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HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1970-12-03, Page 56my. Christmas from , :411 ,at, the News-Record JOI070,107:010-01.14zioviovo:itvivqviog.e.lor.osorio.iworfzx There is still magic in Christmas 1 don't know.....rd feel better if it came with, a signed non-aggression pact and disarmament treaty backed by the U.N. The wrong spirits That Lutheran pastor who let his bile spill over, quite understandably, suggesting the church ignore the mockery of Christmas and leave it to the 'greedy, selfish orgy of commercialism" has picked the wrong target, it seems to me, if .he's talking' about non-church-goers. Certainly the zeal of merchandising has contributed to the confusion that's made Santa Claus seem more like Jack The Ripper. But the hard-sell alone isn't directly responsible for the fact that Christmas has come to seem a time of noisy desperation or- an ordeal that mast be grimly endttred. ' I'll tell you What the trouble is, if you didn't already know. The trouble is booze. There's nothing wrong with Christmas that couldn't be cured by moderating the spirit that comes from a 26-ounce jug and replacing it with the spirit of goodwill. What has happened to this celebration as an expression of a religious faith I leave to those more qualified to know. But I do know that what once seemed a mighty fine family party has now become, for a great many people, a nasty, dangerous and disgusting bore, that it has come to mean a sick release of the maladjustments of an impaired society and that the only possible excuse for it from the non-church-goer's view, a time for the delight of children, has all but disappeared in the alcoholic fume's. The line-ups are already forming at the grog shops. The air is filled with dire warnings that, our lives are endangered from now on by drivers who are in a condition of criminal intoxication as their way of recognizing the birth of 'Christ. It is all rather frantically speeding toward an unavoidable head-on collision when, instead, it might be the happiest time of the year. If all this seems strangely out of character for a man who can be just as big a fool about liquor as the next, put it down to the experience of the editor I most admire in these parts, a man who; last year, 'had the unique. adventure Of seeing e Chtietheae ;is throUgh a child's eyes. • For reasons having nothing to do with drinking, my dear friend was ordered by his doctor to abstain completely last year. So, unfortified, he went through the Christmas season viewing it, you might say, almost as an outsider. That, he says now, is really the lonely role of the non-imbibing adult or of a child now that Christmas is little more than the Olympic Games of social drinking, second only to Grey Cup Day. Even allowing for that degree of hypocrisy which inflicts the drinking man when he's abstaining, he quickly began to see how loony these pagan rites 'have become through . the emphasis on grain spirits. "It's as if the festive week is an automatic licence for excessive drinking, an open season for a massive onslaught on the bottle," as he puts it. To be caught up and swept Christmas a joy once work's done THE CLINTON NEW ERA Amalgamated THE HURON NEWS-RECORD Established 1865 1924 — • -e Established 1881 ' Clinton "N ews-Record A member of the Canadian Weekly NewSp iper Association, Ontario WeeklyNewspaper AseociatiOn and the Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABO) second class mail registraticin 'number 0817 SUBSCRIPTION RATES: (in advance) Canada, $6.00 per year: U.S.A., $7450 KEITH W4 ROULSTON Editor ‘1, HOWARD AITKEN — Geheral Manager Publithed every Thursday at the heart of Huron County I Clinton, Ontario Population 3,475 Tim' HOME OF RADA) IN CANADA 4 Clinton.News-Record, Thursday, December 24,19 70 FRISBEE AtIAZJA(c ALIEN; ACTuAz4y i9 4 g. TA o fRA8 a rACK44 rr o $itioor • air e MA opt/ o PINCH o EA o iNk 17 o (4)4 7" 0 R41 rr 0 4".d P o k1« SIV.444 ANmALS ' o D.fccilkilve Kips ▪ An'Ac • Inirm/DA 7-5 • DEcLARZ low LY 2115 pc.. _ftf_11. I j •-•...•••••1•••••••••••••.. Every year about this time the critics begin to harp on the fact that Christrnas isn't what it used to be or what it should be. They point to the rat race of buying Christmas presents, buying, addressing and sending Christmas cards and tipping and providing gifts for the milkman, the paper boy and every other handiman who calls regularly. Christmas is too commercial these days, they say as they rush out to the nearest department store to ,lavish their money on gifts for Johnnie, and Sue, and great aunt Minnie and twenty-second cousin what's her name. But they're wrong. Commercialism isn't killing Christmas. Nothing can. Christmas is as strong a tradition today as it was 40 years ago. We may stay away from our churches in droves but somehow when Christmas comes people act just as Other views: they did many years ago, Christmas is like the birth of a baby; it ..happens. .so often, yet SornehPvv it is always something If commercialism is' ruining Christmas for some, it is because they are letting commercialism get in the way of the real meaning. They are to blame not Christmas, They could, if they tried, carry on all the old traditions and stay out of the rat race. But often those who. complain the loudest are those who feel it Most necessary to put on a big show and keep up with the Jones. But who can ever condemn Christmas when, no matter how some people try to make it a season to make their fortune so they can retire to Florida, we come the closest to "Peace on Earth, Goodwill towards men",,that we even come for one or two days. Letter to the Editor LOWS' agffiliSt cruelty The Editor, It might be well ,to draw to the attention of these cruel brutes (they can't be called hump) who .abandon helpless animals by the roadside or as - recently reported, in a bag in ,a granary that there is a severe Penalty for them if and when their names are eseettaiped, There are laws in force which protect animals and hirds. One such reads, and I quote in part, "Under Section 542 anyone • wantonly and cruelly abandoning in distress any dog, • domestic animal or bird is 04 of an offence and liable on conviction to a heavy fine or imprisonment or both.. th i , ' AV This law applies to all animals if' ,,1 i ; ' id of course, but I have quoted the 1 1 part pertaining to .dogs since of .,' lifillp ,1 late they seem to be the victims ' ii , , of vicious cruelty in our vicinity. A day of reckoning may yet come their way (may it • be soon). Let them not feel too . , , 1: i A secure.ny Anyone knowing or having such knowledge deeds and o f a the pyeertp ewt ri ato ti sl od withholds - that information is as guilty of cruelty as they. ' Yours sincerely E. D. Fingland. About elections and editors County, report Plan ready in January The Lucknow Sentinel recently wrote an' editorial on our horse and buggy attitudes toward elections. CAUSE AN ELECTION During the past couple, of weeks we attended several nomination meetings for school and municipal offices. At most every meeting, a much worn phrase, "I won't' cause an election" kept cropping up. It seems that the possibility of "Causing an election" keeps many men and women from running for various public offices in the area. "Causing an election" can lose a candidate votes.at ethe ,pcillsebeceuse epf the "horse and buggy ,,, ettityde of many of the electorate. - We are of the belief that no one individual ever causes an election. Candidates are elected for a two year term. At the end of the two years they are out and through: The only way they can continue in office is to seek another nomination. They have no prior claim to office whether they have served two or twenty-two years. At the nomination meeting they are on the same level as the newcomer seeking office for the first time. No ratepayer should begrudge the dollars it costs to run an election in a municipality. How better can we spend our money than determining who has the popular support of the electorate. The next time you hear the phrase "cause an election", remember that an election can be caused by a group of people, each equally responsible, but Christmas seems to emphasize our basic natures. If we're slightly skeptical, we become deeply cynical the closer the day approaches. If we are in- clined to be optimistic and cheery, we are apt to begin wallowing in sentimentality. It seems to get me both ways. My natural skepticism hardens into a surly misan- thropy as the annual parade , of gifts and greed, cards and carols, begins creeping toward me. Not to mention the holy old jumpin' putting up of the tree, my annual struggle to avoid insanity from ftustra- fion, and hell from blasphe- my. But tny natural optimism sneaks in, and once the dirty work has been one, I wax sentimental to the point of tears over the Wassail bowl, the log in the fire, the smell Of singed spat:de needles, and the loved faces around me. Neither attitude is right, Of course. Both ate base.'Christ- Mae is a celebration, It should be neither • cynical nor, tenti- Mental, joyous, 1.11 the teal sense of the'word. It could, and should be the one day in the year when we can creep closest tO the watnith of the baeic teachings of the man-god; loVe and peace, It should be a day marked by solemnity and jol- lity, prayer an cheer, It doetn't Malty have much to do With turkey and that no one person will ever cause an election, * * The Zurich Citizens News reprinted a humorous piece from the Greenfield Indiana Reporter which we in turn reprint for you. WHY EDITORS TURN GRAY Being editor of a country newspaper is not the most desirable job in the world — unless you are a glutton for punishment. It is confining beyond what is reasonably accepted these days. There are constant pressures, That means daily deadlines and everything has to be done in a hurry. As for financial reward, only a few really make it and we dedicated and `can cefie'with the inherent perplexities. This does not mean that the newspaper business is completely unrewarding, because there is certain satisfaction in doing any job well. There is humor in the work and something pops up almost every day that is good for a laugh. A lot of it comes from the fact that most people feel strongly, one way or the other, about having their names in the paper. Here are few typical examples, not all original, of a number of ways to spoil an editor's day; "Please put it on the front page." "Use the ,etory just as I have written it. The club wants it that way for the scrap book." 'You're invited to our annual dinner tonight (this was the third invitation that week and The carols, the pageants, the never-stale story of the birth in the manger, the very smell of Christmas: all these in- trimmings -and tinsel, though these don't hurt anybody. Nor does it have anything to do with the number of cards you receive, or the value of the presents you garner. Indeed, two or three cards mean more to some people than two or three hun- dred to others. And a home- knit scarf from someone can mean more than a mink coat from someone else, (Hope my family doesn't read this,) Easy enough to —y what Christmas is not. it's More difficult to say what it it, be,- cause it is intangible. You can't reach out and grasp the spirit of Christmas. You must feel it. If you don't, you're dead, spiritually. Naturally, children get most out of it. Perhaps it's because they don't look for gintmicks. There is a vvondetful cotn binatien of the mystic and the materialistic that entran- ces thein. Little realists that they are, they are fascinated by the thought of goodies, They love the hide-and-seek aspect of gifts. There's a great thrill rn Opening the stock ings, and 'squeezing and rat- tling things under the tree, But they are equally en- chanted by the ante that tut, will* these material Jollies, we wanted a night home). There will be plenty free to eat and drink. Oh, yes, please bring your camera." "How come it wasn't in the paper? It was — Well, I didn't see it. Will you please go through the back copies and tear it out for me." "I just stopped by to talk a few minutes, but if you're busy." "We voted to make you our club publicity chairman." "I know you have a deadline, but couldn't you just squeeze this little item in? "My. husband has never been in •trouble before so I don't think his name should appear in the paper for drunken driving arid hitting that nasty policeman —Greenfield (Ind.) Reporter crease their inner excitement to the bursting point, It's also a day when they can get away with anything short of murder, and they know it. This year, after the big family gatherings of other years, we'll have a slim crew, but three generations. Granny won't be thete, but we'll be thinking about her. There'll be just Grandad and us and daughter ICim. (At time of writing, We might wind up with eighteen,) There'll be early church. Then the opening of gifts, and thoughts of eon Hugh 1,000 miles away, and the smell of turkey, and,music, and perhaps friends dropping in for a drop. There's too much talk about drop-outs thete days, and net enough about drop-ins. We'll have a big fire and lie on the rug, groaning, after dinner. I Ilene it won't be as big a fire as last year, when thy wife set fire to the ever- greens oh the mantel and nearly burned down the house. This is all qualified by the Word "hopefully", It could be a complete schnozzle, like the year I dropped the tutkey on the kitchen floor as I took it out of the oven, But I hope it's peaceful. And I hope with all my heart, whatever your situation, that yeint Christinas Weill be blesSed by peace and love. 55 YEARS AGO The Clinton New Era December 23, 1915 Mr. John A. Cooper, Editor of The Canadian Courier and son of Mrs. William Cooper, of Clinton has enlisted. Mr. Cooper has been appointed captain in the 114th Battalion. The Wassail bowl which is still used in some old European families at Christmas, succeeded the skull of the Norseman's foe as a drinking vessel, In these old wassail bowls, some specimens of which are of brown ware and others of massive silver were placed the ale, the ginger, the sugar, the nutmeg and the roasted crab apples. Where the old custom still preilalls the ale is served spiced and sweetened in the wassail bowl, but the apples are omitted. The County Council proceedings at Goderich were brought to a close by the Presentation to Warden GovenlOck of an address of appreciation and a gold mounted Walking cane, 40 YEARS AGO The Clinton News-Record December 24, 1930 The Merry sleighbells were heard again on Saturday, after triday's snowfall, and are still in evidence, We ate fortunate in having both sleighing and wheeling. From Valeta School Report — Perfect spelling for Noveneber: Jearie Reid, Willie McAsh. Perfect spelling for Decerribet Willie McAsh, Elmer Johnston, Bessie Chuter, Gordon Homer. Best speller for the term: Willie McAsh. Mr. Harry Ball of Clinton was guest of honour and chief speaker at a dinner given by the Geological Club of the University of Western Ontario on Wednesday evening of last week. 25 YEARS AGO The Clinton News-Record December 27, 1945 Effective .January 1, 1946 John M. Roberts, Huron County Clerk for a number of years prior to the outbreak of the War, has been appointed Registrar of Deeds for the County of Huron, Succeeding Miss Lillie Macpherson, who has resigned. J. W. Ortwein, prominent Hensall resident and oldest citizen in the village, on Christmas Day observed his 96th birthday. The Christmas issue of "The Broadcaster" by the Students' Council of Clinton Collegiate Institute, Was a eery creditable number, and was edited by Miss Margaret Colquhoun. Under the direction of Mrs, Mary Rauce 1Vfac1<innon children of the Public School sang Christmas carols in front of the post office Monday afternoon, • 15 YEARS AGO The Clinton News-Record Decernber 22, 1955 The hotrie Of Mr. and Mrs. along in that hysteria, induced by varying degrees of intoxication, blinds the very nicest people to the ugly realities of it. Again, his conclusion: "It is only the sober spectator, very often the innocent child, who is aware that drinking has become the substitute for everything that Christmas ought to be." Most of the critics of the Christmas celebration as we now practice it seemed to ignore this fact. They're alarmed at the loss of spiritual values and meanings and the increase f the rtraterialistic, commercialized orgy of Merchandieing. They, say;.4 the., Lutheran pastors words, that we've come to "wallow in lavishness." True though this may be, it seems to me we could fill the vacuum religiously and live comfortably with the admitted super-salesmanship if we got back to thinking of Christmas as a festival celebrating the ideals that are common to every religion and particularly as they apply to children. Simply buying them off with gifts as a way of shutting them up while we entertain ourselves with the revelery that comes from a bottle, establishing in their minds that this is some kind of alcoholic Mardi Gras for temporarily irresponsible adults, moves us all farther away from the real joy and satisfaction that we all crave. Our trouble, in short, is not traceable, as the pastor believes, to the department stores. It begins in the liquor stores. Jarvis Horton, Hensall, will be the setting on Christmas Day for Yuletide festivities and an added attraction will be celebrating of the 64th wedding anniversary of the latter's parents Mr. and Mrs. J. T. Mitchell, Hensall. Reverend and Mrs. H. C. Wilson have moved into their new home, the recently completed Wesley Willis United Church manse on Townsend Street. A vital step in the extensive preparatory work for the introduction of dial telephone service in Clinton ' — the installation of the dial equipment — is underway in the recently completed dial exchange building on Rattenbury Street. The dial BY SHIRLEY J. KELLER The first draft of the official plan for Huron County was not presented at the December session of Council because J. A. Nicklom of G. V. Kleinfeldt and Associates Limited, County Consultants, was unable to complete the document in time. However, the plan is expected to be presented early in the new year — hopefully January — and council adopted a schedule to make certain that all municipalities are fully informed about its contents. The initial meeting of the planning board is set for Tuesday, January 26 at which time the, proposed official plan will be presented to them. At • the next ineting of the olarming board, ttleaclaY; February eitle the piopbsed Official plan will' be discussed fully by board. members. The document would then be presented by the planning board to county council during the February session as a matter of information. The proposed official plan will be sent to each local council following the February session. The local councils would then be requested to have any written comments concerning the proposed official plan in to the secretary by March 19. Council agreed that each municipal council would have the right to request that a member of the planning board attend their meeting and answer questions about the proposed official plan. The planning board will meet March 24 to discuss comments from the • local municipalities. The planning board will arrange public meetings to discuss the proposed official plan early in system will go into operation next spring. 10 YEARS AGO The Clinton News-Record December 22, 1960 Clinton Hospital Board meeting in the Nurses' Residence on Monday night, hired Mrs. Pamela Sadler from 10 applicants, for the position of part-time stenographer and typist at the hospital. She Will succeed Mrs. Roach, whose husband has received a posting to Germany. The Christmas party for the Clinton Community Concert Band was held ih the Legion Hall on Tuesday evening. April and would meet again in the latter part of April to review all comments regarding it. The planning board would then redraft the proposed official plan for presentation to county council. The chairman of the planning board, Anson McKinley, told council councillors that to date, eight applications have been received for the position of planning director for Huron County. He said applicants are from as far away as Victoria BC, Halifax NS and the USA. Hugh Flynn, a definite candidate for the wardenship in 1971, expressed his desire that the new planning director to be engaged eventually be county council, ; would be a native'6f County or, Vatlee'i,l'e,get, someone familiar municipalities. The chairman pointed out that . these men are used to "being re-educated" to geographical locations but concurred with Flynn that a man with a knowledge of things rural would be a definite asset in Huron. McKinley, predicted that the Huron County planning staff would likely grow in the future to a staff of three people. He estimated that initially, the planning director would be paid approximately $10,000 per annum. "The people in Toronto are watching this with a great deal of interest," said McKinley. "This is a pretty important document. In fact, I think the official plan is one of the most important documents in the coming year. It will set out what we think should take place by way of development in the county. There was no growth for the last 50 years but this could change." In other business, county council granted .pay adjustments for John Berry, clerk-treasurer $500 to a salary of $15,500; to Bill Hardy, deputy clerk-treasurer, $500 to $11,000; and . construction safety inspector, Everett Smith, $342 to $6,042. Council also heard that $100 scholarships had been granted to the following university students: Miss Janet Roorda, Clinton, and John Trewartha, Rli, 3 Clinton, both at the University of Waterloo; Miss Mary liaechler, RR 2 Zurich, Francis Foran, RR 2 Auburn 'and James Wheeler, RIt 1 Ethel, all at the University of Guelph; and Raymond Hogan, RR 7 Lecknow at Ridgetown College of Agricultural Technology. Wi1,4Pin'"4clifAceruM140`entrethe (who was only trying to arrest enlees,, they are really :the' man without hurting. him Besides, he only had a couple of. beers (the breathalizer showed him nearly dead drunk). And there are the children to think about (he didn't and the facts are he regularly gets drunk in front of them and beats the old lady about every Saturday night). "I know it's on a Sunday, but it's our annual reunion and someone ought to cover it." "My uncles' brother is one of your biggest advertisers and I was wondering if " "I'll try to get my ad in to you before the deadline next time." "You ran the disaster picture, but you didn't get my, first wedding anniversary picture until the day after." "If there wasn't room for the picture, why couldn't they run it on another page?"