HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuron Expositor, 2015-02-18, Page 5Wednesday, February 18, 2015 • Huron Expositor 5
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letter to the editor
Time for a Medicare
approach to climate change
To the editor,
Over the past nine years Canada's interna-
tional reputation has been damaged and the Key-
stone XL pipeline has been stalled, all because
our federal government has failed to deliver a
sensible, credible approach to the environment
and the economy.
At the same time, many provinces and territo-
rial governments have begun their own initiatives
because they know that climate change is real
and that our children's future requires us to
reduce carbon emissions. BC, Alberta, Quebec
and, soon, Ontario jurisdictions that represent
over 85% of the economy—have all committed,
in different ways, to a price on carbon.
History has shown that Canada works best
when all orders of government work together to
forge solutions to complex problems. Through
provincial experimentation and federal leader-
ship, Medicare was forged and now provides one
common standard of public healthcare for every
Canadian across in the entire country. That's the
approach we need to take to reduce our green-
house gas emissions.
As it stands, the Prime Minister has committed
Canada to targets, but we're not collectively on
track to meet them, not even close. And no won-
der, when the Prime Minister refuses to meet
with the Premiers to coordinate climate poli-
cies—or anything else for that matter.
That's why a new Liberal government would,
within 90 days of the upcoming Paris climate
conference, hold a First Ministers meeting to
work together on a framework for combatting
climate change—including the creation of
national emissions -reduction targets. A national
standard would be set in partnership with prov-
inces and territories, who will have the flexibility
to design their own polices to achieve it, includ-
ing carbon pricing. The federal government
would provide funding, similar to how it supports
Medicare today.
In this way, we will build on existing provincial
initiatives, in the best spirit of Canadian federal-
ism. Through a healthy respect for regional dif-
ferences, we will achieve progress on climate
change; we will begin to repair our broken rela-
tionships and regain public trust.
Canada has solved bigger problems than this
and we'll solve this one too, in the way we
always have—together.
Yours sincerely,
John McKay, MP
Liberal Party of Canada Environment Critic
Private George Hayward: Sole Survivor of Company 1, Ouster's 7th Cavalry
No one knows why
George Hayward of
Walton left for St. Louis, Mis-
souri to join the U.S. Cavalry.
Was it boredom, some sense of
duty, or a chance for a adven-
ture? Whatever his motiva-
tion, Hayward enrolled in
Company I of the U.S. 7th Cav-
alry on May 14, 1873. The 7th
Cavalry under the command of
General George Armstrong
Custer would soon be the most
famous (or infamous) mounted
regiment in American history
destined to meet a bloody end
on the slopes of the Little Big
Horn River.
George Hayward was born in
1851 in Little York, Ontario but
gave his residence as Walton. A
'harness maker' by trade, Hay-
ward would have been an asset
to any cavalry unit . Enlisting
for five years, Hayward swore
an oath to defend the United
States 'against all enemies and
oppressors.'
According to Mary Thomas in
'Canadians with Custer' (2012),
there were at least 14 other
Canadians in the 7th Cavalry
when Hayward enlisted.
Among the prominent Canadi-
ans were Lieutenant William
Cooke, the regiment's adjutant,
and Sergeant John Vickory who
carried the regiment's silk
guidon.
Like their flamboyant com-
mander General George Arm-
strong Custer, many of the
Canadians were Civil
Huron History
David Yates
War veterans. Like many young
recruits, Hayward must have
been awestruck by his illustri-
ous commander when he first
saw him at Fort Lincoln in the
Dakota Territories. Custer was
one of the most dashing heroes
of the Civil War. A Brigadier
General at age 23, Custer's
reckless daring, and courage
under fire were legendary. His
long flowing ringlets of red hair
made him the chivalric ideal of
a gallant hero.
Hayward joined Canadian
Privates Darwin Symms and
Thomas McShane in Captain
Myles Keogh's I Company.
Their company spent the next
two years guarding westward
bound settlers and protecting
gold prospectors in the Black
Hills from elusive bands of hos-
tile Indians.
Life for a cavalryman on the
frontier was a gruelling
ordeal. 'Forty Miles a Day on
Beans and Hay' meant end-
lessly long and exhausting treks
on horseback through the
roughest terrain and most
extreme weather conditions.
The slaughter of the vast buf-
falo herds drove the Great
Plains Indians to starvation.
The advent of the railroad, gold
prospectors and settlers threat-
ened the natives' entire way of
life. It was no surprise that ten-
sions erupted into warfare in
the spring of 1876.
Many believed that this
would be the last great cam-
paign on the plains. Custer saw
a victory over the Sioux as a
last chance for glory and, per-
haps, a path to the Presidency.
The Sioux Nations saw the
upcoming fight as a last ditch
battle to keep their traditional
way of life.
On the morning of June 25,
1876, a massive encampment
of Lakota, Cheyenne, Arapaho
and Sioux Indians on the banks
of the Little Big Horn River was
about to break up and head for
home. Custer was not about to
let this happen. In a vainglori-
ous attempt to claim sole credit
for a victory over the Sioux,
Custer, rashly left behind his
infantry support and two
Gatling guns days earlier so
that he could be the first into
battle.
Ignoring reports from his
scouts that the Indian encamp-
ment was far larger than antici-
pated, Custer sealed the fate of
hundreds of men when he
made the fateful decision to
attack the entire Sioux nation
with just one cavalry regi-
ment. Inexplicably, Custer, the
experienced 'Injun Fighter;
underestimated his enemy's
fighting skill. Compounding
his arrogance, Custer split his
command into three battalions
and issued confusing orders.
With just 226 men (including
I Company), Custer led the
main charge into the Indian
encampment. Outnumbered
and outgunned, the cavalry
were chased out of the village
and onto the slopes of the Little
Big Horn where Custer and
every man in his command
were killed.
Among the dead was Cana-
dian Private Darwin Symms.
His mutilated remains were
buried on what is now known
as Last Stand Hill. Canadian
Private McShane had been
transferred to the pack trains
and did not ride with Custer.
Perhaps, luckiest of all, was
Walton's Private George Hay-
ward who was hospitalized
with a fever at Fort Lincoln
when the regiment left in May.
Hayward's reaction to the loss
of his entire company is unre-
corded, but it must have been
some mixture of shock, relief
and guilt. Yet, one wonders if
he also felt shame at having
survived while the rest of his
company was wiped out.
After his recovery, Hayward
served with the 5th Cavalry. In
September 1876, he fought in
the U.S. victory over the Sioux
at the Battle of the Slim
Buttes. Hayward re-enlisted for
another five year term in
December 1878. He
was promoted to 'Saddler'
(equivalent to a Corporal) and
paid $14.00 a month. In addi-
tion to his military duties,
according to Thomas, Hayward
was expected to keep his com-
pany's saddles in good
repair. Yet, despite a consist-
ently 'excellent' character rat-
ing, in nearly 25 years of active
service, he never advanced
beyond this rank.
In 1883, Hayward re-enlisted
again but, at 32, frontier fight-
ing had taken its toll. His medi-
cal records indicate that in
addition to scars on his face,
arm and chin, Hayward suf-
fered a 'partial loss' of his great
toe on the left foot while the
great toe on his right foot was
'slightly mutilated.'
Hayward spent the rest of his
army career with the 5th Cavalry
on the Texas -Mexican bor-
der. After years of chasing down
desperadoes, cattle rustlers and
Apaches, Hayward's health
finally broke. In August 1897,
after 24 years in the saddle, Hay-
ward was dispatched to Fort Sill,
Oklahoma where he was diag-
nosed with tuberculosis con-
tracted 'in the line of duty.'
Dying, Hayward was dis-
charged in December. He spent
his remaining time at the Sol-
diers' Home in Washington,
D.C. He neither married nor
listed any family on his dis-
charge. There is no record of
his death. It is highly improba-
ble that he ever returned to
Walton.
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