HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 1981-05-20, Page 644,5-44Rt 4 ieNK , pibssnbsW sue" wombat.)
Paso. 6-- w %Maid, ,, Wodneslayr IHisy ZOr. 1941
B Don Campbell"
As the wagon caMying Flora, Neil, Hamish and the
farmer William Blake journeyed northward up Yonge
Street they left behind the sparsely inhabited fringes
Toronto. . A lonely road lay before them like: a single.
furrow cutting deep into ' the forest; the mark of the
unrestrained and selfish hand of man, groping through
' the lost .centuries of undisturbed natural beauty, and
tranquility,
: The
"The Sepoy Town" Eatubllxb.d 1873
JOCELYN SNIDER - Publisher
SHARON J. DiETZ. - Editor
ANTHON.y M. JOHNSTONE - Advertising and
General Manager
PAT LIViNGSTON - Office Manager
MERLE ELLIOTT - Typesetter
JOAN HELM - Composition ,
° Business 'Ind Editoriat-Offlce Telephone 528.2822
Mailing Address P.O. Box. 400. Luclinow, NOG 2H0
Second Class Mail Registration Number -0847
Subscription rate, $13.50 petiole a advance
Santer MUM esti, $11.50 per year la advance
U.S.A. and Foreign,. 523.00 per yearin advance
Sr. at. U.S.A. and Foreign, 521.00 par year In advance
inifr action
;The surface of the highway . changed with' the,
geological structure of the earth.. Upon the hard dry
surfaces, the' Belgian horses ' stepped lightly and lively,
Pg ullin . theirload' with herculean ease. On the downward
slopes, Blake applied'wooden blocks to the metal rims of
the rear wheels to prevent the wagon from overrunning.
the team. In the y
marshy - and low lying sections of the
road, the horses dug, their feet into the soft muck. Heads
• low. and muscles straining ' against the harness, their
whinnied protests echoed bak cfrom ' the bush upon a
sweet cedar scented air. .
Smallanimals, sunning themselves or playing upon
that unshaded ribbon of cleared land, scampered into the
safety of the trees at the approach of the wagon. Some-
times
deer, which had been grazing -upon the lush road-
side grass, leapt back into the undergrowth, white tails
signalling alarm atthe sound of !metal shoes against
stone' and the jingle of harness brass. Contemptuous of
anything or anybody who direct th intrude upon, his
domain, a large bear rummaged for fruit amongst, the.
bushes and .gave them'. but a single casual glance as they
passed. • 0 . .•
Flora was. not 'so calm. "Ohl 'Mr. Blake! What• was
THAT fearful looking beastie?'.'
WilliamBlake smiled, turned his head away and ,spat
Ina `matter.of fact" gesture. "Only a bear ma'am." He
smirked at her mischieviously. ".f don't think he'll be
fancying you ;for his dinner, so long as there are "better
meals in the bush!" In a more . serious vein he .said:
"Bears Won't bother you unless ,you, bother them." He
wagged'a finger to•emphasize his point. "Mind you, you
have to be" careful with mamma . bear. - especially when
she is with her young:':'. He' laughed out "loud. "Mrs.,
: 'Bruin: doesn't take kindly to peoplewho play hide and
seek with her .cubs! "
They passed through the first settlement north of
Toronto, a church, tavern, smithy and general store
the middle of well established farms. There were some
frame houses and bank barns inaddition to the usual log
• buildings. Blake told Flora, the name. • of the place
Hogg's Hollow''. Children paused at their play to wave.
and watch the wagon and its occupants 'go by. A woman.
0. also viewed them with. interest; her head appearing
above a clothes line of 'laundry • and a 'rough clothes peg
.gripped between her teeth. Emerging rather unsteadily
from the doorway of the tavern,: a well dressed, red faced .
man, took Off his stove pipe hat and bowed graciously to
Flora. "All inall",. flora thought, `"these :colonials are' ,
right friendly :folk!"'
They rumbled across the bridge beyond the settlement
.and. Blake pulled off the road into a small clearing, where
an underground spring bubbled from the earth '.and
collected into a small pond. Whilst the horses cooled off
prior to drinking, the 'travellers ate: a simple meal of
bread and cheese."Eat hearty," Blake told them. "We
won't' be stopping again until we .reach my 'place)
Hamish, Neil and Flora talked together and, marvelled
at their , strange surroundings. Theirfirst impressions
were the abundance of game in : this new land,. ' the
denseness of the forest and of course, the heat of the day,
"I came to Upper Canada as a child. My people were
Empire Loyalists," Blake told them 'in a .reminiscent
mood. '."It seems like only yesterdaythat we travelled up
from. Georgia and we :thought it was real cold when .we
arrived at Toronto. York they called it then Muddy
York! He laughed.; "And we thought it was cold in
November? It was, compared to Georgia, but we hadn't.
reckoned. on January and February inCanada.. We were
green - just like you!" He waved his hand across the
scene. "Enjoy the .summer whilst you can. You'll
remember these :days when you are trying: to find 'the
barn in a • blizzard and struggling waist deep through
snow drifts."'
They , Contint1��ed their journey, along the seemingly
endless road. Occasionally they saw clearings, where
cattle grazed around rough .log cabins and blue smoke
'from chimnies roseperpendicular" through the warm,
insect laden air. They passed through another
community called "Lansing" and in'. the early evening,
tired, stiff and very sweaty. they arrived at .Richmond
Hill,
Statistics Canada.: has': released: the news, that Canada's
inflation rate has soared to 12.6 ,per cent, the highest ever.
What cost Canadians Si in 1974 'now costs $2:31 and the
purchasing power of the ,dollar is a mere 43 cents. Food has
increased 73 per cent since last year, gasoline has risen 31
per cent and home heating oil has jumped: 39 per . cent.
To make matters worse, the. Bank of Canada announced
Thursday the prime lending rate is now' a record 18.98 per
cent.
The federal government hasadopted the present interest
rate policy of following_ . the American interest rates to
stratospheric heightsto hold up thevslue of the dollar and.
curb inflation. But inflation isnot being wrestled to the.
ground. ,Is is now higher than the 10.4 pet► cent when Prime
Minister 'Pierre Trudeau introduced wage and price
controls. . .
The high interest rates are driving Canadians .further into,
'debt and . in ' some cases bankruptcy without ,appreciably
affecting ,the rate of inflation. ;
The inflation rate is driven up considerably by such
essential costs as transportation, food and medical care. But
most people do not buy gas, food or medical care on credit,
therefore the Bank of Canada's policy of high interest rates
won't fight this sort of inflation. People can hardly be
expected to stop buying these essential goods even if the
price does go up.
The Interest rate policy hove er, ,does limit the amount of
di,,posabl inconte people .have to spend on housing, clothes
and recreation. But in Toronto last year, the prices of these
goods increased less quickly than the general consumer
index and were less responsible for inflation. Canadiansare
being asked to forego owning their own homes to fiight.
inflation and housing does not seriously effect the inflation
rate. ..
Economists are becoming more convinced that Canada's
inflation problems: are being imported in the form of fuel
and manufactured goods, so how will a policy that fights the
prpblern only in Canada curb inflation?
o
he consumer is not the only one caught in the vise.
Fanners, small busines, entrepreneurs, industrialists and
homeowners are being pushed to the wall. The effects are
especially dramatic in our
area because the backbone of our
economy is farmers and small business.
The federal government has to abandon , its foolish •
interest rate policy. Canada's current stagflation is a serious
problem. Interest rates ,should be cut freeing up investment
money :'which wiil stimulate the economy and create jobs.
Let's 8et our economy working again.
The Liberal government in Ottawa has to be convinced,the
majority of Canadians think their economic policy is wrong,
Do something mote than complain about it, write a letter to
financeministerAllan MacEachen, write to Prime Minister
Pierre
Trudeau, phone your rnenber of .parliament.
ring flowers