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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1978-08-31, Page 2Ow Timm expositor at we can do for each other We need safe buses Back 'to school time means• back on the buses for hundreds of Seaforth area school children. And many of their parents may be feeling more than a twinge of concern as they see their kids climb on the bus. There's no reason in the world to suspect ,that the school buses our kids ride aren't absolutely safe. As far as we know, the accident records of local bus contractors is impeccable. But recent frightening and in one case tragic, accidents involving school and chartered buses, understandably leave many of 'us uneasy. In Ontario bus contractors. are responsible, for conducting their own safety inspections. For reputable operators that causes no problem but with any sort of self policing there's always the tendency to be a little more lenient or delay a needed but expensive repair a little longer than would be the case cif an independent body did the- testing. We haven't heard of .any unsafe buses in Huron and -Perth. But' parents here, and in the whole country deserve reassurance that the' buses their children ride are absolutely safe. We think an independent government inspection,. province wide, and right away, is needed. And while the province is checking out the buses our kids ride, let's hear an explanation of why the vehicles don't need seat belts. • Ontario's compulsory seat belt law is credited with saving many lives in traffic accidents. If, God forbid, a school bus was involved in a collision, surely our kids would be safer buckled up than thrown around inside the bus. Yes, we know there'd be enforcement problems and that school bus drivers (God bless them for they're certainly modern unsung heroes) have enough to worry about now. But surely if the law of the province can say seatbeits are mandatory in cars that same law has enough force to keep our buses buckled. up. Probably it's too expensive to equip schobl buses with seat belts. We respectfully subniit that there are a lot stupider ways in .which this province spends our money. Let's see some discussion and then some reassuring action on the whole big topic of school bus safety. With thousands of kids across the - provinde boarding the bus Tuesday morning, there's no time like the cd• present to get Started. theyears agone Since 1860:Serving the,Community First, Published a( S, AFORTH, ONTARIO, every Thursday morning by McLEAN BROS.: PUBLISHERS LTD. ANDREW Y. McLEAN, Publisher SUSAN WHITE: Editor • Member Canadian Community Newspaper Association Ontario Weekly NewspaperAssociation and Audit Bureau of Circulation Subscription Rates: Canada (in advance) $12.00 a Year Outside Canada (in advanee) $20.00 a Year SINGLE COPIES — 25 CENTS EACH Second Class Mail Registration Number 0696 Telephone 527.0240 SEAFORTH, ONTARIO, AUGUST 31, 1978 "There's that Tom Jones' picturerri the paper again. I don't know why his club' rates all the time." How many times have you said or thought' that after reading your newspaper? But did you ever stop to-consider that maybe we didn't know about your club's special event, your, new slate of officers or your family's own personal news event, be it mom and dad's fiftieth wedding anniversary or grandpa's ninetieth birthday? " We like to think we're pretty welt in touch with what goes on around here,put we're not mind readers. Our news and photography staff tries hard o be in the know about what's happening in and around town. People •do call us to help and believe it' or not, .we find out a lot of what's coming up by faithfully reading this paper. But we can't know about everything that deserves news coverage. That's•where you come in. If someone in your family will be 90 or has been married 50 years, call us . . . we'd like to take a picture and do a story. If someone has gotten an honour or done something noteworthy, call us . . with an item for the People colurnn or an idea for a full-fledged feature story. If you're secretary, or an involved member of a group. that rarely gets press coverage call us when yoy're doing something spe'cial and we'll be glad to come and take photos., That's what: we can do Or you; here's what .you can do for us. 'Please try to request' a photograph,er, and/or reporter two or three weeks before your event. A photographer will go out and takepictutes on'a Saturday night of other people enjoying theMselves; when it's been arranged in advance that's part of the job. But photographers have families and a social life too and it's not fair to insist that they drop everythihg to go and take pictures of an event • that's been planned for months on a last minute request. We'll do our darnedest to have a photographer at your event at your specified. time if you'll do your darnedest to be ready when the photographer arrives. Sometimes things run a little late and we can put up with a wait of 15 minutes or so. But you wOuldn't arrange with your caterer , to have dinner at 7 and then delay its serving until 9. Don't, treat the newspaper photographer that way either. • And, as much as devoted. club members find it hard to believe, someone from the paper who's there to take photos would much rather get on with the job and back home or back-to work than listen 'to your group's entertainers or "in" jokes. To sum up, we're glad to gime your group coverage and we'd • specially like to hear from you if .you feel what your group does hasn't t- received adequate recognition in the paper. • Next time ,you're irked because it looks like old Mr. Jones' is gettimg too much news or photo space, call us with some of your news we can use. To the editor: Fire victims appreciated help Last week a letter was printed 'n the paper criticizing us for not thanking Bill i'vlott for all he did for us the night of our barn fire and benefit dance. I would .appreciate it very much if. you could print this letter in answer 'to the "interested ,bystander." For someone who • calls herself an "Interested bystander" perhaps you would also be interested to know a fevv details that a "bystander" would not' know. Mr. Mott was thanked personally the night of the fire before he went home and the morning after the `dance, Maybe a card or a phone 'call means a lot to you, but a thankyou to someone face to' face•means much more to us. I have always been, under the impression that a kindness rendered to a neighbour, friend or relative was out of the goodness of your heart and not , for the sole purpose of having the other person indebted to .y01.1 for life. The destructive thing about apathy is that .while comfortable people stand silently by,,a more \Teal minority 'imposes its 'will upon the whole group. Little by little our freedoms diminish and'finally disappear._ Book banning is a dangerous business. When a book is written, an individual 'committs a portion of himself paper for the inspection of humanity. Depending on how the reader relates 'to the material put forth in the book, he may find in it many things; amusement, humanization, inform- ,ation,, elevation, understanding, disgust, enoblement, to name but a few. If the reader finds nothing, he is not touched, 'and for him the book has failed. Reading therefOIT must be considered as a highly individual experience between the author and the reader. To remove the choice of encountering this experience from any individual is surely as &trimentgl as it would be to 'force this experiente on him. Two important points in this Huron County book banning dispute deserve more emphasiS in the public mind. 1. The student of Gr. MI is a young adult, and society expects an adult response, and contribution from people of this age. 2. _The student has a free choice of several novels to study, and is not forced to read material which he believes to be, harmful. Sheets Mr. Barth's group has been handing out sheets with "dirty words" printed on them to whomever would receive them, and they object to the fact that newspapers will not publish these phrases out of context. A better. idea, Mr. Barth! Instead of your By Debbie Ranney With the Commimwealth Games recently over and with Canadians winning 109 medals Expositor Asks thought it would be interesting to find out if local people thought having the_GamesaLCanada was worthwhile or a waste of money. Mrs. Paul Matthews of Jarvis Street 'in Seaforth said. "I think it was worthwhile. Canadians got more gold medals than they ever have and the games were broadcast a lot better for the Canadian people." She ' said she had watched the games almost every day and she didn't think they were a waste of money. Lois Barry of Seaforth said, "I enjoyed watching it on T.V. I think it was good because Canada won a lot of medals and it wtis good to have it here in our own country, Other countries have it. we should too." Keith Buchanan of 105 Albert Street in Hensall said. "It's a waster of money. After all. what do the games buy us?" He said the thing that bothered him most was that the Queen came over and gave her speech in Ftench. He said he realized she was told to. but, he said, "We belOng to the ,Common2 wealth not Quebec." William Coleman of 1(ippen said, "I think it was a great thing." He said he guessed this was because he's sportsntinded and he would have like to have The reason I did not stand up on the stage the night of the dance and say "Thankyou Bill Mott for your water, and for your —halt and for every single thing you did, for us the night of the fire and the dance, was because I would have to do the same for every man & woman who came aid—that night, the days following to clean up and the people who made the preparations for the dance. ['am very sorry that you feel Mr. Mott deserves more credit than the rest, but if ever the shoe were on the foot; I hope it never is, there is no one on this, line who wouldn't do the 'S'anie for Bill and his family as he has done for us and others in the case of an emergency. We most sincerely appreciated what Bill did for us as we did the work of everyone else who' helped us. Mrs. Neil McNichol R.R.4, Walton, Ont. collection of these words, Why, don't you jUst collect the individu'al 'letters that you need? In this way, yeti can make any meaning out "of context that you desire. The , sky is the limit! John Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men", is specifically condemned by this group. (London Free Pres, Aug. 23/78). I first encountered this story at about the age of twelve; on the Lux Radio Theatre. I don't remember whether of not "dirty, words' were used - that wasn't important. But I have never lost my conception otSteinbeek's expression of understanding, compassion; empathy, and love ,for one's fellowman, '' despite their afflictions. This book is worthwhile. Mr. Barth states that he'would feel ashamed if Christ walked into a room where this material was. Christ's main message to me, is simply love, not hatred—or riEptesSion, and I feel that He would understand, even as He understood Mary Magdelene.- . This is only the "beginning. After all objectionable 'material (termed so by the Renaissance group) • is purged from our schools; the sex education courses are to be screened. Tell me, Mr. Barth, how does one learn about topics "pertaining to sex" without, "concerning the reproductive organs"? Then the Public Libraties will be overhauled for objectionable Material—then the bookstores,--then our homes. Burn the books, and the authors at the stake! 1984, here we come with our own' special breed of firemen! Or, will the rational silent majority speak up, and defend our freedom of thought? 'Jeanne Kirkby ,.been right at the games if he could. Of having the games in Canada he said, "It seethed to go so smoothly with no racial uproar."Hesaid.the public relations may have cost a hit- but' he thought it was worthwhile. Mrs. Robert' Hamilton of R.R.2, Staffa said, "I think it was worthwhile definitely for " the adults and for the people of Canada. She said it was good for Canada to have the games here. She added it was a tremendous amount of money but so many people got something out of the games, especially the athletes. Raymond Horan of R.R.1, Dublin saw the issue from both sides. He said he watched the game§ part-time and when he read some of the articles againstthettihe could see that point of view too. From the farmer's point of view he said that beef farmers were told in January or Febiurary that they were going to get a , subsidy and then he read an article that said the money was-going towards the Coinmon- wealth Games instead. Mrs. JameS Alexander of R.R.4, Walton said'' Really do think it's beneficial. If you were out there it would more interesting thin : it 's g it o good dTtVh a. t 'we have competitive spirts like that," she said. Each of us has our pet peeves in life and ? mine is a battle against labels. No, not the kind you find on the back collar of your shirt but the kind people always seem to want to collar you with. Over the years I've been called everything from a communist to a facist, from a bleeding heart liberal to a red neck Huron county conservative and I'm a little tired of it. There are probably some people who like tobe labelled. I know some people who wear socialist or liberal on their lapels like it was a badge of courage. It makes them feel comfortable I guess to be able to put a name to their feelings. It doesn't make them any truer to their feelings though. I've known people who professed a socialist philosophy that was almost to the point of being communist or even anarchist who still Went out and behaved like veteran capitalists when it came to making money. One prime example ran about three businesses on the side of his full time job. On the other hand I've known veteran capitalists who blast the government-and cry the need for the free market and the safety of the competitive marketplace who runp to the government for- help "at -the first 'sign of trouble, or who insist on driving any competitor out of business as soon as he starts to take even a small chunk of that "free and competitive marketplace." Please, I don't want to be lumped in to either group in the same way I would never join a political party. The problem is that once you make that commitment to the group you pick up a whole lot of other baggage as well. You may believe in a few itents of that creed of faith but suddenly you're supposed to support all of them. The best example of this of course is in big-time politics. If you reach the top, the selected few persons who form the top brass of any political party, you are committed to either go along with the group or get but. If the rest of the cabinet (or shadow cabinet in the ease of the oppostion parties, votes one way on a subject,then you've got to'support it even if you feel the decision is wrong. The only alternative you have is to resign. Even the lowly back benchers are expected to toe the party line or they're soon regarded as marvericks, if anything less trusted than the opposition party. Is this any pleased to learn that he is progresPing rapidly. The late tales have put ;Weeper on the harvest at Manley. , Miss Rita Forest has left for Sault Ste, Marie where she has taken a position in one of the senior schools. At a congregational meeting held at the First Presbyterian Church in Seaforth, an unanimous call was extended,. to Rev. Irving B. Kaine of Orangeville./ Seaforth was visited by a circus for the first time in Many years yvheit the Barnett Brothers Circus pitched their tents on the recreation grounds and drew , a, bumper crowd. One of the Elliot Companies airplanes was in town on Wednesday and did quite a business taking up passengers. ' James Hart has completed the contract of building a vault for Mr. C. Eckart at St. James Cemetery. W.G. Strong left for his school in Ottawa last week. He was aceompanied to Toronto by Ivan Forsyth. SEPTEMBER 4,1953 • A 37 year old farmer was killed almost instantly when the tractor he was driving overturned at his farm on the Babylon Line about 4 miles southeast' of Zurich. Jack Merner of Zurich was, pulling avtree down when the tractor overturned. Winners of the, $1,000 jackpot in the bingo at the Community Centre here were Mrs. B. 0. Muir, D.L. Reid of town, -and Hugh Radford of Blyth.' Leslie IvIcSpadden, sonof Mr. and Mrs., W.G. MeSpadden of RR #1 Seafoith, has been awarded a Kingsway Lampton Scholarship valuing at $200 at Victoria College in Toronto for general proficiency. The 16 month old sob of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Dalton of McKillop was seriously bruised when in contact with a truck driven by his father. The child was playing 'near the truck unknown to' his father. Monday marked the 1st of September but the day, also -marked the 50th anniversary of the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Matthews of town, who were the subjects of many congratulations and good wishes. A post-nuptial reception lilmoring Mr. .and Mrs. Thomas Morris, recent newly- weds,, was held in the Seaforth Community Centre. An address was read by Jack. O'Reilly and a presentation of a purse was made by Jack Morris. There is /Only one talk of, casual conversation these days and •one guess would get the right answer--the heat! One of the •most sustained heat waves to hit Western Ontario over the years has resulted in daily temperatures sizzling around the 90 to 95 degree range and night readings making little effort to reach below 75 and has left ambition limp and tempers touchy. Around Seaforth, as in other areas, tomatoes, some tree fruit and sugar beets are overripening or drying out. During the day swimmers are, crowding the Lions Park Pool. The executive officers of the' -Dublin Catholic Women's League for 1953 enter- tained the retiring officers at the home of Mrs. Jack Meagher, 'Donald Dale and John Lancaster left Woodstock by motor enroute through the states to Fort William to teach on the staff of Franklin and Crawford Schools in that city. way to run a country? If we muzzle the very people we elect to lead the country what hope do we have of getting the full truth so we can make intelligent decisions as to who we should. or shouldn't elect? This same philosophy works all the way down the line, to a lesser degree. Say you support Pierre T-rudeau's language policies and you join the Liberal party. Well in fact you also get his economic policies thrown in too and you're supposed to support them, even if you don't like them. Say you like the social conscience of the New Democratic party so you decide to support them and join the party. 'By joining, suddenly you find yourself in the same 'camp as the big international unions and you're all supposed to pull together, even if you think some' of the big unions are on ctlheir way to ruining the country. Much , the same is true in the less formal grouping of our society. It seems today that everybody must have 'a handle' so that other people can make instant judgements as to which side the person is on. At the very minimum there's the "leftish" and the "rightish". The "leftish" includes first off the liberals, .the_ supporters' -of -individdal rights, freedom of the press and lord knows what all. The "rightish" include the conservatives, and they stand for...well what do they stand for? I mean we're bantering around these terms all the time and I don't really think' many people know what they mean anymore. The liberals pride them- selves , in the right of the individual 'in society, but that was originally a conser- vative belief. The conservatives are anti-big government yet governments manned by conservatives all across the country have been Manufacturing huge governments. The names mean nothing anymore.'' That's why I resent having people call me aliberal or a conservative or a communist or a facist. I'm me. I have my own beliefs and I don't want to be fenced in with some imaginary things I'm supposed to believe. I can be a liberal when it comes to the cause of not taking lives in capital punishment but Ill be a conservative if that's what I must be when it comes to,the issue of not taking lives with abortion upon demand. I'll believe what I believe, thank you and please don't try to tack beliefs onto me that I don't want by sticking me with a label. Our freedom will disappear with the books Expositor asks: Were the Commonwealth Games worthwhile? A John Thorp drew from his farm on the 2nd concession" of Tuckersmith . to the Seaforth Flax Mill a load of Flax which t weighed 8,200 pounds. This was the largest load ever delivered'at the Seaforth Mill., The team which drew this load was a pair of lord Haddca colts--4 years old. L,F. Wheeler, artist, has just finished an excellent, and life like oil portrait of Alec --Davidson of the Commercial Hotel. Mr. Wheeler is an artist and painter of much taste and skill. The painting above referred to one' of his best 'efforts. SEPTEMBER 4, 1903 Mr. James Kelly has sold his farm on corisession #9 Morris to J.N. Knecktel of Brussels on private terms. Mr. Charles Lawrie of Millet has sold his farm on the 9th concession of Bullet to Mr. Anderson of Usborne, for the, sum of $6,500. Miss Bella Ballantyne has left to resume her duties at teacher 'in New Hamburg. Alex McLennan of the Commercial Hotel, here has leased the American Hotel in Brussels. JoSeph 'Abel, , engineer of the Seaforth Electric Light Works had the misfortune to get his hand caught' in the engine and had the tops of two of his fingers taken ,off. The wet weather of the past week has been bad for finishing tip harvesting .and threshing. J.D.' Aitcheson has -rented hi's farm in 1-fUllett to Geo. Dickson of McKillop for three years., Up to and including the Thursday morning exciffSion, 65' tickets were sold at Seaforth for Torontb. • The Inspector for.Insurance Companies was here and examined the books of the McKillop Usborne and Hibbert insurance companies and highly complimented the secretaries of Messrs.. Hay and Cameron on the neat and accurate' manner in .which the books were kept. " SEPTEMBER 7, 1928 Mr. and Mrs. Hugh McLaughlin of Stanley entertained two fresh air boys from Toronto for 10 days. The boys had, never been in the country before •.and were perfectly, delighted with their outing, Angus McKinnon recently' received severe injuries from a fall caused • by the breaking of a trip rope. The annual flower show of theCromarty Horticultural Society was held in Staffa in the Town Hall. A rather serious accident occurred at Dr. Moir's bridge when a car coming from . London collided with a large ,American car right on the bridge, -Causing the .car' to upset„ throwing a young child out. ' All the roads this week lead to the great exhibition being held at Toronto. Miss Gertrude Higgins of Hensall has accepted 'a position as bookkeeper and stenographer with Ross and Taylor of Exeter. ^ Mr. Eli" Rapien met. with a painful accident when he fell from a tree while playing with his chums at Manley. We are MBER 0, 1878 Francis Carlin of McKillop informq us that froM one bushel and 15 pounds Of. Victor Wheat sown by him last fall, he has realized clean from the fanning mill the remarkable large yield of 52 bushels. The seed was purchased from William Rheill of town. Behind the scenes by Keith Roulston I don't like labels ' "