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The Exeter Times-Advocate, 1974-05-16, Page 4...... • • • . • ...... • • .. . . .. ...... .• Exetef council have a major decision facing them: whether or not to acquire the old post office building for municipal of- fices. A secondary question arises if the decision is in the affirmative, and that is whether, or not to lease the building or purchase it outright. Evengiven the general consensus of opi- nion now held by council that the existing town hall is beyond saving, the acquisition of the post office building does not automatically follow. Before the decision can be reached, a detailed study of the situation will be re- quired, and unfortunately council have ap- parently not followed through on an earlier suggestion to have this study completed in time to give ample consideration to the matter. That study, to our knowledge, has not been tabled and so council is still at a loss to know how practical the post office building will be in filling their needs, They should not fall into the trap of some who make purchases without under- taking exhaustive consideration and find that the purchase was not as practical as it may have seemed. Some suggestions have already arisen at the council table that the building is not large enough to satisfy the total need and these must be answered, particularly if purchase is considered, It is a major decision, requiring major consideration. Let's hear alternatives A federal election, which has been close to reality on several occasions in the past two years, is now a reality. While the minority government of Prime Minister Trudeau has been attacked at various times by the two main opposition parties, it wasn't until Wednesday evening that the Conservatives and NDP finally joined forces to sink the Liberals. Prime Minister Trudeau tells us it is an election nobody wants. That's not absolute- ly true, of course, because obviously the Conservatives and NDP are convinced that the time is ripe to ask the electors of this nation to support them. Within the next seven weeks, the politicians will be fanning out across the Dominion wooing the voters. The PCs and NDP will primarily be saying that the Liberals have failed to control inflation and that it is now time that Canadians gave someone else an opportunity to undertake that task. Having assumed the responsibility of forcing the election, it is to be hoped that the other two parties will assume the further responsibility of telling Canadian voters exactly how they plan to deal with in- flation and any of the other problems they blame on the Liberals. To merely continue telling us that the Liberals have failed is not enough. Voters must expect the PCs and NDP to outline how they will undertake the task and not continue chastisingthegovernmentand poin.. ting out its failure. Beating inflation may have serious con- sequences for many people in this nation and they should be advised of the plans of all parties so they can support the one which meets their approval. The opposition parties have indicated that alternatives are required. Let's hear explicitly what those alternatives may be, rather than continually dwelling on the need for alternatives. On the VIP party circuit MatattMAMMEMARMANNi•MiaME.C.TigICESANOMM„CEMIMUNNIRWANC4PMeir' Times EsfabliVhed 1873 Advocate Established 1881 Amalgamated 1924 SERVING CANADA'S BEST FARMLAND C.W.N.A., 0,W.N,A„ CLASS 'A' and ABC Editor — Bill Batten — Advertising Manager Assistant Editor — Ross. Haugh Published Each Thursday Morning at ekefer, Ontario Second Class Mail Registration Number 0386 Paid in Advance Circulation, March 31, 1972, 5,037 .SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Conodo $0.00 Per Year; USA $1 1.06 sssr-s-s-ss.. , s ses. Phone 235.1331 :sis.!S•sisiss . "His last words n' re I'm dying for a eigaretieP " Chugging along in an iron horse Call To Arrange A Tour Through Our Display Model Near Grand Bend EMBASSY HOMES.' Peidor Dimourdy Marlufacturdd Homes PAUL T, TURNBULL RR 1, Grand Bend Phone 238-2805 Wade NOM ITO IF NO ANSWER CALL 2382378 MODULAR HOMES Complete Financing Available 95% M1CC INSURED MORTGAGES As Little As 5% Down Payment Building lots available near the corner of highway 21 and 83 and south of Lucan on Highway 4 ' A major decision Greening of the woods Cross my heart, Ifsven' e'Write another column about my trip, to 'Germany. After this one. But I may never be treated as a distinguished visitor again, so you'll just have to bear with me. Highlight of the trip (for my kid brother), was Lunch. With The General. He organized it, and as the time approached, there was so much excitement about it that I began to get the feeling I was going to have lunch with God. Unacquainted as I am with the military hierarchy, and unim- pressed as I am with rank, I expect I didn't show the proper awe, but it was impressed on me from all sides that it was a signal honour. I don't know what kind of a line my +brother shot about me, but it must have been a good one. It seems that The General just doesn't normally invite small- town columnists to lunch or anything else. It wasn't much of a lunch, as The General is a spartan type, one of those infuriating people who get up and jog in the mor- ning, are on the job at 8 a.m., work like fury and have no bad habits. There was a gaggle of American one and two-star generals present, and two other Canadians, Colonel Smiley and Brig, Gen. "Joey" Romanow, a westerner. THE General, David C. Jones, has four stars, about as many as they hand out, and is Com- mander-in-Chief, U.S. Air Force Europe, and Commander, 4th Allied Tactical Air Force. A real wheel. He greeted me pleasantly, sat me on his right, and after some desultory luncheon talk, gave me a lucid exposition of the military picture, and kept waiting for me to ask intelligent, penetrating questions. I didn't have any. s4 He threw my brother a com- pliment, telling me the kid was his right-hand-man when it came to liaison with the French. My brother beamed, I threw a little cold water on him by reminding him that he wasn't always so smart. I used to borrow half his paper route money from him every Saturday night, and still owe him $7.45. He countered with a reminder that he was keeping track, and at compound interest, it was now in the neighbourhood of $40,000. Oh, the gay banter when we big wheels get together for lunch! Anyway, the general made me feel safer about the Warsaw Pact people on the other side of the Iron Curtain. They have more of everything, should hostilities break out, but "we" have better hardware for both defence and attack. More fun than the lunch with the general was a visit I paid to the Canadian school at Ramstein. Only seventy kids and seven teachers, an ideal educational situation. The kids have it lucky and know it. So do the teachers. Here I was at home. Teased the kids about not having long hair, scared them about the big sausage-factory schools they were going back to, signed autographs on copies of my column they had, and went for a ride in a simulated space-ship with four little guys. A bright, lively group of youngsters, who are seeing a lot of Europe, but who all signified they'd be glad to get home to Canada. Teachers young and friendly, wishing they could stay on an extra year, Principal Warren Haacke of Regina said it's a great experience, Bright young English teacher Bryce Tanner, a Kin- cardine boy, reads my column in the hometown paper, and • s reproduces some of them for the students. One more party to go to, an all- Canadian bash. It was formal dress for officers. I had none, and wanted to tag along in my blazer and flannels but the kid brother is a man for protocol, and would have none of it. He dug through his duds and the result was something to see. Can you picture your faithful correspondent in a pink evening shirt, with ruffles down the front, a huge black velvet bow tie, a black evening jacket big enough for two of him, black evening trousers cutting him in two (my brother is shorter) held up by a pair of red skiing braces? My wife was horrified when I told her, but I looked rather dashing. Off in the morning, groggy with fatigue, for the mad dash home. Ramstein to Lahr by autobahn. Lahr to Gatwick by plane. Gatwick to Ottawa, Ottawa to Trenton. First casualty ,of trip. They'd taken off my bag at Ottawa. Slept at officers mess, borrowed razor in morning, had breakfast with R. C. Padre, most sensible chap I'd met in five days. Bag had arrived. Bummed ride to city with Bill Padden, Major, and his dog. Everything was running down, including yours truly. From Lunch With The General to sharing an old station wagon with a dachshund, Long, dreary bus ride. Connecting bus late,. Snowing , Finally home, feeling like a skeleton. And I knew the V.I.P. was back to his usual Very Unimportant Person status, when my wife, after bussing me heartily, proclaimed, "Bill, I've had a terrible time with those cats. "Cut", as we say in the movies. Saturday couldn't come soon enough for a couple of the younger members of the Batten family as we had managed to secure tickets for a "choo choo" train ride from London to Stratford, Now, that trip may not be enough to set your heart poun- ding under normal cir- cumstances, but the trip we were to embark upon was with a real live "choo choo", a steam engine, one of those relics of the past made famous in recent weeks by the CBC in "The National Dream". The CNR had engine 6060 polished up for the special train, and along with about 500 other people, we raced to get our first glimpse of the iron monster. While family groups made up a large segment of the entourage, there were numerous "buffs" on hand and their delight in viewing the engine was something to behold. Most had their tape ;recorders and they paced back and forth beside ,thesengineirecording ..for postesitysanchsissing isound that once. was familiar aS:the engines 4 maaet'heir way across the rails of Canada. + + + When we reached St. Marys, our four co-passengers were all agog as they had been forewarned by their grand-' mother of the large trestle bridge we would be crossing in her home town. "Grandma Walked across that bridge," one of our four remarked in awe as we looked down into the gaping canyon , below and of course there was the immediate plea that we return Some day„so they too could test their intesti'na'l fortitude to see if it could stand such daredevil antics. At Stratford, the engine was unhooked and shunted on to another_ line so it could pull up along side a couple of members of the Stratford fire department who were on hand with hoses connected to a nearby hydrant to refill the enormous boilers get us back to London. Cameras and tape recorders were out in full force again, and while the scene was unlike those of earlier days when steam locomotives pulled up under the huge gravity tanks along the lines, the interest was still evident. Soon we were hooked up again and on our return to London, again cheered at most crossings by those who had waited patiently for our return. This time, we had switched from the lead car to the back, and while we could not hear the sounds of the engine which had marked our trip to Stratford, we were able to see the many in- cidents which marked our return. At Stratford and St. Marys, youngsters scrambled down to the tracks we had just traversed to pick up the pennies they had left, on our path for our train to squash into souvenirs that will by now be among the prize possessions of boys who dream of being the men in the striped coveralls who drive the mam- moth locomotives. • take up more space in the boiler than is available. This creates a high pressure in the boiler, and, when the Engineer pulls the throttle, this steam pressure flows into the cylinders. Here, it presses on the pistons which are linked to rods, which, in turn, are linked to the driving wheels. This turns the wheels and away we go! I have a large appetite. My • tender holds the supplies of oil and water that I need to keep going. On today's trip, I will need about 11,000 gallons of water. You would have to run your garden hose for almost a week to use such a large amount. I will also require 5,000 gallons of oil or enough fuel to heat an average :house for a year. I'm heavy too; with my tender, I weigh 340 tons — as much as 225 automobiles. Before the diesels took my job, I pulled passenger trains down east in Nova Scotia, across the Prairies to Edmonton; and between Toronto and Montreal. I could run every bit as fast as the diesels too. Several times I recall going 100 miles an hour! I'm not as spry now as I used to be, so today we'll run a little more slowly, And that's my story, girls and boys. Sometime, in years to come, when I've been retired and put on display somewhere, perhaps you'll bring your children to see me and tell them of the day I pulled your train. 15 Years Ago Installation of new fluorescent lighting for Main Street, Grand Bend, was approved• by the Council and the PUC was in- structed to install 23 fluorescent fixtures on Grand Bend Main Street to replace the mercury vapor lights. Thirty two years to the day after he started business, ver- teran barber Elmore Harness, town, relinquished the clippers of his shop on Main Street. His business has been taken over by Don McCurdy. Cowan's Lunch building Sarepta, will be offered for sale at a public auction Wednesday May 27 by the Ontario Depart- ment of Highways. Hurondale Dairy, Hensall was practically destroyed by the tornado which swept the district Monday morning, Over 150 men of the community held a bee to clean up the debris .and Ron Mock, owner of the dairy will rebuild immediately. 10 Years Ago Famous US singing cowboy, Bob Atcher, recently entertained a capacity crowd of bean growers in the Exeter Legion Hall. In addition to listening to Atcher, growers were given an illustrated presentation on weed control materials by Chipman Chemicals Limited. OPP Constable George Mit- chell, who recently passed his tests for corporal rank, is being transferred this weekend to the Kitchener detachment. Ross, Dobson was acclaimed president of the Exeter Kinsmen for the coming term at their regular meeting, At the same time, the members honored their faithful treasurer for the past years, Harry Keiswetter; Who has been transferred to Sudbury. EXeter'a swim pool committee received authorization to com- mence'construction this Week, A source of joy, these May days, is to watch the trees breaking into leaf and blossom. We perceive the grandeur of God more intrinsically as our senses are sharpened to the beauty of the greening of the woods. 'My tree', now dressed in pale green in the back yard causes happiness and inspiration to swell within me. Since I planted it as a young and tender sapling 20 years ago it has grown to a strong vigorous willow. We've watched its steady cycle of life over the years as it's put out its essential rootage and thrust its way skyward, We've been amazed as its vitality and resiliency as it's weathered the winter storms and twice been broken down with ice. It's been a comfort to us always, its leaves protecting us from summer heat by day and shushing us to sleep at night as it softly sweeps the roof with its outermost branches. A happy, fun-ridden tree, it still holds the remnants of a boy's loft built in its strong protective limbs. From that position he and his friends took many an exciting excursion, fending off imaginary attackers, or sometimes just crawling to this hideaway to read a good book, munch an apple and dream a little. What a poor place the world would be without trees. Pity the insensitive person who looks and sees 'only a green thing that stands in the way' as the poet Blake laments. For a thoughtful soul, looking at trees offers an opportunity to gain new insights regarding the ways of God with man, It's not By E LMOR E BOOMER Counsellor for ' Information South Huron For appointment phone: 235-2715 or 235-2474 Actually, it was on business. We had asked one of the nurses to visit a lady in the community and I was making an enquiry about her findings. But as I stepped into the office area of the Huron County Health Unit, Exeter of- fice, there were people and more people! Miss Cunningham emerged from the general roar of many conversations, to say, "Oh yes, Mrs.- West does wish to see you about that call." She was soon back with the words, "Mrs. West is busy for a minute." Of course, minutes can be rather long in such situations and it was just such a long minute that I needed. "What's happening here today, anyway? Is this one of your many clinics?" "Yes, indeed, that's so," she informed me, "It's our Adult Clinic." She went on to speak of counselling with the people about diets, budgets, medications, taking blood pressure, and helping with foot care problems. The people of Exeter certainly attend in numbers. In talking with Mrs. West and Miss Cunnigham who are the nurses in the Exeter office, they spoke of a number of such clinics in the community. There are efforts put forth for pre-school children, soon-to-be mothers, children starting school, as well as the adults. And of course, there are school programs. The ladies seem to have a constant round of duties. "But this isn't all," they hasten to add. There is a part that can so easily be forgotten. Home visiting! "It's the 'intangible' part of our program.People know about the clinics and other efforts but home visiting - that's another matter." The nurses are out whenever they can be, calling where needed. Miss Cunningham is responsible for Usborne and Exeter While Mrs. West looks much wonder that trees are alluded to so many times in the Bible. In Proverbs we read, 'Wisdom is a tree of life to those who eat her fruit; happy is the man who keeps on eating it,' J But probably one of the loveliest writings about arboreal creations is\fotind in Jeremiah 17. The Lord says; Cursed is the man who puts his trust in mortal man and turns his heart away from God. He is like a stunted shrub in the desert, with no hope for the.future; he lives on the salt-encrusted plains in the barren wilderness. Good times pass him by forever,. 'But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and has made the Lord his hope and confidence. He is like a tree planted along a riverbank with its roots reaching deep into the water . . . a tree not bothered by the heat nor worried by long months of drought. Its leaves stay green and it goes right on producing all its luscious fruit.' Jesus went further and stated that a good tree did not produce bad fruits and that we, like trees, would be recognized by the fruits we produce. 'You can't gather grapes from a thorn bush or figs from a thistle tree', he said. Yes, there is much for us to ponder as we look at a tree. Sd; as we gaze at their springtime splendour,. whether they be giant oaks, straight spruces or graceful maples, may our winter-weary hearts be moved to deeper meditation .And, as the trees lift their faces in adoration may we too lift ours to praiSe our almighty Creator. after Hay and Stephen Town- ships. Our next question is - Who do you call on?r,Arid thtsaikfligslhs- pressive. Newt mothers -rare helped with' feeding ancUthild care problems. Their questions about childhood diseases are answered. When there are epidemics of -.certain diseases, counsel is provided. The aim is to prevent any spreading of such sickness, There is support for those just out of hospital and counselling with those who have financial difficulties. Referrals come from hospitals both general, and mental and various other agencies in the community. Noteworthy is the follow-up in the home, of problems found in the schools. There is the Home Care Program also. This is a govern- ment sponsored effort. People who can be cared for in the home are discharged early from hospital. Nursing• care, home making services, physiotherapy are arranged for and provided by the staff. Most of us are not aware of the scope of services provided by the Public Health Nurses. In this work, results come slowly. No dramatic, world-shaking developments here. Months pass by without perceptible change. No doubt there are occasions of real frustration, It is hard to help people, at times at least. Satisfaction for our nurses arise out of the smallest changes. Oh, here's Mrs. West now. "Yes;" she informs us, "I called this morning on Mrs. So and So, and she seemed rather agitated, Could you see her." And matters are arranged. In due course there'll be a written report. Such inter-agency co-operation as welt as direct Service is the hall-mark of the Huron County Health Unit staff. Engine 6060 is the last'steam For the edification of the young locomotive to run regularly in• passengers on board, Engine 6060 Canada as it is us for of provided each with its biography this nature on many' ed outings occasions. and we reprint part of it here for At one tithe, the.CNnotes, there those who may be interested: were about 6,000 such How do I work? I'm very locomotives-in use in this nation. simple really, — not nearly as complicated as those diesels, A After the pictures had been very hot fire in my firebox heats taken, everyone climbed aboard the water in my boiler to make as the haunting steam whistle steam. advised that the trip was about to This steam tries commence. ' The outing was not, we quickly determined, of interest only to those on board the special 13 cars. *People in the suburbs of. London raced to their back yard fences to catch a glimpse of the,, steam locomotive and at prac- tically every crossing all the way to Stratford, people had parked to get a vantage point to see a sight that is now rare. Farmers stopped their tractors to watch us chug past their fields while spectators along the route set up their movie cameras to record the event. It became quickly evident that trains still hold a fascination for people and by some strange manner, encourages them to wave frantically. We spotted one elderly gen- tleman leaning on his hoe in his garden who started to wave as soon as the engine approached his vantage point and he was still waving as he became a speck in the distance. - Of course, the youngsters on board returned the waves with enthusiasm, and the engineer tooted his whistle beyond the call of duty at every crossing to give the tape recorders on hand a real work-out. 50 Years Ago Miss Eva Carling, daughter of the late Thomas Carling, has been appointed superintendent of St. Luke's Hospital, New York, 'Well I'll be bobbed," is what most of the young ladies are saying these days. Mr. Borden Cunningham, who has been attending Huron College, London, is home for the holidays. Miss Helen Wethey sang a very pleasant solo in Trivitt Memorial Church, Sunday evening. A cablegram was received Tuesday morning from Mr. Alonzo Hodgins of Crediton to the effect that SS Gracia, on board of which were Messrs. W. H. Dearing, Harry Sweet and himself had landed safely in Liverpool. Mr. & Mrs. William Pfaff are moving to town this week from Stephen into the house recently vacated by Dr. Atkinson. 25 Years Ago The Exeter ball team suffered a set-back when Charles Seymour the catcher fractured a bone in the ankle while sliding into second base during an exhibition game. Mr. H. T. RoWe last week pulled from his garden a stock of barley that had already started to head out. The stock was 'a seed that had lain in the ground all winter. It showed remarkable growth for so early in the season. During the weekend two missionaries of the West China field of the United Church visited the' district, Mrs. Kenneth Wu spoke at Kippen YPU Anniver- sary and at Greeriway in the afternoon and Crediton in the evening. 1VIr, and Mrs, Russell Snell have every reason to believe that Friday the 13th is a lucky, day, On Friday May 13, a little daughter Elizabeth Ann, came to brighten their home, while Friday July. 18, 1945 was the birthday of their only son john, to expand, or The intangible:. service