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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times-Advocate, 1973-06-28, Page 105Section 1, Page 17 THE EXETER TIMES-ADVOCATE JUNE 28, 1973 PEE-WEES TAKE CROWN On April 15, 1973 the Exeter Legion Ladies Auxiliary Pee Wees won the Ontario Minor Hockey Association's "B" crown in Huntsville, The new champs are: back left, Danny Bell, Derek Regier, Paul Gaiser, Steve Skinner, Preston Dearing; centre, manager Bev Skinner, Perry Pooley, Randy Fisher, Dennis Preszcator, Darrell Preszcator, Ron Bilcke, Paul Van Gerwen, Dorothy Pfaff, of the LegiOn auxiliary and coach Lloyd Moore. Front, left, David Bogart, Paul Pooley, Ted Triebner, Brad Taylor, Jim Veri, Brian Mercer and Randy Parsons. Happy Birthday EXETER Banghart, Kelly Doig & Co. CHARTERED ACCOUNT ANTS E xeter 476 Main St., S. PHONE 235-0120 52 Years of Service . . and every one of them enjoyable THANKS TO YOU . . . OUR CUSTOMERS Alf Andrus TINSMITHING Exeter 235-1610 Top centre for Ont. horse trading JOTTINGS BY J.M.S. Nox. 11, 1954 Few men in Huron County have handled as many horses as has Mr. J. G. Dow, of Exeter. Mr. Dow was in the office one day and I suggested that I doubted if more horses had been shipped from any place, in Ontario than had gone out from Exeter and district. He agreed with me. No man is more familiar with the horse situation than is Mr. Dow. He ought to know because he has been buying and trading horses all his life. His first deal was made while he was still at- tending school. His father, the late Alex Dow, was a horseman before him and made different trips to Great Britain and brought back some of the finest entire horses to come into this community. Eighty Carloads to Winnipeg When the West was opening up some fifty years ago many carloads of horses were shipped from Exeter to Winnipeg. J.G. alone escorted some eighty carloads to Winnipeg where in most cases they went _kinder the hammer on the auction block. Last week Mr. Dow shipped eighteen horses to the Montreal market. Scarcely a week passes but a shipment is made to Montreal, Kitchener or some other point. Mr. Dow is possibly the best known horse buyer in Huron County but his activities are not confined to Huron as he makes frequent shipments from London and Stratford. Because of limited train facilities from Exeter much time is saved when shipped from London, Not only does Mr. Dow cover a large territory- himself but he has buyers throughout the district. Before the days of the motor truck the raising of fine heavy draught or general purpose horses was a profitable business and there was always a good demand for fine animals. I remember one morning in Toronto going down to the barns of the T. Eaton Company to watch the horses and rigs of that company starting out for the day's work. It was a sight to behold as there must have been hundreds of the finest teams in the parade. $800 Team Then there were the breweries who prided themselves in the excellence of their teams. One of the highest priced teams to go out of Exeter was a matched team of Belgians purchased by Mr. Dow from Mr. Chris Wein, of Stephen, for $800. That was in 1924. During the South African War from 1899 to 1902 Thomas Hand- ford bought up hundreds of horses for the government destined for the war area. During the First World War, Mr. Dow bought up many horses for overseas. Following the war he was sent to Buffalo to dispose of some 1200 horses that were rejects for military purposes. This took him about three months. One of the principal markets for good horses has been the lumber camps but these to-day are being largely mechanized although in the Quebec luth- bering villages horses still predominate. Gypsy Horse-Traders Few will remember the days when gypsy horse-traders would invade the district. They usually came in families with a string of horses and a caravan and it was a good horse trader who could outwit them in a deal. All the tricks imaginable were used to camouflage ring-bones, spavins and the heaves. The farmer who could put it over a gypsy was usually proud of the fact. Besides horse-trading fortune- telling was a profitable side-line for the woman gypsies and oc- casionally a wallet would disappear. In the not too distant past only the old and decrepit horses found their way to a glue factory, but to- day many a fine animal has been shipped either to the glue factory or for processing for pet stock, such as dog or mink food. Mr. Dow shipped 7 horses for this purpose last week. (J. G. Dow died February 7, 1960.) February 1876 No person shall be guilty of drunkenness, profane swearing, obscene, blasphemous or grossly insulting language in any street, hotel, store, vacant lot or open space.