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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times-Advocate, 1969-10-30, Page 4Bylaw needs common sense 10 WARS. AGO Rev. Brea de Vries, Exeter who -opposed a resolution. Tnesday urging retention of the Canadian Temperance Act, stated he could not support; the as it now stands. Simon Nagle son of Mr, Mrs. Gurt Nagle, Huron Street has won third prize in an essay contest condticted among grade 12 students in all London schools. Miss Alice Claypole, Mrs. Lee Learn, Miss Maxine Reeder and Mrs, Fred Dobbs attended the Ontario Hospital Association Convention held in the Royal York Hotel, Toronto, the forepart of this week. A masciuerade party was held by the Kinettes on Monday evening at the home of Mrs. Irvine Armstrong with husbands asuests. Public School Inspector John Goman climaxed official playing activities for Exeter Golf Club members last weekend when he downed Hal Hooke two and one to capture the Consolation Round Championship. 50 Y.EARS AGO The base of the Soldier's Memorial at the Town Hall was commenced last week and is now ready to receive the monument.. Many Exeter people went to London on Wednesday and Thursday to .tales part in the welcome of the .prince of Wales. Mr, E.W, Gladman has returned from A business trip to Winnipeg- The James Street Methodist Church has made the purchase of surplices for the members. of the choir, who will make their first appearances In them on the occasion of the church anniversary, Nov. 16. There can be no argument that some parents fail to set up proper restrictions for their offspring, but laws to govern these situations unfortunately encroach upon the freedoms of the responsible parents and their children — who are still the majority. The curtailment of vandalism at Grand Bend would appear to be better served by having greater surveillance by the police, rather than spending their time enforcing bylaws which in fact run the risk of provoking people, If some youngsters are causing problems, they can probably escape the police enforcing curfews as well as they can escape them while they are perpetrating vandalism. 25 YEARS AGO Mr. Roy Brock bought the vacant lot on Andrew Street opposite the Trivitt rectory from the Misses Huston. He plans to build a home. L/Tel. Stewart Mair and A.B. Gib Statton of the Exeter District are together on the Cruiser Uganda which was commissioned a couple of weeks ago in South Carolina. Miss Margaret Dougall received her diploma of Associate of the Western Ontario Conservatory of Music (AWCM) in piano in London on Thursday last. LAC Hugh Wilson of Calgary Wireless School is home on mid-term leave. The plan of Grand Bend council to enforce a curfew bylaw is indeed interesting — and provocative, Most communities in Ontario probably have such bylaws in their books, but haven't enforced them since the time they quit enforcing the parking regulations for horses and buggies. In that day and age, the appearance of a 14-year-old on the streets after 9:00 p.m. was probably an oddity. Today it is a common occurrence as youngsters are involved in a hundred and one activities that necessitate them being on the streets at this hour. Council's intentions are valid, If in fact teenagers are involved in cottage breakins and vandalism, a sure cure is to keep those kids off the street, H o w ever, such enforcement demands a tremendous amount of common sense. On one hand, a general enforcement is difficult and possibly absurd; while on the other hand, an enforcement for those who may be suspected of wrong doing creates a situation with discriminatory overtones. One of society's great problems at the present is the fact the law does not always appear to treat every individual equally. To enforce a curfew bylaw only for some people or in some instances would appear to face the risk of proving that point. fc * * The Grand Bend situation takes on a more questionable position because it is to be enforced only in the "off-season" for the resort. In effect, council members appear to be telling the kids they still want them to come and spend their money in the summer season and stay on the streets as long as they wish. However, when the snack bars and youth entertainment facilities are closed down, then they should stay home. That, gentlemen, is one of the causes for youth rebelling today. Education "in-committee" NOT A LOST ART Dunking for apples may no longer be a traditional part of Hallowe'en, but it's not a lost art. The editor recently got hooked up in a contest with a couple of experts and was badly outclassed. The final competition saw Ron Bogart and Doug Jamieson battling for the honors, with the former winning as this picture clearly depicts. Bob Fletcher, judge for the event looks on in amazement at the winning performance. It was indicated that the competitors learned their skills while attending the University of Guelph, where apple dunking was on the second year course. The editor's only claim to fame was the fact he got all the onlookers soaked when he shook the water from his facial foliage. —Photo by Batten Hallowe'en an endurance test Get tough. Dear Sir: The recent incident in Seaforth involving the Apocalyse Motorcycle Club and local OPP brings to mind a similar incident in Grand Bend this past summer. In Grand Bend, • as in Seaforth, the OPP went to great lengths to avoid any kind of confrontation with the motorcycle gang, I am sure many of us who were in Grand Bend that weekend will never forget how disgusted we were as we watched the OPP fraternize with the Lobos, admire their motorcyclists and then seem to disappear while the Lobos sped up and down the main street obviously breaking the speed limit. In my opinion either the police start cracking a few skulls or step back and let private citizens who are not afraid of these so called "tough punks" take the law into their own hands. 15 YEARS AGO Installation of pipes for the artificial ice plant in Hensall Arena will begin this week board chairman Harvey Keys announced. Construction of a supermarket under way at the south end of town is expected to be completed early in December. The 40 x 80 market is affiliated with the Red and White chain. Mayor W.G. Cochrane and at least three councillors will resign from municipal office. Reeve R.E. Pooley announced he would run for mayor and Deputy-Reeve William McKenzie will seek the reeveship. The new $500,000 addition to Huron County Home will be officially opened Sunday by Hon, W.A. Goodfellow, Ontario Minister of Public Welfare. Miss Kathryn Hunter, graduate of South Huron District High School, now a student at London Teachers' College received a bursary of $250 from the London Municipal Chapter of the I.O.D.E. Vic Fulcher Exeter Bad taste Dear Sir: With reference to the small but inexplicit article in Saturday's London Free Press, re: the dropped narcotics charge, I wish to state it left me with a bad taste. I know our Police Force works hard on the cases which rise under their jurisdiction and the job must be frustrating trying to bring in positive evidence. However we of the public must remember that under our democratic laws of justice a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty by a court of law, and not the press. I suggest we all get behind our Police Force and encourage them when the going gets tough and all their work is in vain. Let's get out to court ourselves and listen to the cases as they are presented and make our objections and inquiries known to the proper channels instead of carrying on the job of judge and jury on the street without effect. Sincerely, Molly Burke Since the advent of the county school board system, ratepayers all over Ontario have complained of a lack of communication between the new boards and the people who foot the education bill. We have even heard rumblings that communications are almost non-existent between the local board of education and the teachers in Huron County,. In fact, there are indications that if the local newspapers didn't carry fairly comprehensive reports of school board meetings, there would be absolutely no way that taxpayers arid teachers would have an inkling of how Huron County education dollars are being spent. There are also indications that certain members of the board of education for Huron County would be completely undisturbed if there was little 'leakage' of information from meetings. One of the strongest indications comes in the form of closed-door sessions to which no one is invited. Termed "in-committee meetings", the press is excluded until all the whys and wherefors of the decision have been aired in complete secrecy. Apparently the Huron Board is not the only body guilty of this practice. The Perth County Board of Education was taken to task editorially in the Stratford Beacon-Herald Monday, October 14. Here, in part, is that editorial: "The most prevalent questions about education today begin with the word "Why" — does education cost so much?" and "Why does one area of the county have facilities that others do not have?" and "Why is one business procedure approved in preference to another?" "The real answers to questions like these are not simple. Often, they can be answered only by knowing all the questions, the politics and the philosophies involved. Unfortunately for the public, the answers are made evident only at committee meetings, which are closed to the public, rather than at regular board meetings, which are public. "No one expected the board to be able to perform all its duties at public meetings, especially during its first stages of organization. But the public, and many board members, too, expected that private meetings would become fewer and fewer as the board progressed. "Regrettably, the board has retreated more and more behind closed doors to thrash out its problems. "The closed-door practice has led to misinterpretation on several occasions. Speculation, theorizing, and rumor, grow abundantly in the fertile soil of incomplete information. The objective of involving the public is slowly passing out of sight. "The Stratford board of education, in its last few years of operation, adopted a very liberal attitude toward public disclosure. The press was allowed to attend committee meetings and report back to the public, and the public, in turn, received the information it needed to -understand the operation of the board. We are confident that Stratford trustees were pleased with the system. "The new county board of education, administering to the welfare of 15,000 children in the county, has a much wider range of responsibility to keep the people informed. For this reason, the press must be allowed to report the "background of the news" arising at committee meetings, not just the cut-and-dried decisions announced at the regular board meetings." Never enough time "Have you one that only tells your fortune?" Friday night, door bells in the area will start ringing as ghosts and goblins invade the streets to load up with their usual bountiful haul of goodies. For some of the youngsters it is an endurance test to see how many homes they can visit and how much they can carry away in their shopping bags. For many, it's obviously nothing but a "commercial' venture and we suspect they don't have too much fun during the proceedings, or after, when they sit down to gobble up their wares. Our first Hallowe'en was marked in the staid hamlet of Winchelsea and while we enjoyed the treats handed out, the commercial aspect wasn't quite as pronounced as we now see it. There was only a handful of houses to visit, and most of the kids congregated at one spot and then started out en masse to visit the homes. The homeowners invited the throng of costumed visitors into their homes and they enjoyed the night as much as the young ones as they set about trying to guess the identity of the faces behind the various masks. It was a happy moment indeed when someone had to admit they couldn't guess a couple of the witches or hobos and the latter had to unmask. The bowl of popcorn balls, apples and candies were then passed out and the group bid an unhurried adieu before moving on to the next home for similar proceedings. It was a night of fun for everyone, and especially the older residents of the community who enjoyed the visits of the youngsters. We suspect many of the older people still enjoy having the youngsters call on them for Hallowe'en treats, but the night would be made much more enjoyable if the spooky characters would take time to identify themselves before racing out the door to garner up some more treats. A thank you wouldn't hurt either. Perhaps if your youngsters are heading out to mark the occasion this year you could impress upon them the added joy they could bring to some of the senior citizens by identifying themselves and not merely arriving at the door with their greedy hands out. Help them take the "co ni mercialism" out of Hallowe'en, It will help cut down on your dentist bill as well. * With winter waiting in the wings (not so patiently at times) the following bit of information may be of interest to some people who will face the agony ridiculous plan as 'banning automobiles. Obviously, even though it may be written with tongue-in-cheek, a letter writer should not stoop to this form of denounciation. To drag the resort merchants into the fray serves no purpose either. In most newspapers the last two paragraphs would have been deleted in a letters column. The young man probably has a valuable opinion on the subject, but unfortunately has not communicated. If he feels the decision is wrong, surely he can create a dialogue to air his opinions and give reasons why he feels council's decision is wrong and in fact a detriment to freedom and democracy. He obviously fell into the trap indicated by the church speaker. Too often the "opposing sides" fail to communicate in a fashion conducive to solving a problem. Name-calling solves nothing — except to separate the two sides to an even greater degree. We hope the young man takes this constructive criticism kindly and will again extend his opinions in a letter to the editor. We urge him to communicate by stating his opinion and reasons — and not stoop to name-calling or unfounded insinuations. Had his reasons for opposition been stated on the Grand Bend issue, the men who Made the decision may have read them with interest and even recogsideted their decision, However, the type of letter he submitted would only anger them and make them even more adamant to stick to their original decision. That is often the result of poor communication, "Yesterday our karate lesson taught us how to break a board with our bare hand . ." symbol tattooed on your forehead. I believe that a design incorporating a hammer and sickle is under consideration. Rumour also has it that Grand Bend merchants, always quick to spot a developing market, will be soon stocking their shelves with Das Kapital. Yours democratically, A. Canadian We decided not to ,print the letter in the regular letters column due to two or three reasons. First of all, the young man advised that he wished his name withheld from print. Many times we print letters without signatures. We have to have the letter signed, but a pen name can be used if the writer wishes. We feel there are many people with valuable opinions who may have legitimate reasons for not having their names published. As long as the letter is worthwhile and follows the rules governing the printed word, there can be exceptions made. However, in this particular case we felt that any person who insinuated that others were acting similar to Communists and who wished to have himself recognized as "democratically, Canadian" should not be able to make such charges without those charged knowing his identity. That's a democratic privilege, surely. Secondly, we become very annoyed at times with those who quickly hang the handle of Communists on those with whom they disagree. Obviously, no matter what anyone may think of the Grand Bend council, or their decisions, they do not deserve such condemnation. The letter borders on slander, although a council as a body can not be slandered. The young man delved further into absurdity when he suggested cars would be banned from the village unless the driver had a special tattoo. He may not agree with their decision (we don't), but he Serves no purpose by suggesting that they are considering such a of having battery problems this winter. There is always danger that an automotive battery may explode when using booster cables if the hookup is not made correctly. Hydrogen is emitted through the vents in the cell caps and can be set off by any electric spark. The result can be a powerful explosion. For safety, remove the cell caps from both batteries, then attach the booster cables to the live battery. Next connect the appropriate cable to the positive post of the dead battery. Then, connect the second cable to a good ground spot such as the engine block rather than to the negative battery post, so that any spark that does occur will not be near the battery. A frozen battery can also be as dangerous as a bomb. When ice prevents gases from escaping, a dangerous explosive mixture results and needs only a touch of outside electrical current to burst, blasting off frozen chunks of battery solution that carry enough acid to burn skin and clothing. Your frozen battery should be thawed out in a warm place before attempting to get your car going by pushing or towing it, or using a jumper cable from another battery. The preceding was news to yours truly and we thought it may be in the same category for some readers. Who knows, we may have saved your life. Rewards are accepted. Sunday morning we heard a speaker at church point out that one of the greatest problems involved with solving the drug problem is the fact young people are not communicating with their parents, and vice versa. The point was brought home later in the afternoon when a young university student arrived at our door with a letter he wished published in this week's issue. The subject was the decision by Grand Bend council to enforce a curfew bylaw and the letter read as follows: Times Established 103 Advocate Established 1881 Amalgamated 1924 eteferVinestittuorale SERVING CANADA'S BEST FARMLAND C.W.N.A., O.W.N.A., CLASS 'A' and ABC Publishers: J. M. Southcott, R. M. Southcott Editor Bill Batten Advertising Manager Phone 235-1331 Published Each Thursday Morning at Exeter, Ontario Second Class Mail Registration NuMber 0306 Paid in Advance Circulation, September 30, 1968, 4,5/0 SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Caned. 56.00 Per Year; USA OA one this year. But I couldn't get at the old one because of all those oak limbs piled against it. Pretty frustrating. Then there was the hedge. I was going to tear it out and plant a new one. The old one was getting rotten in spots. It's still there. I was going to play a lot of golf and get fit. I even asked my wife into playing, and paid her fees. I played about eight times and got fit all right. I now fit size 33 pants instead of 31. But my wife had a great season. She shot her first game last week: Five holes, at $16 a hole. And the club is closed now. With such an active, strenuous summer behind me, it was good to get back to the Orderly job of teaching, where you have to do things, whether you feel like it or not. And ever since, I've been as owly as a wolf with a toothache, because we have a new system. There's nothing wrong with the new System except that, like every other new system, it's lousy, compared to the old one, Which was also lousy, As I prophesied a year ago, costs have escalated in direct proportion to the increase in red tape and inefficiency, It's something like the Book of Kings. Paperwork begat more Paperwork, Rules begat Regulations at an alarming rate, and Committees begat Committees like so many Well, Thanksgiving has come and went, and here we are heading into dismal. November, and I'm farther behind with everything than I was last June. On the second day of July, I began cleaning up the basement. And I can prove it. There's still a sordid little heap of dust, detergent and other basement garbage sitting there, proof positive that I got one corner swept out. It's in a direct line with the washer, so that you have to walk around it every tittle. This creates Some interesting comments. My major project of the summer was to have been putting a new top on a little back porch, under which we put our garbage cans, There's an ingenious lid that opens, made of two-by-fours. One hinge was going and a couple of the timbers were loose. With winter coming on, both hinges are broken right off, and when you want to put something in the garbage cans, youdon't lift the lid, You lift eight two-by.fourS, singly, pile them up, put the junk in, then replace theta. It takes only about five minutes, And every time you go through the operation, it's raining. Another plan was to rent a chain saw and cut Up all the huge oak limbs piled along the fence, for use in the fireplace. They're Still there. Speaking of fences, there was to be a new ' "" ; Dear Sir; I hear that the independent and progressive Grand Bend council is going to enforce a bylaw that will keep the youth off the streets after curfew hours because of recent break-ins. The council should be loudly praised. In this age of great bloodshed and injustice We need such laws if our communities and our country are to develop sound and incorrupt leaders of the future, I Only hope that this tremendous example of democracy at work will serve as an example for even bigger and better laws to strengthen and nourish our great Canada. Rumour has it that, there were a few car accidents in Grand Bend this year, council is considering the banning of automobiles in the JUST VILL.AGE ,after December the first; unless you have a special malicious perversity. And the blasted oaks wait until everything else is raked and the snow is falling, before they condescend to contribute their confetti. Oh well, life is the only one we have, But I can tell you one thing. There'll be no more $54.00 phone bills for one month of wi fe-and-daughter talks about nothing. rabbits. (There goes my chance of ever getting anywhere in the profession). Don't worry, I can stand systems. I wasn't in the air force for four years without learning how to beat them. You don't defy them, you just chew away from within, like a termite, until they collapse. Thanksgiving I looked forward to a chance to get caught up on everything, get out in the open and relax, see the colors of fall, and forget about the system (after all, just a lot of honest men trying to do a good job. No women, Strangely enough). So my daughter came home from first month of university: Bewildered, full of hang-ups about courses, and desperately lonely. For the past two years, my most frequent comment to her was, "Now, you be in at a reasonable hour." This time, we couldn't get her out of the hOuse. On the Saturday I drove her downtown and said, "Get out of the Car and go and See somebody." She was home in an hour, And now it's the ruddy leaves no pun intended, I have ten maples, three elms, one butternut and two vasty oaks. The maples come down like a shower of dandruff, Elms and butternut trickle clown with