HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1972-02-24, Page 4(Editorial comment
A waste of our time
It's tbo bad that there isn't some
way of stopping the kind of bickering in
Ottawa that precedes the calling of an
election,
Everyone expects an election soon
and it has been obvious in watching. the
workings of Parliament this past
week, that there isn't going to be much
accomplished until the election 'takes
place.
The government has some bills it
would like passed but hasn't brought in
a heavy program for this session. It
has been obvious that the Opposition is
already operating as if the election
campaign were underway.
The result is that our papers and the
airwaves are filled with stories about
name calling and how grown men make
themselves behave worse than
children.
When this election mess is over it
would be a good idea if the new
government would set up .a committee
to study the whole election process
and see if a better system can be found
to keep the Parliament at work until
the election is actuallycalled. It's bad
enough we have to listen to this
bickering during a whole election
campaign without having to put up with
it for six months before hand.
Go down to the rink
The annual Clinton Bantam Hockey
Tournament gets underway tonight
and will provide exciting hockey
action for the next three weekends.
If you haven't seen these youngsters
play, you don't know what you're
missing. Bantam hockey has become a
showplace for some of the best hockey
talent around. Youngsters of the
Bantam age category still enjoy the
game for the sake of the game and yet
they are old enough to skate and check
well and have a knowledge of hockey
far beyond that known by youngsters of
that age in years gone by.
Clinton residents should be proud
that their town plays host to a
tournament which is gaining wide
reputation across the province as one
of the best around. Our tournament
may not yet be as famous as some of
the other tournaments, but it is
quickly building itself into one of the
major tournaments in Ontario.
In thepast, those from far away
centres such as Toronto have been
impressed by the tournament but local
residents have not given it much
support.
Get down there this year and see
why so many people from out of town
come to Clinton for the tournament.
You'll be glad you did.
The double standard of terrorism
Ireland is a place that doesn't make
much sense anyway these days but
there seemed to be less logic involved
in the prostestations over the killing
of the 13 civilians than in anything
else.
It is.always amazing how terrorists
such as the IRA think they have the
God-given right to murder anyone yet
whenever the authorities fire back it
is an atrocity. It has yet to be proved
that the troops involved in Bloody
Sunday actually • opened fire before
they were fired upon, but even if they
did, an outsider could hardly blame
them for being edgy enough to make a
mistake. For several years every
soldier in Ireland has lived with the
fact that at any moment he might be
marked for death by the IRA. They
have fought riots without being able to
fire back. They have taken abuse from
both sides in the conflict without
retaliating. Under such conditions,
something was bound tb happen sooner
or later.
When it did, the country turned
against the troops and called them
murderers. They blamed them for
everything wrong in the country.
Yet these same people give shelter
and food and support to the IRA who
every week murder as many people as
the troops have killed in all the time
they have been in Ireland.
How do the Northern Irish Catholics
hope to win support from the rest of
the world when they remain such
hypocrites?
The way it was .for Billy The Kid
"Strike a blow for the
underprivileged," my wife said
at breakfast this morning and
handed me a clipping date-lined
London, England.
"Mothers," it read, "need a
break from their 'noisy, dirty,
wailing, snivelling' children, a
leading British child expert said
today. R. S. Illingworth,
professor of child health at
Sheffield University, suggested
that, for the good of their
health, wives should have
occasional weekends alone with
their husbands."
"That's rough on children," I
'said when I'd read it. "What
mother thinks of her children as
`noisy, dirty, wailing and
snivelling'?"
"Every mother thinks that though it may be their own
sometime, often ,nightly," my drying, if you follow me, and I'm
wife said. "There comes a !sure., you do:: To much
togetherness can be as dreary as
none at all. A thinking man
would arrange for periodic
escapes so that he could renew
his acquaintanceship with his
wife far from those beady little
eyes and dirty little ears."
"Well said," said I, "but
surely the family holiday does
the job, doesn't it?"
"Never," said my wife. "No
woman can be either romantic
or relaxed when she is playing
housemaid, life guard,
f i re-maker, janitor, cook,
master-of-ceremonies and the
rest. More can be accomplished
for a marriage in one weekend
One solution for happy marriage
girls. The professor doesn't
mention anything about
husbands. He's probably a
bachelor, anyway, with a cosy
little pad and Mantovani records.
I know those child experts."
"The word is 'romance'," said
my wife. "It is just as important
for the man as for the woman to
be removed occasionally from
the thunder of those little feet.
If there were more illicit
weekend affairs between
husbands and wives there'd be
fewer divorces."
"Gee," I said. "You're being
racy this morning."
"The trouble with marriage,"
my wife went on, "is that men
find it hard to be romantic
about somebody's mother, even
moment in every mother's life
when she has only one thought
for her children. The guillotine."
"I feel that in the Heavens
above the angels, whispering to
one another, can find
some thing-something-something
none so devotional as that of
mother. Edgar Allen Poe."
"Have your little joke," said
my wife, "but if you will just
write a little column about this,
some woman may prop it up
beside her husband's breakfast
and you'll have made a happy
man."
"A happy man?" I said. "I
thought this was therapy for the
"I don't know if I'd ever make 0 go od grown-up — I don't hate anyone!"
Mrs. Ina F isher stands at the edge of the street allowance in front
of her house to show how far her husband had to shovel to get out
of their driveway.
Writer angry about
snowblowing in Wintercourt
THE CLINTON NEW ERA Amalgamated THE HURON NEWS-RECORD
Established 1865 1924 Established 1881 '
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)
tabada, $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'
Clinton, Ontario
Population 3,475
OF RADAR
IN CANADA
THE HOME
4--Clinton News-Record, Thursday, February 24, 1972
Ina nostalgic mood today, I've
been thinking that, with the
onslaught of the Speed Age, many
of our fine old Canadian traditions
have fallen by the wayside, died on
the vine, or simply lain down and
curled up their toes.
One of the first to go, of course,
was the blacksmith. It hurts me to
face the truth: that most people
today under 30 have never known
the sensory joys of a blacksmith's
shop.
At this time of year, small boys
used to squeeze through the
ramshackle door, and edge as
close as they could to the fire,
freezing their hums and roasting
their cheeks. There was a fine
acrid stench of horse manure and
scorched hooves. There was the
leaping flame as the bellowdblew,
There was the ringing clang as the
-smith beat out the white-hot metal
between hammer and anvil, and
the satisfying hiss when the hot
metal was plunged into the cold
water.
At a certain age, most male
kids would have settled happily
for the life of a blacksmith, a free
soul who spent his days doing the
most fascinating work in the
world,
The decline of the smithy, of
course, was brought about by the
gradual phasing out of another
tradition—the horse-drawn
vehicle.
I wonder how many kids of this
generation have ever spent a
winter Saturday "catching bobs"
This was our term for jumping on
the backs of farmers' sleighs.
All day long the farmers 'came
and went to and from town. And all
daylong we hopped on behind a
load of grain, left that for a load of
supplies going the other way,
picked up a sleigh piled with logs
for the return trip, and shivered
with delighted fear as the farmers
shouted at us, and even
sometimes flourished their whips
in our direction.
As we grew a little older, about
12, we graduated to catching on
the wing a cutter. This was more
daring and more dangerous
because they could really fly, the
runner was much smaller, and the
farmer could turn around and belt
you one on the ear,
Most of them, of course, were
pretty decent. I know now that they
were more worried about us
getting hurt in a fall than they
were about the extra weight their
horses had to pull.
Then there were the butchers'
cutters. These consisted of a sort
of box with runners beneath, and a
step at the back for the driver to
stand on, The horses were not
plugs, but real road-runners that
went like a bat out of hell. They
were every bit as exciting as a
Roman chariot, and the drivers
were the envy of every boy, in fur
caps, reins in one hand, whip in
the other, as they tore through the
town like furies.
And I wonder how many boys
have played hockey all day on a
frozen river, when a hard shot the
goalie missed might slide for a
quarter of a mile:. We never had to
worry about ice-time, or
changing lines. We could play
until we were pooped, then sit by
the bonfire until rested, and have
another go. And there were
always 20 or 30 playing at once, so
everybody got a whack at the puck.
Some great stick-handlers came
out of that era.
Think of the depths to which we
have sunk. The smithy, with its
light and shadows, its reds and
blacks, its earthy smells, its
sense of life, has been replaced by
the garage, a sterile thing with its
cement floor, its reek of gas and
oil, and its unspoken assurance
that this-is-gonna-cost-you-
plenty-buddy.
The cutter, swift and light as a
bird, no longer skims the snow, It
has been replaced by a stinking,
snarling, skidding beast that only
modern man could abide—the
snowmobile.
No more meat-cutters,
careening around the .corners on
one runner, delivering in any
weather. Now, we plod like
zombies through the
supermarket, to moronic piped-in
music, and pick up the odourless,
antiseptic, cellophaned packages
the great gods Dominion, Loblaw
or Safeway have assigned to us,
and carry them humbly to our
cars, three blocks away.
Our kids have to get up at five
a, in. to play hockey, and if they're
not real "killers", get about four
minutes ice-time.
Ah, thohe were the days! And I
haven't even begun on the most
vital of all winter equipment—the
puck consisting of a frozen horse-
hun.
TEN YEARS AGO
J. William Counter, on Monday
night, accepted a position on the
board of Clinton Public Hospital,
stepping into a vacancy there
made by the retirement of his
father, G. Morley Counter. Mr.
Counter, with a broad smile,
commented that he was
completing his seventh term of
three years, and felt it was time
he retired.
Industrial committee
chairman, George Wonch said
Tuesday night he had written to
Brig. A, H, McKibbon, C.D., area
commander, Western Ontario in
London to request that a sub-unit
of the 21st Field Regiment RCA be
located in Clinton,
Plans are proposed that the
reserve unit occupy the vacant
premises of the Clinton Hosiery
Mill Ltd. on Mary Street,
FEB. 22, 1962
15 YEARS AGO
Feb. 21, 1957
A farewell party for G. W,
Montgomery, retiring
agricultural representative for
the county will be held in the
Seaforth District High School next
Friday evening, March 1, at 8:30
o'clock.
Douglas H. Miles, who will
come to the County as
agricultural representative on
April 1, has seen 10 years in the
ag, ; rep, service in Frontenac
County with headquarter8 in the,
city of Kingston.
Miss Marie Lee, daughter of
Mr. and Mrs, C, Lee, Clinton,
received her cap on February 8,
in a special ceremony at the
Ontario Hospital, KingSton, MiSS
Lee, who gained her secondary
education at Clinton District
Collegiate Institute, is taking a
three-year training course at the
hospital.
A Dutch auction which saw
great excitement over a chicken
at the February meeting of the
Clintonian Club finally resulted in
the bird being sold for $7.80 to the
highest bidder. The event
occurred at the home of Mrs.
Frank Layton, who was hostess to
the club.
25 YEARS AGO
FEB. 20, 1947
Glennie's Lunch comprising W.
Glen Cook and Frank L. Cook has
purchased from C. M. Shearing
that part of the McKay Block,
Ontario Street, now occupied as a
barber shop by L.J. Heard and as
a restaurant by Elite Cafe.
A feature of Monday evening's
hockey match between Stratford
Legion and Clinton Colts was the
reading of an address and
presentation to Clarence Neilans,
defence player, who was married
a few days previously to Miss
Ruth Sharpe.
F. McGregor has been elected
head of the McKillop Mutual Fire
Insurance Company.
G. Ralph Foster has beery
elected president of the Chamber
of Commerce.
40 YEARS AGO
FEB. 25, 1932
We had the greatest snowfall of
the winter here on Tuesday night
where about four inches fell. The
snow plows were out for the first
time this season,
Joseph Gandier, elder son of
Dr, J. C. and Mrs, Gandier, has
been operating his home built
glider since September. He has
reached the accredited altitude of
125 feet and although he has made
alone in a small hotel than a
month at a summer camp with
the troop. What this country
needs for marriages is fewer
family outings and more summit
meetings."
"You interest me strangely,"
I said. "What, precisely, are the
ingredients for this legal
assignation?"
"Very simple," said my wife.
"First, apartness. That includes
children and those convivial
friends who always want to
come along. Second, no
roughing it. The fishing tackle is
to be left at home with the
children. This is to be for the
repair of the female. That means
luxury. A room with a view, a
telephone for room service, a
little candlelight and wine.
Third, not a word about
budgets, mortgages,' new shoes
for the children, or any
discussions about the husband's
problems down at the office."
"Doesn't leave you with
much conversation," I suggested.
"A weekend for mom!" cried
my wife. "A 48-hour pass from
the treadmill! Why, it surprises
me that the resort hotels haven't
made it a package deal to fill up
in the off-season months. So you
just write it that way and every
woman will think you are a man
among men."
"I will, I will," I promised.
"And incidentally," said my
wife. "What about us?"
repeated flights, he has never had
even a minor accident. He never
had any instruction. Members of
the London Fixing Club are
considering taking Joe and his
creation to London airport for a
public demonstration.
Mr. W. N. Manning of Sherlock
Manning Co. is in the West at
present in .the interests of the
Company.
55 YEARS AGO
FEB. 22, 191'7
Principal Bouck and family are
moving this week to the brick
house on High St., lately occupied
by W. Walker.
C. Twitchell got in a couple of
cars of coal on Monday. That coal
was welcome in Clinton but what
are a couple of cars among so
many?
The Covenant Bible Class of
Willis church are having a skating
party this evening on the rink and
will afterwards be entertained at
the home of Mr. and Mrs, T.
Mackenzie.
The Epworth League drove up
The editor,
They say that one picture is
worth a thousand words, Well just
to Clinton to the home of Mr. and
Mrs. A.B. Stephenson, Tuesday
evening and conducted their
monthly literary meeting. After a
good program lunch was served
and a very pleasant social hour
was spent.
75 YEARS AGO
FEB. 26 1897
The Kincardine town council
has sold the hand fire engine to the
village of Hensall for $150. The
engine has clone grand work at
fires in Kincardine and if Hensall
keeps it in good order the machine
will never fail to respond when the
brakes are manned. We
understand that Conductor Quirk
was really the means of securing
the sale.
It is learned on good authority
that the successor to the late
Sheriff Mercer of Kent, will be
Mr. J,R, Gemmill, for many
years editor-in-chief of the
Chatham Banner. When it
becomes necessary to appoint a
successor to Sheriff Gibbons, of
Huron, one of the Liberal editors
should get the position.
Letters„...
to the .Editor
The editor,
1972 will mark the second
"Talbot Shivaree". To reach the
many former residents of St.
Thomas and Elgin County who
may now live in your area we
would be grateful if you could find
room-in your publication for this
letter.
From Monday, Aug. 28 to
Labour Day, Monday, Sept. 4, the
City of St. Thomas and the County
of Elgin will celebrate its Second
Annual "Talbot Shivaree".
This letter is meant as an open
invitation for all former
residents of the St. Thomas area
to return home for this great week
long celebration, Plan your
summer vacation now to include a
visit to your old stamping
grounds. Last year "Talbot
Shivaree" was a huge success
with everything from beer tents
and buffalo barbecue to street
dances and roving bands,
Literally thousands joined in the
week long festivities.
St. Thomas is waiting to
welcome you back. Be sure to
come home for "Talbot Shivaree,
72". To you who are not former
residents of the St. Thomas area,
coine along and join in the fun. We
can assure you it will be worth the
trip.
Yours sincerely,.
F. Exley
Home Coming Chairman
Talbot Shivaree '72
to add a few to the first thousand.
What can we do next? The road in
front of our.home is a hundred foot
circle, in the summer.
During the winter for the last
six years it sometimes has been
non-existent. At the beginning of
each winter's snowfall I have
asked if the plough could plough
the circle. In the first three years
we were here it was ploughed as a
circle. But each year since I have
been told all kinds of reasons why
it can't be done.
It seems that now the only way it
can be done is half around and
back. If after the first snowfall the
full circle was made it would be
there to follow through all snow
storms of the winter. I know that
nothing can be done for this year.
But please could we start next
year in a circle?
Thank you,
Ina Fisher.
CARE IN THE
HOME COURSES