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HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1972-02-10, Page 4With much fanfare the CBC recently began a 13-part series based on the famous Jalna books by Mazo De La Roche. Despite having good material to start with and lavishing hundreds of thousands of dollars on cast, costumes and sets, the CBC seems to be well on its way to botching it again, It has always been a national joke (although it is becoming a sick one after 20 years) that the CBC could find a way of messing up any given situation. Now the corporation is trying to make it an international joke by trying to export the Jalna series. The Jalna books were 16 novels written by the late Miss De La Roche which sold millions of copies and won friends and avid readership around the world. The CBC saw them as an opportunity to gain a world-wide reputation such as the BBC gained through such series as The Forsyte Saga,. The trouble is, although there were 16 books to take the story from the CBC had to add more. Miss De La Roche has been dead for years, yet in the first three episodes the series has dealt primarily with happenings of 1970. We hope the dear author is still resting quietly in her grave but she would have an excuse if her ghost began haunting the CBC executive boardroom. Adding more material to the end of a famous series of books such as the Jalna series is somewhat akin to doing the film biography of a famous personage and adding 10 years to their life after they died. Perhaps the series will come back into perspective before the final episode of the series. If it doesn't you can be sure that the Jalna series will be filed away in some dark film library and never seen again. CBC_ 's hopes for sales of the series to the U.S. and Europe are based on the fact that the Jalna books had such enormous popularity there. But the corporation has thrown this appeal out the window by not sticking to the script provided by the books. Unless the series soon gets .back on the track no international buyer will want it and without exports abroad the proposed second season of the series will not go ahead because it is just too expensive for only a Canadian audience. Here's hoping the CBC has not killed the goose that laid the golden egg. Editori al comment . . Doing their best to botch it "Let me put it this way madam — will you insist on regular brushing, flossing, and fluoride. for MY health's sake then?" False evidence Not all are disenchant ed If one is to believe the mass media these days, Trudeaumania has become Trudeauphobia and the whole country is ready to turf the Prime Minister and his young family out on the front steps of 24 Sussex Drive. The radio, television and newspapers have been spreading the gospel for the last year or more that everyone in the country is disenchanted with the PM, including many members of his own party and supporters who helped get him to the leadership of the Liberal party in the first place. An article in this month's issue of Maclean's magazine however, shows that it just isn't so. The magazine, which has often been a tough critic of `the prime minister, interviewed many of the people who worked with him to put him in the leadership of his party and then become prime minister. Not one of these people was completely disenchanted with the work 'done by Trudeau. Several pointed out areas in which thef ,would like to have se,en more progress but felt that on the whole the prime minister had accomplished much. One young woman was interviewed who recalled something Trudeau had said to her when she was working on his campaign staff. "The trick," he said, "will be to accomplish enough in a hurry to keep people like you from becoming disillusioned." This has been the chief trouble around the Trudeau regime. When he was elected, many people immediately envisioned a country in which all wants would be fulfilled and everything would be hunky-dorey. But they found out that that isn't the way life is. Trudeau was no magician and people were brought down to earth even harder by the fact that the country was caught in a world-wild period of inflation and recession. This awakening to cruel reality has driven many to be as bitterly opposed to Trudeau as they were enamoured with him earlier. This group together with the people who have always been critics but were ignored before, are now the fashionable group. But with an election coming up it is hard to see the electorate really booting Trudeau out. What other alternative is there? Although David Lewis and Robert Stanfield claim the government has caused much of the unemployment that racks the country, they would both probably have to admit (in private and out of the earshot of any voter) that they couldn't have done much better. Why? Because governments have to follow the advice of their financial advisers who are the same no matter what party is in power. Prime' ministers usually do not know enough about the intricacies of economics to direct their own economic policy. Faced with these unhappy choices, some voters have been heard to moan, "Oh, if only Diefenbaker was back." But the last bad recession came during the Diefenbaker years so there goes another choice. Winter finally gets to Smiley THE CLINTON •NEW ERA Amalgamated THE HURON NEWS-RECORD Established 1865 1924 Established 1 881 Clinton News-Record A member of the Canadian Weekly Newspaper Association, Ontario Weekly Newspaper Association and the Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC) second class mail registration number — 0817 :SUBSCRIPTION RATES: (in advance) 'Canada, $8.00 per Year; U.S.A., $9.50 KEITH W. ROULSTON — Editor J. HOWARD AITKEN — General Manager Published every Thursday at the heart of Huron County' i Clinton, Ontario Population 3,475 THE HOME OF RADAR IN CANADA 4—Clinton News-Record, Thursday, February 10, 1972 To be absolutely honest about it, I always enjoyed going. It was like a kid being let loose in a candy store. The men were always so heavily outnumbered that the oldest and ugliest was bound to get a little attention. It was excellent for any man's morale. On the night of the last banquet I had to appear on a televisipn program. As you doubtless know, they've a heavy pancake make-up they put on you so that you won't look as if you'd- been freshly embalmbed. Some of this stuff, of course, came off on my shirt collar. My wife was cool for days afterward. She kept saying, "Well I expect you had a fine time at the banquet." "Oh, yes" I would respond airily, "quite nice." After about a week of this I said, "Oh, by the way, I hope that shirt isn't ruined. There's a lot of pancake make-up on the collar. Theyput'iti on zlieh,mu „op Ty, yOu la67." Small triumphs like that can do much to show wives the folly of suspicion. Parts of the Skating Rink roof dropped in the other day; it has since been cleared away and skating is going on as usual. It is reported that the Curling Club has , in contemplation the erection of a fine rink for next season. Harvey Jackson, son of Mr. Isaac Jackson, has •started a paper at Burk's Falls, to be known as the Beacon. He is a graduate of the New Era. The Ability Fund (March 'of Dimes)is a member of 32 United Appeals throughout Ontario. Elsewhere, in some 465 communities, it campaigns on behalf of disabled adults during the month of January. A donation to The Ability Fund helps to rehabilitate disabled adults. All winter I've been laughing. Not wildly or out loud, so that some people could do what they've wanted to for years—have me quietly put away. No, it's just been a steady stream of assorted chuckles, snickers and titters, with an occasional giggle erupting when it poured rain around here in January. I was laughing, for the first time in about four winters, at the snowmobilers and skiers, Winter after winter I have sat, glowering inwardly, as the snowmobilers tried to outshout each other in their boisterous, boyish manner, each trying to tell a taller tale than the other about how he jumped the creek or went up a 90-degree slope with no hands, or some such rot. Winter after winter, I've tried to keep the sour look off my face as the ski hounds burble their "in" talk about how many runs they made, chortle with glee every time there was a fresh fall of snow, and brag about their brand new Scheissmaken $80 ski boots. For about two months, the winter of 1971.72 was known as "Smiley's Revenge". There was a little snow in December, but it was almost a green Christmas. There wasn't a snowbank worthy of skidding into on New Year's Eve. And the fine weather continued for weeks: lots of rain, high temperatures and virtually no snow. "Let their snowmobiles sit there and rust", I whispered, barely able to restrain a guffaw. "Let their skis warp and their fancy boots remain unscuffed", muttered, scarce able to hold back a peal of laughter. "It's not that I have anything personal against these mid- winter bores. Some of my best friends are snowmobilers, though I wouldn't want my daughter to marry one. And I know some perfectly sensible people who think there is something ineffably enjoyable in sliding down a hill on a couple of inflated barrel staves. The genuine skier thinks nothing of spending 10 or 15 dollars on a Sunday's skiing, even if he' has to cut his church givings to the bone. And it's not jealousy or spite, Just 'because I have a ropy knee that would put me on crutches for two months if I had a fall is no reason to envy those who' swoop down the hill like a bird. Same with snowmobiling, I have a slight handicap there, too. I can fly a plane and drive a car, if there are good mechanics around, But when it comes to small motors which stop running, all I can do is stand there and stare, shifting from one foot to the other. It's embarrassing, but I'm being frank. It's all very well to talk about carburetors and pistons and fuel lines if you know what they are, where they are, and what to do if they aren't working. I figure I'm lucky if I get the lawnmower started once out of three times, without summoning help. Thus, the only picture I can conjure with me and a snowmobile in it is a nightmare: the pair of us out in the woods, 10 miles from nowhere, with the carburetors seized up or burned out or whatever it is they do. No, I don't hate the people or the sports. I just hate snow with a deep and bitter loathing which must have some psychological explanation. Did I wet my pants, as a small child, while playing in the snow? Did my parents, sick of my eternal wailing, throw me into a snowbank and hastily retrieve me? I don't know the answer. But I do know that Smiley's Revenge has turned into Smiley's Folly. As I write, I can't see the house across the street. It's snowing sea-gulls, horizontally, with a forty-mile wind gusting to 60 or 70. The skiers are smirking; the snowmobilers are laughing out loud. And I'm crying, deep inside. I knew it was a dream. But dream we must, or we are nothing. Some Winter . Well, never mind. Hand me that shovel, woman, and stand back, out of earshot. Since it was only a week or so ago that I went on the record opposing the admissibility of old love letters as evidence in court cases involving the ashes of past romances, I hesitate now to write of the problem of lipstick traces on men's shirts. You're going to think I'm just an old roue, I may be drummed out of the P.T.A. But the news item concerning the successful divorce action of one Mrs. Eleanor Fellows, in which an important part was played by her testimony that her husband came home from "business meetings" bearing lipstick marks on his collar, cannot be allowed to pass without comment. There must be literally millions of innocent men who have been tried, convicted and sentenced on this deceiving evidence. What wives don't understand, living their sheltered, protected lives in the home, is that a man is mighty lucky to go through a whole working day without getting lipstick on his collar. Almost any man can tell you that the streets are simply full of 10 YEARS AGO Thursday, Feb. 10, 1962 Frank Becker has long thought that finding a penny was lucky as it often has worked out like that ,for him. Yesterday he began finding pieces of a 20-dollar bill. They were very small pieces, and he has only found about three fragments, but he's wondering how the percentage of good luck will workout. Even a small piece of a $20 bill should be worth a good deal more in the market place for luck, than a penny. The Hon. William A. Stewart, Minister of Agriculture will be guest speaker at the Huron County Seed Fair in Exeter on Sat., March 10. Subject of the Minister's address will be "The Place of Farm Management on Huron County Farms." 15 YEARS AGO Thursday, Feb. 14, 1957 This year the Clinton Spring young ladies who have to be rescued from under the wheels of runaway trucks, leaving their indelible brand in the excitement, Men are always running into exhuberant old lady friends (old school teachers, maiden aunts and such) and, even occasionally young exhuberant friends. Secretaries may faint suddenly in the midst of dictation and have to be propped up. This kind of thing happens all the time as any businessman, particularly Mr. Fellows, can tell you. Wives who discover this sort of evidence (I'm told) invariably resort to the Old Freeze-Up. Given a fair hearing the whole thing might be cleared up in a moment. The husband could simply explain that he'd chanced to be standing in front of a Ubangi lady in a crowded elevator or that the lipstick had been deposited while being shaved by a near- sighted lady barber. That would be that. But women are so' confounded jealous! I know a poor fellow who toils all day at a desk exactly like the Show will be held on Wednesday, May 29. This is a change from the Saturday scheduling of the fair, in order to attempt attracting a larger crowd. Decision for this date was made at a meeting of the Huron Central Agricultural Society here yesterday, when 23 directors attended and Mr. T. Leiper, the new president of the fair presided. A meeting of local retailers has been called for Tuesday, February 19, in the council chamber, of the town hall, Clinton commencing at 8 o'clock. Invitations have been sent to all Clinton retailers, from the Retail Merchants Association of Canada (Ontario) Inc. • 25 YEARS AGO Thursday, Feb. 6, 1947 The Board of Trustees of Goderich Township School Area met the evening of Tuesday, Jan. two dozen desks surrounding him, plotting the routes and loading schedules of freight cars. All day long, nine to five, his mind is on freight cars. On his way to work or on his way home he may glance furtively at billboards displaying advertisements for girdles, but this is the height of his infidelity. His wife gives him ten dollars a week. Even if he wanted to arrange a tete-a-tete he'd have to do in a hamburger joint. But to hear his wife talk you'd think he was the inventory-keeper at a sultan's harem or stage manager of the Follies Bergere. All because he once came home with lipstick on his collar and, to this day, he doesn't know how it got there. I do not want to go telling tales out of school, but I'm forced to bare the details of a personal case to show you just how wrong wives can be. , At the last, newspaper where I was employed they haXe an annual pre-Christmas staff banquet. The staff numbered around 900. About 800 of them were the world's most charming, beautiful girls. 28, at No. 11 School. All members were present. Clayton Laithwaite was appointed chairman for a second. All communications, accounts and reports, received since the last meeting were considered. The Board decided not to install radios in the schools at the present time. The next meeting will be held in No. 10 School on the evening of Thursday, Feb. 27. Any persons wishing to attend these meetings are welcome to do so: 55 YEARS AGO Thursday, Feb. 8, 1917 Rev. W. B. Moulton and Mr. P. Cantelon were in Exeter' on Tuesday attending a meeting of the South Huron L.O.L. They report a good meeting. The annual skating party of the C.C.L. was held in the big rink last evening. Band in attendance at the rink and lunch served in the council chamber afterwards. Mr. Henry Peacock of the London Road has purchased the residence of Mr. Ralph Tiplady, Ontario Street. He will get possession about March 1. 75 YEARS AGO Feb. 12, 1897 On Tuesday evening several members of the Independent Order of Foresters visited the brethren at Bayfield, and spent a pleasant, enjoyable time, being nobly entertained. The Bayfield Brethren visited Clinton Lodge tonight. Letters.... to the Editor Dear Keith, On behalf of the Winchester Midget Hockey team, I wish to extend thanks to the Clinton Minor Hockey Association for their invitation allowing us to participate in your "Minor Hockey Week", The experience gained from such a weekend cannot be measured, Our new community is presently in the process of building their own arena. In fact our midgets had their first practise last week on their own ice. Next week we hope to have artificial ice. May your active program continue to flourish and again our sincere thanks to all who were involved. Good luck to coach Bob Cook and the Clinton Midgets in their up-coming playoffs. We also hope to see you in Winchester someday. For my wife, Jan, myself and the Winchester Midgets, Thank You for a very enjoyable weekend. Yours truly, Tom Clapp, Winchester Midget Coach. Green grows The Ability Fund, new name for the March of Dimes, whose new symbol is a thriving evergreen tree with a branch missing—symbolic of the fact that disabled adults have many abilities left to help them to live a useful, happy life. 0 • • PM toils In order that News—Record readers might express their opinions on any topic of public interest, Letters To The Editor are always welcome for publication. But the writers of such letters, as well as all readers, are reminded that the opinions expressed in letters published are not necessarily the opinions held by The News—Record. The Editor, In your editorial of last week you ask: "Where do our priorities lie?." Then you suggest that the choice lies between 'arming to the teeth' or 'seeking peace through a body like the United nations.' Then you conclude: "Any sane person will know the answer." IS the choice between just the United Nations" or the other alternative suggested? Referring io the language difficulties between French and English speaking Canadians you stress the need for seeking understanding and conclude: "Those who call themselves Christians...may have a particular responsibility." HERE lies the answer to your previous question: "Where are our priorities?" The founder of Christianity instructed his followers to make their priority the Kingdom of God. And concerning that Kingdom the inspired Scriptures say: "For unto us a child is born, unto us a gon is given; and the goveininent —shaifbeilp'OnhiS shouldW.70nm increase of his goliernrrielit'and peace there shall be no end...The zeal of Jehovah of hosts will perform this." (Isaiah 9:6,7,A.S.V.) This version was Copyrighted in 1929 by the International Council of Religious Education to insure the purity of the text. However, the same group of "those who called themselves Christians" endorsed first the League of Nations as man's only hope for peace, at the 'close of World War I. Then, after the League failed with the outbreak of World War II and ceased to exist, they endorsed the United Nations as "man's last hope for peace," All the facts indicate that neither are showing any signs of bringing about "peace". (Jeremiah 6:14; 8:11) It would seem that "those who call themselves Christians" have either entirely forgotten or ignored the words recorded at Daniel, chapter two, verse 44. They may even call these words "un-realistic". But bringing about peace by spending "a thousand times more on weapons and other means of defense" is far more "unrealistic". This would indicate that, not only is the billions of dollars spent on defense costs, "an indictment of national leaders" but the whole situation is eqUally an indictment of religious leaders. Do you not think that the time has come for us to face the facts? C. F. Barney