HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1981-03-26, Page 1SEAFORTIV+ONTARIO, THURS AY, MARCH 26, 1981 - 24 PAGES
122st Year
Whale No. 5898
SETTLING -IN--The fouvlaughters of Lam and Le
Chau; a refugee, family from Laos which settled in St.,
Columban last yeaf, are, from left;• Loan, 2„N•eiyet,
(Photo by . Shoveller) 8; Nga, 11 and Hong,4.
Although there were a few
surprises. Liberals retained
their three area seats while
the PCs will again lead the
province, For a poll by poll
rundown of area votes in the
March 19 election, see pg....5
Town lionours •
pair
Local skaters Lloyd Eisler Jr.
of Egniondville and Lori
Baier of Mitchell were
honoured Friday at a- special
ceremony at Seaforth arena.
After the -pair-performed-for
spectators they were pre-
sented with gifts of (luggage
by the mayors of Seaforth
and Mitchell. See pictures.
tsg 12
BY ALICE GIBB
Tuckersmith animal levers take 'note-
your neighbours may not be as enamoured
of your "furry friends" as you are and
Tuckersmith council intends to 'do some-
thing about it.
At their recent meeting. councillors
discussed a proposed bylaw to limit the
number of domestic pets. livestock and
poultry that can be kept in the township's
residential, areas it Vanastra, Egmond-
vine, Harpurficy; Rippeti and Brucefield.
The first problem facing-councillors is to
'establish boundaries governed by the
'regulations. so the bylaw won't interfere
with farming operations on the edge of
.„„;villages. Councillors spent over an hour
pouring over maps. suggesting which
'residential areas should he excluded or
included in the animal control bylaw.
The proposal councillors are considering
will limit homeowners to keeping one
anittal unit- (defined later in the. story.I.on_
their properly. However, someone Who has
more than the designated number of units-
for example. six hotSes or four cows- on
their property when the bylaw is passed.' as
long as those animals aren't removed from
the site for 30 days or more, can keep the
same number' of animals as 'in the pasts
What does council Consider an animal
unit? That was the next item up for debate.
Councillors almost immediately decided to
exclude pigs completely.
Bob'Bell said. "but damn pigs in a built
up area, I don t think there's any place for
them." Councillors decided even two sows
and their Jitters were too much for
townfolk.
Animal units the councillors proposed
could be allowed are one dairy cow and Mir
calf, five sheep and their lambs two horses
or ponies and a colt. 25 laying hens or
broilers. two dogs. four cats, no reptiles,
geese. turkeys. ducks or roosters- "Ws
the rooster that is the ix o'clock alarm
clock" Bctb Broadfoot pointed mils and five
goats and their young.
When the debate ended, JOhn Broen-
ridge pointed out councillors had forgotten
all about hamsters,. and then reminded
council: the "no reptiles" clause would
prevent kids from keeping either a pet toad
or frog.
The question of how many rabbits uo
allow also involved agreat debate. the little
creatures being so prolific. ,Councillors
finally decided one animal unit could be 10
female rabbits plus their litters.
The recommended fine under the bylaw.
for homeowners keeping in excess of one
animal unit on their property. would be a
maximum of $100 on the first offence.
COuncil also decided to add a. stipulation
that no construction of a building for the
purpose of the permanent housin,g of
tivestock or 'poultry. tie atioweu wttnin 00
metres (196 feet).of an adjacent residence.
. By 11:15 p.m., after debating the topic
for well over an hour. even councillors
rotind it difficult to be entirely serious
about the matter.
As one councillor suggested, what about,
people with a mixed animal ,unit- say one
dog and a horse. Or what about pigeons.
another bird of the feather, councillors
completely overlooked in defining animal
control unjts.
Speaking of mixing units, councillor Jim
Papple asked. "Does that mean if you have
three eats, you can only have one-third of a
dog?"
Coulieil ,ended, the session by asking
clerk Jack McLachlan to drift a pro-pits-at
for the bylaw and bring it back to the April
council meeting. ,
Which means dogs. eats. and pther
assorted creatures can rest easy for about
one more'month in the residential areas of
Tuckersmith.
red dogs, one-third of 'a cat
•
Tuckersmith, debates animal bylaw
:7,...77-• 71 •
a
sib a year inadvatce
Single Ceps, 40 ..ceriti
.„.
• •
" •..BY WW1 II I 9,
Loss:is ,estik 410 at Pier S400 in
that destroyed a large (Mile barn StniotW
afternoon on the farm or george bieCturel4
R.-R., 2. Segall), located five miles north-
west of the town in MeltillOP TOwnship.
Mr. McClure, who . was working a
nearby pig barn, was able to rescue 12 sheep
and 13 head of beef cattle before smoke and
flames drove him back. ,
A passing motorist alerted, the family to
the fire. Seaforth Fire Chief Harry Hak said
flames were shooting through the barn's
roof when firemen arrived. Mr. Hak said the
, Ike was ..probalit,v caused; by a: ;5`Park front `0. testicle used grieving itraw front ths bar"
that Meriting Tor 'use is the '• pig barn- •
third Time'Lticky a registe.Fd standard
bred racehorse. 't.'vrhich was vetoed' at .$5.000
housed .in the barn...was believed to be dead
IA hen it e •", seen through' a window moving
around-i11 liprikeasx *weer of. the barn „.
• alttost 'two hours lifter. the tXrt4 Was
- aliseovered. •
Firemen with the aSsistance of the family,
and neighbours. broke an' opening in the
toner barn..cemerti wall and <tut came the
horse. It ,was apparenth in geed shape
• , , ' ,,, ',..-
' except -00'n Singed marie apd tail. <041,0-fiegit
at this title were it cow .404 Of and two
other aniMals.
Spool of the 9nin6fs ate being 0gIsely
watched h ad • of k
,
h I 't ,
Several' were 'destroyed becanst of stimke
and burns.
'
FIRE DESTROYSBARN-,7,-,,Aeprge-Mtelure of -9R2, Seaforth and fire
,chief Harry Hak discuSs the damage during the $undayafternoan fire at
the McClure farrii. The farmer was able to rescue sheep and 13 head of
beet cattle from the barn before the fire drove him back. :(Photo by Ellis) ,
0
- --11.111aW1.11.1.11001....1
Judges in,Myrtle Beach. South Carolina
confirmed what area residents have known
for some time - the Seaforth Girl's Marching
Band, directed by Charles Kalbfleisch of
Varna, are prizewinners. The band placed
second Monday in an internati al com-
petition held in the South Carorna resort
community. The only band that to ped their
mark was the other Canadian entry - band
from Burlington.
Eileen. Ccinnolly, a member Of t band,
phoned her father Tuesday to report the
good news. She said the weather was
"breezy but nice" and added "everyone is
well and having a great time."
The band „performed at Myrtle Beach
shopping mall on Tuesday, and • the
remainder of the. week was devoted tO a - Danger paOHr0 number of sightseeing activities.
the province is in good hands."
In spite of the loss, the PC candidate said
there were several pleasing results in the
election, including the cut into the Liberal
margin. '
"We are able to turn Goderich around
from a 400 deficit to about a 300 vote
surplus." said Mr. Britnell Of his home ,
town. He added he was defeated in Clinton
by a small margin (688.666), a significant
reduction of the 1977 difference,
Both Mr. Britnell and Mr. Riddell felt the
Huron-Middlesex campaign had been fbught
fairly. •
"As far as I can see there were no cheap
shots, no gripes." said the k PC „candidate.
"There was no name calling." .
Page 1
Mr. Riddell agreed. "I was qufte pleased
with the conduct of all the candidates. I think
' it was all kept in a very high profile."
With another election at least four years
away. rumours of a review of Stuart Smith's ^
leadership of -the Liberals ' have already
begun to surface, although Mr. Riddell
offered his support for Mr. Smith.
NO OBJECTIONS
"i have no objection's to Stuart retaining
the leadership as long as he wants it," he
said. "But he is. the type of person 'vho
--wetild-step-down-ifneeess-ary. If a-lender lliw.---•
review is called. Stuart will call it. I think tis
and large the caucus will support hini if he
wants the leadership."
While nothing his leader was mote
sincere. 'more concerned than Mr. Davis.
Mr.'Riddell concluded "it is obvious he (Mr.
Smith) wasn't accepted by the public as the
person to lead', the province. He just didn't
come across."
See HuronfBruce; Perth stories on
- BY HERB SHOVELLER '
Liberal MPP Jack Riddell., re-elected in
the March 19 provincial election in Huron-
Middlesex. said Monday complacency on the
part' of party supporters allowed the PCs to
cut his traditional margin of victory of 4.000
votes in half.
From the outset of the campaign. Liberals
were told theytad the riding won, explained
Mr. Riddell. who has retained his seat since
1973.."According to ,our calculations, there
were about 4,000 Supporters who didn't get
out to the polls.'! he added.
"W- e're very happy considering we didn't
spend-the-money the ..Culiservatives -spetit ,".
Continued the MPP, opposition agriculture
critic in the last sitting of the legislature.
"We had no radio, 'television or daily
„newspaper ads. We only advertiSed lit area
weeklies. We ran a very low kdy campaign."
The PCs,.who totalled 8,618 -compared to
Mr. Riddell's 10.707'votes, ran a campaign
which suggested they felt Huron-Middlesex
was a riding they could take from 'the
Liberals; It included visits to Exeter by
Premier Wither!) Davis and Larry Grossman.
minister of trade and tourism.
"Bill Davis told me this was a riding that
was up for grabs." noted defeated Con-
servative candidate Jim Britnell Monday].
'It-would have Lett betterif-the-innunbent,
--was steppini-dOwn, like- Murray Gaunt in
Huron-Bruce.
"A person Who does his riding homework,
like Jack is hard to put out. Incumbents are
hard to move when things are good."
NDP candidate GWen Pemberton of
Bayfield, who- polled' 1170 votes, a drop of
more than 200 from the 1977 'election, said
like her party she suffered front the shift to
the Conservatives in, the election.
"1. would say 'it was because the vote
Bears place third - - - -
Seaforth Golden Bears
claimed third spot over the
weekend in the provincial
high school basketball play-
likill;lermompormeir
swung away, right over the heads of the
Liberals to the Conservatives," she ex-
plained.
Other reasons for her defeat. Mrs.
Pemberton—taidw were that she is not
well-known in the area and there was no
literature, signs ordoor4o-door visits during
the campaign. The' party used some news-
paper advertising and attended all-
candidates meetings.
NO ORGANIZATION
"We just ,have no • organization." she
added. "I only, had one scrutineer here in
tlayfield."
"l think the people were nervous so they
voted for Bill Davis. But I don't think that is
the answer."
Mr. Riddell agreed the PCs felt they could
win Huron Middlesex, "Oh yes, when they
finally came up with a candidate. I think they
felt they might have a very good. chance.
This riding was in the Conservative fold for
years." he continued. "and they put up
some excellent candidates."
When he' returns to the Legislature. Mr. °
Riddell will be facing a Conservative
majority, which, he added, he "feels badly"
about. The majority. which the Liberal
member said was won through the PCs
"immoral campaign" of offering funds
three • hoot the-province. "means there;-nir--
stopping hint (Davis) now. I think it was very
obvious they weren't campaigning on
policy."
„While the PCs made significant strides in
ite riding. Mr. Britnell said he is net
satisfied with having 'narrowed the gap
between his party and the Liberals.
"There was no clear issue in the riding
that could have been something which would
catch the peoples' fancy that the
Conservatives could do," he said. "At least
BY HERB SHOVELLER
Just less than tWo years ago. 17-year-old
(then 15) Nghia Le Thi hopped on her
bicycle for a very special ride: to peddle
, through part of her native Laos, to visit
friends, to spend some time with her
father, to stop her mother's grave. Only
she and her fatherktew the reason, for the
visits. For Nghia, it was-the last time she
%avid see the CountrYside, the friends, the
cemetery, her father - again.,
The same night. Nghia. along with her
sister Chau and her four young nicces,i, hid
near the Mekong-River until after dark.
Once night had proVided a blanket, the six
stole down to the (banks of the river and
slowly, quietly, were transported across
the waterway to Thailand. Freedom.
On the, opposite shore waited Le Lam,'
husband of Chau. father of four daughters,
brother-in--law Of Nghia-. A year earlier he
laid the; 'ground work for his family's
escape when he plunged into the murky
water of the Mekong and swam to safciy.
The family was about to be united and a
year later began a trek which 'would end.
finally.'in St. Columban Where the refugee
family is sponsored by the village's Roman
Catholic parish.
Now, as the new 'Canadian fondly .
approaches its first year in a nee country,
the upheaval associated, with frenzied
escape and necessary adjustment is
lieginning to ebb. V,Vith the aid of the
parish, and after two months in a
temporary Spaforth residence. the Les
(pronounced Lee) have "settled into a
modestly furnished, rented hOme in Si.
Columban. Mr. he is working with Bayfield
Boat Yards in Vanastra. Nghia is attending
high school in Clinton and learning English
and the two oldest daughters. NO; 11 and
Ngeiyet, 8' have made new friends and
classmates - at St. Columban Separate
School. Hong. 4 and Loan. 2 arc vet at
home with their mother, who is expecting
twins in June.
"They 're a wonderful 'family." noted
Ted Melady, , head of the cheri!h's
sponsoring committee,.
"They're a good family," agreed his
wife Fran. "they'll make their way in this
country as well as anybody."
Mr. Le• spent four of his first months in
Canada studying English at Conestoga -
'College in yanastra. At the same time he
began courses in • woOdworking at the
- school through a -sponsorship program by
the ministry of manpower and
immigration.
HIS OWN TOOLS
The trade training. however. was not
necessary. "started." explained Mr.
Melady. "He started," but found he knew
More than the people teaching him."
Indeed, because as Mrs. Melady toted
when the' St. Columban group picked up
Jhe Laotian family at the airport laSt year. ,
Mr. Le had with him one suitcase - tilled
with his own hand-made'
"When he arrived, he wouldn't let go of •
it," noted. Mrs, Melady ."When he got to the
house in Seaforth you could sec 'how proud
he was of it. He works and works. He
knows all the power tools but.he prefers the
hand, tools. He is a. wood craftsman. a
cabinet maker by trade."'
Once it was discovered Mr. Le had more
than ample training; and since he started
hisjeb al the,Boat Yards in January, he has
gradually been able to assume more and
more of the financial burden of supporting
a family. One major' requirement of
sponsoring a refu gee family is that the
backer be financially responsible 'for--one
' year. But in the case of the Les. the St.
Columban. committee (other members arc .'
Mildred Crenin, secretary treasurer, Mary
Catherine Lane, Matt Claessens and
Angeline Swart s along with Mr. Melady)
has seen the father assume much of that
responsibility. .The sponsoring. group still
supplies funds, for the family's housing,
and providos. AcAt!itlinef.- arranging
family allowance and OHIP support. Mr:
Lc' has assumed the rest, including
monthly payments to the federal govern-
ment en $3,400 to cover the cost of the
family's transportation to Canada.
STAYS IN VANASTRA
Each week, the wood worker leaves
Monday morning for his job in Yariastra
member Of the pariih. usually Mr. Melady.
makes certain he is at the plant by the 6:30
starting time. while another member
drives him back to St., Columban Thursday
once he, has completed his four day,
40-hour week., Mr. Le stays with another
refugee family in Vanastra during the
week.
Please tarn to page 3
Area stays Liberal
0,
17.Inside this 'week
downs in Parkhill. A loss to
Bayridge. from Kingston.
Saturday ended the local
team's hopes for a shot at the
title. See pictures, story.
page 3 and 10
ClOgiire policy
At its meeting Monday night
the Huron Perth Roman
Catholic Separate School
board set out to"formulate a
poliCy for school closures.
For' story and additional
meeting details, sec story.
Pg 4
The final tally
No more bands, no more
irtging, no more promises,
• • • ..&„„ A+, 4C' „ 4. 6.111:;`.':.,„„:"':',„,-