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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times-Advocate, 1935-10-10, Page 3should read your ."* of m NAME x Here’s why you newspaper. THE EXETER TIMES-ADVOCATE by Geo. Fenwick by of -being pre­ studies at our actual I had gone now our antipathy was a- because we were to resume our ■But previous to Personal Reminiscences . THURSDAY, OCTOBER 10th, 1035 Mr. Farmer In the first place of all, Mr. Farmer, you are inter­ ested in Exeter because it is the logical market for the greater part of the produce you have to sell. Exeter people are the consumers of what you have to sell, and you, being the producers of what they must buy, are a person of mighty importance to them. You have a common bond. Anything then, that affects Exeter or its people affects you by affecting your mar­ ket. Anything that affects the farmers of Exeter district has a vital bearing on the businesss life and general status Exeter town. We are, after all, one point of view, economically. In presenting the news and other items of interest each week The Times-Advocate is guided by this thought. Items of interest regarding any phase of farm work or life are published, together with the news of the entire rural districts. Township Coun­ cil meetings are given particular attention, as also are Farmers’ Clubs, Institutes, Church Societies, etc Besides the buying opportunities listed by the stores The Times-Advocate’s classified advertising section is of special interest to the Farmers, There is continually something offered for sale that is of use to you; and when you have anything to sell these classified ads. take your message to 8,000 buyers in your own district for the small sum of 25 cents. You are also kept continually in touch with what is occurring in the Town of Exeter, socially, indust­ rially and in municipal government by the com­ plete survey of the town’s activities which the Times-Advocate presents each week. And, by the constant changes taking place, which is news, you are kept informed of the condition of your most important market. Mr. Farmer, you should be a careful read­ er of The Times-Advocate every week. Are you? The cost is but 4 cents a jveek. you are not already a subscriber, clip the special offer below and mail or bring it into The Times-Advocate with 25 cents which will give the Times-Advocate to the end of this year. DO IT NOW. THE TIMES-ADVOCATE, Exeter Ont Endowed please find 25 cents as sub­ scription to The Times-Advocate to the end of this year. At the end of that time I will notify you if I wish it discontinued. R. R. No (Second Instalment) The social status of our family had changed materially during the initial period of our changed loca­ tion, IFo? here in Exeter we found that things did not just click accord- , ing to the time-honored convention- . ality as that experienced in Zurich. , We missed our young friends eadly, missed our customary means of en- (tertainment for we knew not a soul with whom we could fraternize.We „ indeed were in a strange land and •having to do with a strange people -—had to relearn, as it were, the theme' of life. As a consequence we, t as a family, became, in a large J measure, more united in ideae, -in- i aspirations and in accomplishments, j We took) a much deeper interest than i formerly in the many problems con- t fronting father in the early comple­ tion and successful operation of the mill. We also set to work with a ! great zest to give the premises a , thorough cleaning—no doubt pr-om- i pted in this by father who- told us j that we should thus prove to the people of Exeter that we took a measure of pride in our home and in the community in- which we lived. Also we missed our cousins, the F-ollick family, with whom we had been brought u'p from infancy. True they had remained on- their farm on Black creek, but during our stay in Zurich we exchanged frequent vis­ its, always enjoying oureelves im­ mensely. 'For we truly loved uncle . Enoch and aunt Anna—brother and sister to father and mother. And it amuses me now to recall the sing­ song designation we had for the boys of the family which ran: “Horace, Eph. and Oliver Shelby, Chick and Booby.” What terms they used for us boys I do not now remember; but I opine it was equally appropriate. However, a few years after we ar­ rived in Exeter, tney also moved here to enrich the village through their presence. And roused pared school. entrance Billy, Thos. and on a quiet scouting trip to the brick school house, the purpose of which was to see how the land lay, figur­ ing, of course, on the possibility of occasionally sneaking out on- truancy expeditions that we might get long­ er breaths of fresh air for our lungs and more freedom for our legs and, incidently, get away from the grind of the school room, sut after look­ ing over the proposition- we came to the conclusion- that things did not look very premising. For the school grounds were entirely inclosed with a six oi' seven-foot board fence, div­ ided in- the centre for the boys and -girls playground. We also observ­ ed that the windows of Mr. Gregory —the principal, or head master, as he was .termed in those days-—look­ ed out upon the only entrance to and from the grounds, we conclud­ ed that this added a double hazard to- the 'possibility of our making a get-away. And later we learned this to be a fact when we saw with •our own eyes the sternness of his features and with what persistancy he hung about the entrance to the schoolhouse during the recess period always grasping in his hand a vic­ ious-looking strap in which he took a too-great delight in wrapping about the shoulders and legs of any pupil guilty of the least infraction of the school rules as .interpreted ' him. the schoolroom came ‘Ho-ho, ha-ha’ I accompanied by a wave of laughter that was not calculated to settle the already disturbed waters of decor­ um. “Silence!" shouted the teacher as ehe neatly and instantaneously swung about like a pivotal piece of mechanism poised for instant ac­ tion, “And your name?” she asked of Amy, meanwhile keeping -on the lookout in an effort to locate the source of any future disturbance. Mary Amy Fenwick,” came the low answer. “And yours?” “Thomae Harvey Fenwick,” came in a sonorous voice. “Sqeak-iSqueak,” from the back of the room followed by* a tittering wave from the pupils. Red in face from suppressed an­ ger, the teacher strote down -between the eeats and her ruler found the ducked head with a resounding hit. “Any more of this and I’ll send you into Mr. Gregory’s out. This brought marvelled. The teacher was before us. ed. room!” she bit results again “Your name,” and we standing she ask- had istalled him in « home built on the mill property. Thomas Pennell was engaged as fireman and engin­ eer, also a capable, worker and one of who had gotten out the stationery engine vancement. Oxen Used for conscientious the farm boys and mastered to hie own ad" First Days at School So it was through the process day-eliminati-on that .one morning we were hustled off to school to add to. the quota of attendance and, in­ directly, to become a part of a pub­ lic institution the 'purpose of which was to mould the ideals of the rising generation into a more amendable animal so as to conform to, or push along, the trend of an evolutionary ever secretively present,process, and that knows no instant of abate­ ment in its universal swing to an eventual perfection of the race. We were seated upon a ibench running along the wall below the teacher’s platform and side-facing the pupils in the schoolroom that had nothing but eyes and antics to pro­ mote our perturbation. The school day was opened with a song of cracked, unmusical voices in a jumble of sing-song words, terrible to endure from the standpoint of an unappreciative audience such as we proved to- be. However, the song being finished with seeming satis­ faction to the participants, the teacher—<1 have forgotten her name, ordered the pupils to get to their lessons—a command that was wan­ tonly disregarded—for a moment later a spit-ball, unerringly aimed, ■flattened itself against my cheek and another one hit Thomas fair on the nose. And though under cover we uttered our vows of reprisal, out­ wardly we remained calm and com­ posed. But here was game that we much admired, being that we had, on past numerous .occasions, done likewise. The teacher (a lady) now stood before us, pad and poised pencil in hand, ‘Your nanme?’ she asked Billy “William Arthur Fenwick” came the prompt answer, and almost sim­ ultaneously from somewhere back of “George Fenwick,” I answered. “Your middle name.” “I ain’t got none—they didn’.t give me one,” I made reply, which not -only brought a smile from the teacher but giggles from the room. Upon learning the extent of our previous schooling, Billy- and Amy were transferred to another room while Thomas and I -emained where we were. Thus things commenced to adjust themselves in an orderly proceedure looking towards our proper place­ ment in the social and economic structure -of the village of Exeter. Father was a very busy man these .days for, what with the early com­ pletion of the mill forecasted and the necessary preliminary work to be don-e in this anticipation—where grain had to be purchased in suffi­ cient quantities to satisfy the hun­ gry maw of this mass of new ma­ chinery; where competent men- had to. -be employed to successfully run it; with markets to be found thro’ which a channel of trade could be permamently established so that no glut of the finished product would occur and where a steady flow of the raw material would be assured so that there would be no compul­ sory abatement of the grinding, no hesitancy- in being able to fill or­ ders and no lack of money to read­ ily finance this activity—.all matters him to. in such cessful, realm of an actively-enduring paying business venture. Opening’ of New Mill I shall never forget the day when the mill was finally completed and a celebration was held by the people of Exeter and the entire surround­ ing country. Great throngs had gathered for this occasion, and the smilingest smiler of all those present was Mr. Wal'per who was shrewd enough to realize that, through this enterprising addition, to Francistown, his economic poisiton was assured. For it was an- off day indeed that did not see the hitching rail in front of his saloon jammed with horses and oxen owned by the poor dupes of farmers who, on receiving their money for grain delivered, proceed­ ed to liberally dispense with it over his bar to the detriment of them­ selves, their w’ives and little children out -on the farms. And I remember that father, with a great sorrow his the these depended exclusively upon work cut, and to work a way as to constitute a smooth-running unit in out suc- the and in inheart, often- -mentioned this home circle. Dishing Out Stale Bed- Well, here he was in this crowd of enthusiastic citizen®, dishing out his stale beer and passing about cheese and baloney sandwiches with a cov­ etous hand,’ knowing that for every mug of beer* and every sandwich there would be returned to him a thousandfold in- promts, and accom­ panied with as many thousand brok­ en hearts at the homes of his slave­ bound customers. This phase of the situation concerned him mot at all. What he was after was customers regardless—and he got them. I re­ member I was wrestling with a cheese sandwich and an aching tooth seeking to -make them at least a little friendly for tue time being, when Mr. Walper handed me a mug of beer with: “Here, sonny take this and quench your thrist.” “I don’t want your old whisky!” I threw back at him. A hoarse, gurgling laugh aros^ from somewhere down his interior and belched from his oipem mouth.. “Whiskey! .ho-ho, ha-ha! Why this is good old lager beer,” and with this he thrust the mug in my hand and turned away to confront the next victim. And as I was about to pour the fluid to th»- ground a hand ehot out and snatched the glass from me. “No you don’t, sonny,” and with this he drained the contents in one gulp- My father had secured as head miller a man by the name of August Ennic~--a fine, upstanding, genial, soul, capable, careful and honest and Teaming The mill, once set in operation in the summer of 1875, the country roads became active with horse and oxen-drawn vehicles loaded with grain and other products of the farm; and when the winter season advanced heavy bob-sleighs replace the creaking wheels. And it was a thing to see some farmer trudging on ahead of his ox team, etick in his hand, as with * gee-—.humph” he urged his creeping companions on to destination. There indeed were great days, preg­ nant with new hopes, nay, with as­ surance of a glowing future where the sons and daughters, though born in travail and made to taste of the outer limits of hardships and privation, yet should go marching solidly on shoulder to shoulder and with faces set, yet glowing, deter­ mined to make of this countryside a productive tribute to these their forebearers who were now fighting so valiantly along the highways of love and fear with no fear in their hearts and no hesitancy in- their steps that they -may eventually con­ summate their destiny. Business Competition Through this his latest venture and which promised to -become high­ ly successful, father had incurred the ill will of Mr. Pickard who own­ ed and operated a flour mill located on the Sauble above the bridge which divided Exeter proper from Francistown. His was a water pow­ ered mill; and u-p to the time father got his machinery going, Mr. Pick­ ard enjoyed the exclusive milling business in this section of the coun­ try—naturally, though short-sight­ ly—he resented competition, And, - he resented it openly. Mr. Pickard also owned and operated a store which was located at the extreme limits of the business section on south Main street, east side, and back of which he had constructed a large, substantial orick home. This store, in. connection with his mill, afforded him a splendid business in that, the farmers selling their grain to him, was compelled to- go to his store to cash their credit slips; and what was more natural than they should, in return, purchase their supplies from him. This was good business and deserves commenda­ tion. But now a shadow, more ap- . parent than real, seemed to be rising about him 'prophesin-g a trade-ar­ resting menace, and he did not like it. I But progress, so called, among us humans is ever fraught with that degree of labor-pains dependant up­ on the fierceness of the struggle put forth to .surmount an obstacle, or to make new inroads into a speculative future that promises a greater return for an additional capitalization of our energies looking to a private and conversely, a broader profit, for the public good. And how nicely na­ ture labors with us m working out set -plans is attested to in the that never once in the mankind has a mistake im this continuous swing of the species, there a greater good to be shown no matter how nearby surface indica­ tions might prove the contrary. Al­ ways is there a slight rise in this instance, a notch gained here, a foot­ hold attained there and the race shunts up to a permanent better­ ment. Meets Old Chum in Yukon Also, how very small this world becomes in its area w.here her rest­ less sons and daughters, ever on the move, traverse her broad spaces in­ quest for greater fields to conquer. This has been exemplified to me up­ on many occasions but never-more- eo than in the summer of '1901 while I was up to Dawson-, the mining dis­ trict of the Yukon Territory. There was a stampede going on up the Yukon river in the almost inaccess- able country comprising the Lake -Champlain- district. And while out­ fitting for the trip in the N. C. Com­ pany’s trading post, who should I meet there, also outfitting, but Rich­ ard Pickard, a school chum of mine from Exeter, and a son of the mill and store owner mentioned above. We immediately- concluded to com­ bine our outfits and go into this new district together. And though the way was long, hard and beset by almost unsur-mountable difficul­ ties; and though there was no more gold to be found there than on Main street in Exeter, yet we had one glorious sojourn- together, living over again the days of onr youth and en­ joying to the limit the social reun­ ion. DEES SUDDENLY a long “Haw— s snail- their fact history of ■been made upward Always is On his way to visit a sick relative William J. Smith, of London, fell on the front stops of hs home and suf­ fered internal injuries that brought his death 24 hours later in Victoria Hospital. Mr. .Smith was born in McGillivray towniship in 1869 mov­ ing to London in 1924 where he was in the employ of the Moore Fruit Company. .Surviving are his wife, formerly Miss Phoebe Ann HodgifiS, a daughter also three brothers and three sisters.