The Brussels Post, 1973-10-03, Page 2(By Tom Haley)
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 3, 1973
-Serving Brussels and the surrounding community
published, each Wednesday afternoon at Brussels, Ontario
by McLean Bros. Publishers, Limited.
Evelyn Kennedy 11' Editor Tom Haley - Advertising
Menibjr, Canadian Community Newspaper Association and
Ontario weekly Newspaper Association.
Subscriptions (in advance) Canada $4.00 a year, lathers
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Second class mail ftegistratiOn No. 0562.
Telephone 887-6641.
•
Land for hobby farms
Robby farms aren't too common in
this area yet --- unless some of
our hard working full time farmers
want to call their operations their
hobby as well as their livelihood.
But we can still understand the
concern of Ontario Minister of Agri-
culture W.A.Stewart when he said ,
recently that legislation may be
necessary to get land kept out of
,food production by hobby farmers
backs to serious farmers.
In these days ,of food shortages
and high prices it is pretty much
morally indefensible, for a man to
buy 50 or one hundred acres and just
sit and look at it when the acreage
could be rented to a farming neigh-
bour,who would make it productive.
We join' the St. Mary's Journal
Argus whose editorial continues
below in applauding Mr. Stewart's
concern. The Journal Argus says:
It,is becoming very apRarent,
from conversations with farmers and
others concerned about the necess'it
of arable firm land being saved for
prodUction of ,food in these days of
chronic world shortages,'that the
dayl:if the "hobby farmer" may be
approaching an end under the ever-
incre'asing weight of public opinion.
Restraint on private ownership
is always a hbt topic but, regard-
less of this fact, the impact of a
practice becoming increasingly popu-
lar, that of city dwellers acquir-
ing rural farms and then not using
them for food production,is arous-
ing more and more publjc concern.°
The:libm. Wm. A. Stewa:rt4,Minister'
of Agriculture and, Food to. the, Qn-
tartt" Government,. . it'welVaWare Of
the •fiiherent'dangers arising. from
the ' present nani-terlaus famlftrend,
S p e a ki ng i nAl viniton recent ly _the.
MInAttee noted that we w elcome Urban
dwellers to rural.areat,' -it it felt
in many cases. they are taking valu-
lblejarmland out of production. for
their own pleatur,e .it a time .when
more and more land is needed to meet
the deMatdtof --the world for food.
The Minister suggests that if thete.
farms are not .made available to -
serious farMirt .for food graduction i
it may 'be netettary.ta
such. a Me4tUrt,. . .
Latd?ute is 'presently ,being. re
examined by several prov4htial gov-
irnmtptt with vi ew to possible
legislation a imed at protecting .
agricultural and recreational areas ..
apcPtding to tanadfan kealttNewt,
There is no .doubt but_ what- the 'get-
teht mood•of tanadian, citizens in
every province .1t .dteof toopetn.
over shortages and pttot.ftitt,iAvable.
land In tatada antfeltewhett it -
fInally being ettogniied as a pet.,
.6i6U4 ttimmddity*
Sugar and
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by Bill. Sthiley
Spice .
I promised there'd be no more columns
about England. This one won't be, but it
Will be about people we met there.
Half the fun of travelling is the people
you meet. That'S why I wouldn't be too
keen, on taking one of those tours,. where
you g0 everyWhere with the same forty or
so people, and are 'stuck with them fOr
three or fOUr Weeks, and don't meet any-
. one fresh. • ,
• For example, while we were,InLendon,
I found it pleasant to stroll down to the
bet for a pre4unclieon pint while my wife
was , muddling around` in the room, worrying
aboUt washing her hair or something.
'For several days,. we formed a On-
genial group there. A far-flung group..
There was old Jackfrom South Africa,with"
one aliminot arm and one ditto legHe'd
whack his artificial leg with his cane to
emphasise a point. There was Ron, an,
Australian dealer in stanips. 'There was
a Highland scot There. WaS an Irish bar.,
tender; And there was your blue-eyed
boy from 'Canada. gnglishi. Yanks , and
Canadians Were exthiciedi Otherdinadians,
• that it, •
We got along first-rate, and there
Was an easy „tolerated that I noticed during
'the: War when there might be bodies Of
ten , different nations .On one .squadron;
I didn't go alter Jack about apartheid'
or Ron about Australian treatment of
aborigines and nobody went. after me abettt
our Eskimos. The Irishman and the SOtit
Were • a .bit hOstile„ but oniy abont the
Rather y , We talked about the important
things life: heating bills (abOnt. $50
a year in S.A. and less in Sydney);
big costs (about the Seine everywhere);
WitteS •.(abotit, the earrie ,everywhere); rotten
kids (ditto);: income tat (ditto)`.
Not very enlightening, say but
othittortable, easy conversation , With.
no strain or stridency.. Then tint wives
would arriVe and. the commonwealth
fere1106 would *break up until next. day at.
noon.
We Met dozens of intereating people
like ' this, easily and amiably. The PO
IS the great leveller.
In Canada, people in. a bar sit in their
own tight little groups at a table, a Waiter
serves their, and they are 'like an. island,
no contact with anybody elsea or if. they '
axe aim*, they sit at the bar And 'glower
into the .iiiitter tit' into theit. drinie, •
gloottityk
Eititain, it'sjtiet the OPPOkitei If
. you're at a table, you fetch your own
drinks, and anyone is liable to sit down
with you. Very casual. First thing. you
know, you're chatting; ' Next, thing: you
know, you're bosom Chums.
Example. one night after a show,
we went into a ,pUb for a drink and a steak-
and-kidney pie. Three people sat down at
Our table, chattering in what Sounded like
German. It was Dutch. A girl,. newly
Married and living' in London, and her
parents, first time in England. Father
sPOke a little English; .Mother had a big
smile; .
In five minutes we were chatting 'away
like 'old friends. Father his wife
" a gin. Caine back looking ruefully into
his three-qUarters of an ctinCeSaid, ‘4 Here
dey just vet de bottom of de glass. In
Holland ." and he held .up thuinb ,and
fOrefinger about tour inches apart. we
parted in half an htair, but only after the
girl insisted we come andsee her' in Lon,,
don, and' gave us address ,and phone
number. ' -
• It oduldn't happen here: Our Watering.
establishments are built for masochists
Or people who have good night vision and
can see in the dark, They're not for
companionship and friendliness:
Eitaniple., We were having lunch in a
bub in. North Wales, at the bar. Four
rawny, - dirty Welshmen came in and
Started hooting and hollering at attenien-
dona volume, teasing the barmaid, downing
pints and drowning out anyatteniptatooti,
VerSation.
my old lady, WbO is not, noted for' her
prudence, modesty Or reserve, turned
around' and snapped, fiShiit Upt" their
jaws fell. The barniaid silently applauded.
I thought one of them was going to wipe
her, off the stool with a backhander. He
wee only a little. guy; 'about sit-two' and
220 petinde.
That cost rate four that pinta While I
babbled that She was only kidding and was
really a delightful; charming girl' t heart.
TweritY minutes later„ they were
Plaining that we'd missed the great Eie4
teddiO d in tilititgoiteni an annual dettine
titian of choirs from all over the World,
held right there. benattSethe bus service;
was slow,. one of them packed tit into. his
vano and drove OS twenty miles to
a forty.hille round trip for hint
It may ;SOMA like' a glorified Oh-
trawl.. :it *ain't, there are 800 pubs in
dientet*Lbhtion, and we Misted Most Of
theta.; tut if Yon want to meet People, no
wati.