for developing a statewide "strategic elk management plan." The elk were transplanted from the Colorado Rockies about three decades ago, and the greatest controversy regarding them seems to relate to the amount of tourist traffic they generate in the Boxley Valley, where they are most concentrated. The five stated goals of the management plan are resource, habitat, sociological, education, and enforcement.
  
• No local winners in elk permit drawing. This means that no Newton County resident got a permit to kill an elk during this fall's season.
  
• Marie Holt '09 Farm Woman. This reports on an 88-year-old resident of the county who has been named by the Farm Bureau as Farm Woman of the Year. She still keeps 65 head of cattle and grows a large garden each year. Of her marriage, which began in 1934, the story reports: "they lived off of what the farm produced. They smoked their meats, canned produce and had corn milled into meal. Mrs. Holt said she even mde lye soap for a time. The only food items they really had to buy were flour, sugar and coffee. Chickens provided eggs and cows gave milk."
  

I'm not so excited about the exhaustive coverage of the regional beauty contest (with numerous photos of all age divisions), but I suppose "girls" putting on swimsuits and sequined gowns could certainly be considered better than having crime on which to report.