HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1972-12-07, Page 2Sugar and. Spice
by Bill Smiley
N.^
uren multi*
Since 1860, Serving the Community First
at SEA.VORTH, ONTARIO, every Thursday morning by McIXAN BROS., Publishers Istd.
ANDREW Y. MCLEAN, Editor
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SEAFORTH, ONTARIO, December 7, 1972
0
IP
Small towns need a voice
A tri-level conference
of representatives of the
Federal, Provincial and
large city governments has
been going on in Toronto
this weekLr:pd we've heard
plenty of aloney about
the views of'various levels.
It's about time such a
conference was held,i al-
though we could do without
all the propaganda that
spouts from the mouths of
provincial officials at
all of these gatherings.
The provincial government
people (Charlie MacNaugh-
ton in this case) always
pretend they are just
about destitute and always
blame the greedy federal
government for the prob-
lem. The federal govern.,
ment (t y say) scandal-
ously re es to hand over
all their mon to,the .
province. And of course
the municipal governments
are dependent on the pro-
vincial government, whether
it is Liberal or Conser-
vative.
But at these conferences
the municipal, people get
a,,chance to hear the fed-
eral side of things,'and.
get,out,,i4f„Ae,posi*qi,Igni,
of beggin ,to
cial gov tl nt. E44-1
It seems to me that kids don't have
much fun anymore. Today. I was read-
ing a short story with a group of eight-
teen-year-olds. It was about a shy,,
fluttery spinster out an her first, public
date with a widower who was courting
her.. They went to a dance, She trip-
ped and fell and her man came tumbling
down on top of her.
It was funny, but pathetic, and the
kids, who are sensitive to humiliation,
exuded sympathy, especially the girls.
We talked for a bit about the things that
make people shy or awkward or self-
conscious: acne, obesity, a colostomy.
Fine. A good discussion.
But then I asked if any of them had
had the same experience - falling flat
on the dance floor. Horrors, no!
Of course, the way they dance nowa-
days, it's almost impossible to measure
your length on the hardwood.- Most of
'them dance by themselves, and it's pretty
hard to topple unless you're .blind,
stoned. On slow pieces, those rare
occasions, they are clutched so tightly
that it would take a bulldozer to knock
them down.
Most of the time, in fact, they don't
eveh dance, just listen to the clangour
and thump. And it's pretty hard to
fall down on a dance floor when yoU're
not dancing . I mean, it's the Sort of
thing you have to work at.
Anyway, I just sat back, looked them
over, and shook my head. "You kids
haven't lived. Nobody has really lived
who hasn't gone sprawling on a dance
floor, preferably bringing down his, or
her partner in the process,"
There's nothing like it to spare the
ego down to size. And it helps if you
do it before a large and appreciative
audience.
I can recall at least two occasions
on which it happened Co me. Once was
at' the Cascades, of fond Memory. The
second was at the Legion Hall in Tober-
mory. And I have living witnesses. My
wife doesn't know about the second one,
so-keep it quiet.
But I can' well recall the sensation.
One moment you are gliding about, leap-
ing and pirouetting, a veritable Rudolph
NureYeV in Swan Lake. The next, your
pas des deux somehow turns into a pas
des treds, you ditcever that your part-
ner is not Margot Fonteyn and you're
flat on your back,:head spinning from
the thump on the floor, and a broad who
a moment ago Was light as thistledown,
sprawled across you like Strangler Lewis
winning the deciding fell. .
There's only one thing to do. Leap to
your feat laughing hollowly, and so
quickly :that the spectators might think
it WAS 01 part of the performance. They
nester des of course. And it's pretty
cities like Toronto are
virtually under the thumb
of the provincial govern-
ment because they depend
on provincial grants for
nearly all segments of
their affairs.
But if huge cities are
slaves of the province,
how much worse is the
situation of the small
towns and ru-ral municipali-
ties. They don't even have
the weapon of a large
population to scare the
government. They can only
take what Mr. MacNaughton
and his buddies deign to
hand out. And the situa-
tion will get worse as the
province imposes regional
government on the smaller -
governments.
What is needed is a con-
Terence similar to the pres-
ent one, but one to examine
the problems of small towns.
Many • government people in
both the federal and prov-
incial levels think only
Cities are important, but
the future of the small
town is immensely important
to the province and the
country. There are problems
that must be examined, and
examined soon, before it is
1`6andte':
• (The •Blyth 'tandard)
lonely out there in the middle of the
floor when your partner, who has been
shamed for life, gives you a look like
" a cold shower, and stalks away forever.
"What? Don't you people ever go to
a country dance and get hurled about?",
I badgered my students. Nope.
So I had to tell them what it was like.
When .I was their age, we used to strike
off many a Friday night. Usually for
Wemyss, where they had the prettiest
girls (Jo 'and Vera Dewitt, Ursula Brady)
and the best music (Lorne Consitt on
the piano and Mr. Dewitt on the fiddle.)
There was no question of taking girls.
We couldn't afford it„ But there was
always the hope that you'd get to take
one hOme. However, they always seemed
to have several huge brothers or cousins
lurking about.
It was about $1.00 for the evening.
Fifty cents for the dance, eighty-five
cents for a mickey of gin, split four
ways, and the rest for gas for some-
body's old man's car.
"Have yoti never got into a square
dance and been literally swept off your
feet?", I questioned my girl students.
Nope. But some of them looked as though
they rather liked the idea.
And I thought of those burly farm
boys, getting into the spirit of things
and whirling the girls around until the
latter were actually flying. Occasion-
ally, sweaty hands spelled disaster, and
one of the girls would go flying off into
the lunch the ladies were organizing. The
lunch was part of the admission fee of
501.
And I thought of occasions when I
had got into a doh-se-doh with a particu-
larly enthusiastic and buxom farm wench,
and, because I couldn't foot it like the
farm boys, been swung around in circles
with both feet three inches off the floor.
A couple of belts of raw gin, and couple
of dances like that, and you were ready
and willing to go out into the snow and
gaze, palely and greenly at the moon
for a half hour or so,
Inside the hall, with a wood stove
almost red hot, and a hundred or so
bodies steaming, it was alWays about
130 degrees. And this was in the days
before ultra-dry deodorants. But I don't
remember anybody smelling anything ex-
cept hot and perfumey.
Eventually, there'd be a fight, or lunch
would be served , then it was into the
Model A and shiver home through the
winter night. No heater.
But, oh, what a night we'd had, and
oh, what stories we regaled our less
venturesome school-mates with, when we
fore-gathered at the pool room on Satur-
day afternoon.
Poor modern kids. Do they have any
fun?
EVERYBODY NEEDS IT AT LEAST ONCE
0
0
erin gin g Jiorne the 5ree
From My Window
— By Shirley • J. Keller —
In the Years Agone
AS most of my readers know, I work
for a weekly paper in my town. As
editor, I've got plenty of headaches and eh
problems. I don't need any other upsets
to mar my Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
This past week, though, we had an
upset to end all upsets in our office.
Our type-setting equipment broke down
on Monday night. No panic, we thought.
Get a repairman early Tuesday morning
and we're back in business.
But fat6, didligtsmile„ that kindly 'on
us last 'Week. OuVcciinputer for output ,,„„
of copytZlay cetigtirk,",,and
sheets all through ‘Tifesday despite the
frantic attempts of a' repairman to allev-
iate the situation.
By Wednesday, the repairman had
given up in disgus t and left our crippled
computer sitting idle . . . along with a
full staff 2f eager-beaver employees who
were as helpless as kittens in traffic.
But the hierarchy of our establishment
would not give in. Very quickly, arrange-
Ments were made for copy and ads to•
travel almost the length and the breadth
of the proVince for setting. Employees
were dispatched here and there to set,
proof and correct. In the meantime, the
remainder of the staff did what could be
done, slept a little in preparation for the
long, long night ahead and prayed in a
way that , only newspaper people can.
By about 10 p.m. Wednesday night,
staff members were beginning to trickle
back in with copy. The big rush was
underway. It was all hands 'to the wheel
as the president, vice-president, adver-
tising staff, typesetters, proof readers,
editorial people, paste-up, mailers and
press crew began to assemble ads and
pages for three newspapers.
Would-you believe - on second thought,
no one but a newspaper type would com-
prehend it - that by about 3: A.M. Thurs-
day morning, all three papers were
assembled and ready for the cameras.
And would you further believe that by
7 A.M., all three papers were printed
and in the mail before deadline, to our
customers"?, Just fantastic, believe me.
It has been a long, long time since
I've worked through the night. I was
dead tired and I know everyone else on
our staff was exhausted, too. But today,
Friday, after everyone has had a good sleep
and a day to recouperate, there's an
air of pride about the place that hasn't
been here for a while.
Staffers are honestly satisfied that
their performance was worthy. They are
a tightly-knit group now that has come
through a crisis ,shoulder to.shoulder, nnd
the feeling now is that we're a team en-
like any other team we've had.
The computer? It still sits idle,
its innards spilling out, like a goose
after the slaughter. The repairmen re-
turned on Thursday but the beast just
would not respond.
Where to now, you ask. Quite frankly,
nobody knows what next week will bring.
Maybe there will be .new problems, new
hills to be climbed, new peaks to be sur-
mounted. Who cares?
My husband, of course, has a theory:
(He always has a theory.) my husband haS
been, is and probably always ,will be
against computers. He absolutely hates
the things.
My husband believes that if all the
computers in the land were tossed into a
giant excavation and covered up with tons
of earth, tightly packed, the world would
be better off.
He's not very progressive, I suppose,
according to modern man's viewpoints.
But my husband gets things done... and
obviously, our computer is failing miser-
ably in this field.
I think we've all learned something
from this past week's experiences. It
is that people - plain ordinary fOlks like
you and me - will work efficiently even
though we're broken and tired. Unlike
computers, we don't quit at the first signal
Of trouble.
Hon. Wm. H. Proudfoot, member of
the Dominion Senate and former leader
of the Liberal opposition in the Ontario
Legislature died early Sunday morning
in Wellesley Hospital, Toronto. Born
in Huron County, he was educated at
Goderich, - •
John Cottle of Usborne met with a
very serious accident. While walking on
the road where there was snow, he fell,
injuring his hip joint.
, A very happy event in the form of
a surprise• party was held at the home of
Mr. and Mrs. John McCullough to honor
them on the occasion of their •25th wed-
ding anniversary. They presented them
with a silver and glass casserole.
The tax collector, Geo. McKee of
Winthrop has been around informing people
of the amount of taxes they will have to
pay.
A very pretty but quiet marriage
was solemnized at the Dungannon Par-
sonage when Violet Irene Pearl Fin-
negan was united in marriage to Robert
James Elgie of Tuckersmith.
At a public meeting in the 'Town
Hall, Bayfield, it was decided to have
a petition circulated and presented to
the Government asking that a post of ice
be built here..
Thos. Shillinglaw and others appeared
before the Board of Trade at Hensall
to Set forth the advantages of the bus-
iness men in connection with the support-
ing of the rural phone of the Township
of Tuckersmith.
The Marks Bros. Concert held in
the Town Hall was largely attended.
' At Constance, on November 22nd, by
ItInr. 'Osborne, Stella, daughter of Robert
Clark, to Oliver Anderson, all of Hullett.
the 46th annual meeting of the'Sea-
forth Curling Club was held in the Car-
negie Library with the president John
Beattie in the chair. The, folleWing
officers were elected: - Patron, Co. Alex
Wilson, Toronto ; President Keith Mc-
Francis Kestle of the 3rd concession
of Hullett intends erecting a new brick ,
house.
The veteran, Thos. Hills of Egmond-
ville, runs a lively business these days.
Last week a citizen took his driver to be
shod four times before it could be shod,
so great was the pressure of work, al-
though three men were on daty. • t .
No less than six butcheSs cater to.th,es
fleshly appetities of this village of Eg-
mondville just now.
John. Stewart, of, town, has sold his
fine driver to Alex 'Ross of Lucknow.
Arthur Forbes, drove it to Benmiller in
less than two hours.
4 James Archibald of town shipped a
car load of horses to Michigan lumber
woods and also shipped a car load to the
Old Country. •
Harry Town 'has opened out his bil-
liard parlour, in the old Dominion Bank.
John M. ovenlock, McKillop has sold
his farm to Thos. Ryan. It contains 75
Acres and has on it asgood brick house
and was sold for $4,200.
James Martin of Constance has
shipped a large quantity of turkeys.
John McNevin of Kippen has com-
menced his winter campaign, and is buy-
ing all the saw logs that come along and
he must be paying goOd prices as he
seems to be getting loth of them.
A meeting is to' -be held in .the new
skating rink at Hensall, for the purpose
of organizing a curling club.
DECEMBER 10, 1897.
DECEMBER 8, 1922
Overcome by escaping coal gas as
she worked in the kitchen of her home
North Main Sreet, Sea-forth, Mrs. Thos.
Johnstone was in Scott Memorial Hos-
pital in a critical condition. Mrs. L.
Boshart heard her cry for -help and
summoned medical assistance.
A new oxygen tent of the latest design
is now af Scott Memorial Hospital. The
equipment was donated by Seaforth doc-
• tors. "
A plesant party was held at the home
of Mr. and Mrs. Peter Simpson, Tucker.:
smith, when the Rebekah Lodge met to
honor Mrs. McElroy, the former Mrs.
Mary Rintoul. During the evening an
impromptu program of songs by James
T. Scott, Fred E. Willis, Bob Irwin, and
Mrs. Frank Kling was given.
Seaforth Firemen, under Chief Allan
Reid, held a dress rehearsal using the
$7,500.00 truck and pumper which had
been delivered recently.
Mrs. M. G. Beatty of Varna since
1943 has collected and sent to the
British and Foreign Bible Society,
27,550 used stamps which are sold on
the market in London, England.
Fire caused by an overheated fur-
nace was discovered in St. Andrew's
Church, Kippen, when Smoke began to
appear through the register in the Sun-
day School. The brigades of Hensall,
Brucefield and R.C.A.F., Clinton were
summoned and were able to confine the
fire 'to the platform. A large rug was
damaged and the platform completely
destroyed. ,
It was announced at the services in
First Presbyterian Church 'that the
following men have been elected to the
session - Kenneth M. Campbell, Ernest
Geddes, Robt. McMillan and Thos. Oliver.
Mr. and Mrs. P. G. Little of Win-
throp have moved to Seaforth.
E. C, Boswell of town was in Toronto
attending the annual meeting of the Dom-
inion Bank.
Kippen is growing. Four new famil:
lies have moved to the village during the
last four weeks.
As a result of appeals directed to
Seaforth and distridt organizations on
behalf of the program for furnishing the
new wing at Scott Memorial Hospital,
theme already has been promised a total
of $3,225.
Lean; Vice Pres. R. M. Jones; Sec.-
Treas. Chas. A. Barber; Umpire, Wm.
Ament; Auditors J. Beattie, G.D.Haigh.
Death removed one of the pioneers of
Tuckersmith when Wm. Scott passed away
at his home. He was in his 85th year.
For many years, he and his brother,
the late Mathew Scott farmed' on the
Kippen Road.
Elton Umbach of town has opened
a branch drug „and, stationery, store in,
Dublin, 'With Oliver' Elliott as 'Manager.'
Elgie, who reCently...gave over
`Ms to hag'llnoV6d his
family into the comfortable home on
West William Street, which he purchased
from James Davis.
Mrs. J. E. Henderson, of John St.,
picked a bunch of primula containing
five or six flowers in full boom from •
her garden.
Major R. S. Hays, J. M. Best and
J. H. Best were in Goderich, attending
the funeral of the late Wm. Proudfoot.
John Earle has purchased the resi-
dence in Egmondville of the late Mrs.
Stoddart.
Robert Allen of Brucefield sold
three baby beeves to Messrs. Hicks
and Paul of Kirkton, who exhibited them
at the Toronto Exhibition.
DECEMBER. 12, 1947.
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