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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times-Advocate, 1976-04-01, Page 4one i w rt ormem t. S. No grave robbirig Count,ArfoleMo emote cAn'T I 6£r A OVINEY equoirefl? You've slipped For all those starry-eyed souls who say of women — "you've come a long way baby;" here are the facts. Montreal economist Dian Cohen finds from the Women's Bureau that women workers are slipping — in the amount of pay they take home, as compared with men. Although more women than ever are in the labor force, one out of every three women are bearing more of the over-all burden of unemployment than in the past, In the clerical field where more than a million women work, men earn 57 per cent more than women, averaging $7,769 yearly to a woman's $4,962. The salary difference for men here is INCREASING, In the service sector men made 157 per cent more than women in 1972. Back in 1967 men service workers earned only 121 per cent more than women. Again the gap is INCREASING for men. In the sales field things are going from "Just don't let it happen again, Bud — by the way, how are you on fixing parking tickets?" rotten to worse, In 1967 salesmen averaged $6,096 — women $2,292. Six years later in 1972 salesmen were up to $9,567 while sales women made a whopping $3,771. But the gap is narrowing in favor of women in the professions. In 1967 male professionals earned 87 per cent more than women. By 1972 they earned only 72 per cent more than women professionals. In the clerical field where 97 per cent of all secretaries and stenographers are women — male secretaries earn between $2,300 and $12,000 more than women. Even babysitting is not sacred. The average 60-year-old male full-time sitter made $5,536 yearly — compared to the woman sitter's $2,099! When men are outstripping women at such traditional work as looking after the baby all that can be said for the women of Canada is "you've slipped a long way baby," Subdivision is it necessary? things are passed away .. ." 2 Cor, 5:17. So, it follows, then, that we should get rid of /the old defeats and weaknesses, What a wonderful health-giving thing it would be for mind and spirit if we were to bury all those old fears, old prejudices, old notions, old bad ways. And having buried them, leave them to rest in peace, undisturbed. Life is too short and too precious for digging up old graves. With God's help we can bury forever the grievances, blunders and disappointments of the past, Because the present is so thrillingly interesting and the future is just as glorious as we want to make it, we are foolish to waste our thoughts on what should be dead and buried. So, be glad you're alive today. "Forgetting those things which are behind" reach out to that which is before. Life will be ever so much better if you do. Let's say that you have about 15 acres of land out in the country somewhere. It is nice, wooded land that, although removed from uban infringment, is still close to a minor economic center-and one of Canada's top 20 cities to make it less like Inuvik and more like an escapist's haven. There is am- ple drainage, easy access, a nice area for the compulsory compensation park and facilities for the easy provision of services, You own this 15 acres of land and you want to maximize your profit on the land. You also know that the area is slated for agricultural use under the county plan, so the most logical thing to do with this wood- ed land, which is essentially unused, is create a subdivision, Now the best sort of subdivision to create, or so it seems, is one akin to Southcott Pines, in Grand Bend. As many already know, Southcott Pines is an attractive area that has ingeniously main- tained a spectacular balance of natural sur- roundings while providing single• family dwellings within such a framework. The catch with Southcott Pines is the price tag on the homes. It is exclusive. That, exclusivity ',is exactly what Green Forests Estates in Thedford is proposing for the 15 acres it has purchased in Stephen Township. It would like to build 46 ex- clusive homes in it's 15 exclusive acres. 15 acres that had previously been slated for agricultural uses in the Huron County Of- ficial Plan. They have put considerable thought into the plan for the subdivision, anticipating all drainage requirements, bylaws, service needs, desires, and the opi- nion of surrounding neighbors. For this they deserve commendation. All too often housing projects seem to be wantonly con- strued on the thinnest of principles with only one ulterior motive: profit. Green Forests, it seems, also has the idea that putting homes among the trees is better than replanting trees amongst the houses later on. The only catch to the idea is that it is infinitely out of character with the area, and there may not really be a real need for a second exclusive subdivision in this area. Considering the exclusivity of the first sub- , + + + In his little book, Make Your Life Worthwhile, Emmet Fox says, "Don't be a grave robber, Let corpses alone. In due time Nature disposes of such remains, if they are left un- disturbed." He goes on to say that every time you dig up an old grievance or an old mistake by rehearsing it in your mind, or, still worse, by' telling someone else about it, you are simply ripping open a grave . and you know what you may expect to find, We must learn to live in the present, prepare intelligently for the future, and leave the past buried, Do you know why they call the past "the past"? It's because it is past , . gone and done with. But the trouble is many people don't let the past go; they want to carry it forward with them, lugging all the errors, all the dumb and silly things they've done, all the bad ex- periences they've had. They carry them into the future until they become weary and worn and thereby are unable to enjoy the beauty and joy of life, Discard the old; go for the new. One of the wisest things ever said is found in Philippians, chapter III, " forgetting those thing's which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press on. . ," I think the basic thrust of Christianity is, "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature, old division, and the exclusiveness is one of the keys to its success and all that exclusivity denotes, particularly the limited market, it is questionable that 15 acres of a farmland, no matter how underused, be turned over to residential development. Without sounding like a reactionary spouter of environmental rhetoric, there is a case for halting the rampant dis- appearance of our farmland to industries and subdivisions. Admittedly, 15 acres is a small portion of the total acreage in On- tario, but as with anything else, it is quite possible to nickle and dime, or better, acre and mile, ones self out of the picture. 15 here, 15 there, it soon adds up to an average sized farm. And for what? Another sub- division? It seems that the priorities are somewhat misappropriated there, It is not really with the developers that this should be discussed, but rather the Huron County Planning Board. After presenting what has been a roundly praised plan, they seem to be turning about face, if indeed they should grant this amendment that would allow the building of the homes in Stephen. There is nothing wrong with making a profit, which is the natural goal of Green Forest Estates, but there is some question as to whether or not a profit on a commodi- ty that is duplicated across the river in Grand Bend and at the expense of land 'that will be rendered useless for any other pur- pose in the future is necessary. Without the existence of Southcott Pines in Grand Bend ,there would be a need for the develop- ment that would fill a void. With that void already amply filled, it seems both hypocritical and partially genocidal on the part of the planning board to grant the necessary amendment. Fifteen acres may just be 15 acres" but how many experts have discussed the possibility of food ,shortages? How many will the 15 acres feed? A duplicate subdivi- sion in Stephen Township is not needed and if passed, is an example, no matter how small, of snort-sighted planning and mis- managed resources. Had you trodden a different path, Life sweeter might have been; And riches might have come your way, With every day serene. Dream not of yesteryears, I say, But make the utmost of today. Signs of spring Except for a few brief hours of nasty weather last week was a good indication that spring is just around the corner. While driving around the area Sunday, this writer noticed several things that seem to prove spring has arrived, In almost every street in Exeter, Hensall and Grand Bend people could be seen cleaning up their yards in anticipation of the warm days ahead. More and more youngsters have taken their 'bicycles out of storage and were riding them up and down the dry streets. One sure indication that spring has arrived is the number of people who were collecting bottles along the sides of the road. Highway Four, in par- ticular, must be loaded with this glass treasure as at least half a dozen people could be seen making their way along the ditches. This is one endeavour that should produce a good profit this year for enterprising youngsters because the deposit on returnable' bottles has recently been drastically increased. With any luck at all it would be possible to make several dollars iii a few hours while enjoying the fresh air at the same time.' (From the Friendship Book) The people who collect bottles should be commended for their efforts because they are not only earning money for themselves, but cleaning up our roadsides as well. This is one more argument for the benefits of returnable bottles over the non-returnables and cans, Both the Kinsmen and Lions demonstrated recently what service clubs are all about. Kinsmen sponsored the suc- cessful old timers vs. CFPL Team 10 hockey game and dance to raise money for the Exeter arena fund. A St. Patrick's Day dance sponsored by the Lions raised over $1,600 for the tennis courts in town. Both these worthwhile projects are just two examples of the beneficial effects service clubs have on a community. Another group in town would be happy if they- could report suc- cess with the monumental task they are working on. The Exeter and District Heritage Founation has had their efforts in repairing the Town Hall thwarted once again by council. It seems the harder the group tries to restore the building to a decent condition the more red tape is thrown in their path by our councillors. What about hibernation? By KIT SCHILLER 75 Years Ago The north train was over four hours late yesterday morning owing to the heavy snowstorm which blocked the tracks. The train was cancelled at night, A branch of the O'Sullivan Business College has been opened in Mr. BeKnight's block. Mrs. Charles Wilson, late of the Mansion House, will again take charge of Mr. John Spackman's dining hall and grocery store in Grand Bend during the coming season. Mr. George Bawden has disposed of his dwelling on Main Street to Mr. Donald McInnis for the sum of $900, Red Loader brought Exeter a championship team in the first year as coach Wednesday when the Mohawks copped the WOAA Int. "A" championship, It was the first title Exeter team won since 1948. SHDHS student Connie Ostland won second prize in the provincial lyric verse-speaking competition at the Ontario Education Association con- vention in Toronto Monday. Temperatures have ranged from just below freezing on the last day of March to a maximum of 69 degrees F Tuesday evening (April '3). "Bears do it, racoons do it, why can't people do it?" was the theme of a coffee-break discussion about the desirability of our hibernating for the winter. In a sense we do hibernate. We have warm houses, heated cars and well-insulated outdoor clothes for when we're enjoying outdoor winter sports, or hustling off to the barn to attend to daily chores. We avoid most of the rigours of winter. But what about this idea of going to sleep until springtime? Take. a hibernation pill at the sign of the first snowfall — one of those new- fangled capsules with time- releasing properties. When the sap is running we would spring up refreshed, optimistic — ready to plant potatoes, mow the grass, make new wine, even — go to work. - "Work" — that terrible four- letter word, was naturally the reason why the coffee-breakers wanted to hibernate. That way you could knock off one whole season from the work year. It's odd isn't it? — that people seem to hate work so much, and yet they keep right on doing it. But with work becoming increasingly scarce, there is going to have to be a drastic revision of our ideas about work, to make sure there will be enough to go around, Let's see — if we turned the calendar back one hundred years we would wind up with less machinery and there would be, more hand work to do. More hands would be needed. The Mennonites may have this idea with their repudiation of the motor car, although we've heard rumours that. they use tractors, perhaps with candles in the dark of the night. Anyway they can have their own system — they've got group spirit. Something lacking in the silent, work-weary majority. But that does tell us something about work — that it can be satisfying when it's done in a group. Even fun, people will tell you who hpve participated in barn-raisings, Can our society move back to other ways, other 'times? It seems doubtful, even itnpossible. If we're not going to move back- wards then, how solve our dilemma? It has been suggested that when something valued and needed by everyone becomes scarce it should be rationed. Therein perhaps lies the solution — ration work. Now you will hear people saying, as they did in the other great depression, that prosperity lies just around the corner. The United States' economy is un- dergoing a slight upsurge because of gimmicks being made and sold to mark its two hun- dredth birthday. What after 1976? We all know there's a villain behind unemployment and job scarcity. The villain is automation. And things can only get worse. About the -only in- dustries we can foresee for the future are: looking after the sick and the very young, and making the automatic machines work. There could be variations on the above. Machines, or robots could look after the sick and young, and some people would be needed to repair and take care of the robots. The future looks as though we will have a great deal of time on our hands. But we're entitled to a living wage aren't we? Well, AREN'T WE? It's not too soon to plan for a time when we will be rationed to one or two hours' work a week. Taking out turns winding up the robots. Enter the Golden Age of which man has dreamed — the Age of Absolute Leisure, There will be spoil sports who will purse their lips and say "The devil finds mischief for idle hands to do," Nonsense, There will be so many millions of us with all kinds of leisure, the devil would really have his work cut out for him — surely against his religion. What will we do? We will create beautiful things. Things of no great utility, but beautiful. And we will make them painstakingly and lovingly. We will learn again the feeling of textures and colours and scents and tastes, We will have time to watch our children grow, and laugh with -them, Please, bring on the robots. :.:‘eaeeseseielgaielaieeeir'" Nor am I the slightest bit jealous of those young, swinging teachers, back from their March break in Spain or the Caribbean, as smug as they are tanned, Talk to them and you'll find all they did was sit around at a beach, drinking rum, or taking in some historical sites. Any idiot can do better than that, being herded like so many Canadian cattle on to a jet plane, into a posh hotel, My wife and I almost in- variably go south in the March break. But we don't sit around on any silly beach, getting a painful burn. We go to the city, and get a slow burn from the prices In a few weeks they'll be grinning triumphantly as the sun begins to warm, and they know they've licked life (or death) for one more winter, but right now they're a little low in spirits. One of the most obnoxious features of this time of year is the return from the south of those lazy, rich, rotten, selfish people who have enough money to spend the winter there. Is there anything more boring than their excessive chatter about playing golf every day, and swimming in January? Don't think I'm envious. I wouldn't go down south in the winter if you offered me a thousand dollars. But don't make it $1,200. Dog end of winter, March usually has a tail in it like a tiger, and then we're into the mud and chill winds and rain of April, Probably the worst time of the year for Canadians. Curling season is over and golf season hasn't begun, It's too early for gardening and too late for skiing. There's nothing much for the sport fan but the weeks of blah that constitute the professional hockey playoffs. I think it's a particularly bad time for the elderly. The days are longer but the weather is too deadly to enjoy the outdoors yet. They've come through another long dark winter of survival, arthritis, the flu, being indoors most of the time. "Hello, I'm with the Fly-by- Night Chimney Repair company and I was just driving down the street when I happened to notice your chimney looks like it might fall down any day. With your permission, I'd like to check it out and we may just be able to fix it before you run into much more costly repairs," If anyone approaches you with a proposition like this . look out. In all probability you will be paying out a considerable amount of money for a quick repair job that will be of no benefit at all to you. This is the tine of year when hundreds of so called repairmen come out of the woodwork to prey upon unsuspecting citizens in smaller communities across the province. Their target is usually older properties owned by un- suspecting senior citizens who will probably never get up on the', roof to inspect their work. Last week police chief Ted Day issued a warning that these phony repairmen may be operating in this area. If anyone , tries to soliditrepairs you should automatically be suspicious. Most reputable companies do not have to make door-to-door calls to get business. They have their work lined up months in advance because they are well established in business. They get customers from recommendations of others who have been pleased with their work, and have built a reputation of providing quality and fair prices. Hundreds of people have been bilked by people who are 10 times as good at selling a service as they are at preforming it. Many times they are so convincing that the unsuspecting customer ends up footing the bill for repairs that were never made to correct problems that never existed. Some cities now have by-laws that require all tradesmen to be licensed and to display the license number prominently on all their vehicles. If there are too many com- plaints about the quality of the work the shady contractors will have their licenses revoked and they'll be out Of business. Most smaller communities don't have legislation to protect residents from these people and this is what makes them a ripe market for finding victims. In many cases people have been grossly overcharged and have been talked into signing misleading contracts. Most of these characters are persuasive and can convince their targets that their house is just on the verge of falling down unless "vital" repairs are made at once. One way to make sure you are not swindled is never to allow yourself to be talked into making a quick decision on whether or not to let the work begin, If repair work really is ncessary you should try and get at least two estimates from established companies in the area. Municipalities could help as well by thoroughly checking out any person who claims to be in the home repair business. Perhaps they could be required to put up a performance bond that would be held by the municipality until they were sure there were no unsettled disputes With customers. If everybody was a little more cautious about who they are dealing with perhaps this lucrative phony repair scheme could eventually be stopped. contractors during the recent ice storm. While Hydro people were busy repairing damage to their sys tems, contractors were simultaneously repairing customers' damaged equipment. As a result of everybody's efforts, the duration of customer ,outages, while extreme in many cases, were kept to a minimum. We are all Sincerely appreciative of the customers' understanding of our respective problems during this emergency situation. Contractors worked long hours in difficult conditions, suppliers kept their operations open at all hours, and manufacturers ran Special production runs, all aimed at getting the customer back on the line. It was a tremendous effort. Thank you. Dear Editor: I recently learned of Mr. Sllcock's release from your soccer club. I can recall the tremendous job this young man did with the Detroit Youth when he was with the Cougars and the Flyers between 1968 and Me Obviously there are no openings in your area soccer for a man Who has the urge to strive for greater things, as Silceck does, He was right to resign, and would only be wasting his own time, and the time of the players and soccer club if he had continued, W. D. Kettler, 698 Orchard St., Sarnia, Ont, 25 Years Ago Negotiations for a site for the South Huron Hospital are un- derway, E. D. Bell announced, after the Hospital Association held a closed meeting Tuesday night. Immunization clinics for babies of three months of age and over and pre-school children have been arranged by the County Health Unit and are to be held in the centres of Exeter and Centralia, Board members, school kids and regular workmen are busy this week moving furniture from the old building into the hew public school, which will open on April 2, Official Opening ceremony is Scheduled for April 18. At the March Directors meeting of the Huron County Federation of Agriculture held in Clinton on March 20, a resolution was passed and forwarded to the Ontario Department of Highways asking that gas tax refunds be paid within sixty days of receipt of application. The annual Good Friday Trap Shoot held in Ilareiltoh proved successful for John Anderson of Kippen who Won $103 in prizes, 20 Years Ago Tentative plans are for a bigger and better Easter prograin activities for the children in, eluding an Easter parade, pet show, hat contest and Easter egg hunt. 10 Years Agb The Huron County Branch of the Canadian Cancer Society will be canvassing this area during the month of April. Various organizations and individuals have volunteered to assist with the canvass and this year the goal has been set at $19,000. Rev. I, Bodenham is the new pastor of the Emmanuel Baptist Church in Exeter. Rev. Bodenham who lives at RR 2 Kippen replaces Rev. 0. Stephenson. Ile takes over his new duties April 1. On March 25, the public had the opportunity to view the Exeter Public Utilities Commission's new warehouse and equipment at 379 Main Street. Plans are well underway for the big Easter parade sponsored by the Exeter Teen Town and the Exeter businessmen, The parade will start at 2:00 pen. Saturday afternoon April 9 and is expected to draw large crowds as it has in the past. Financial details concerning the 1966 International Plowing Match, scheduled for Huron County in October, were worked but Monday When represen- tatives of the local committee met in Toronto with the executive of the Ontario PIOWtnan'S Association. The event gets under way October It at the site in IVIeKillop, north of Seaforth. The budget for the big match is ex- pected to exceed $30,006. Dear Editor: I would like to, on behalf of Hydro in Western Ontario, ex- press the appreciation of Ontario Hydro and the Municipal Utilities' staff, for the co- operation received froth manufacturers, distributors, and Yours truly, E. G. Bainbridge Regional Manager Western Region — Ontario Hyde() Smiley's Times Established 1873 Advocate Established 1881 ..-:eineeeeMeAMON Amalgamated 1924 ' SEBVINO CANADA'S BEST PARMLAND 0.W.N.A. CLASS 'A' and ABC Published by J. W. Eedy Publications Limited Editor — Jim Beckett — Advertising Manager Women's Editor Gwyn Whilsmith Plant Manager — Jim Scott Composition Manager — Dave Worby Business Manager bid( Jortgland Phone 235-131i Published Each Thursday Morning Of Exeter, Ontario Second ClaSs Mail Registration Number 0386 Paid in Advance Cireuldtion September 30, 1975 5,420 SUBSCRIOTION RATES: C4nacla $9.00 Pet Year; USA Si 1,63