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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 1982-12-29, Page 64 L editorial Lanknow Sentinel, Wednesday, December 29, 19112—Pap 6 L1JC.N i: SENTINEL "The *pay Town" Estalnliebed 1873 THOMAS A. THOMPSON - Advertising Manager SHARON. J. DIETZ - Editor PAT LIVINGSTON Office Manager JOAN HELM - Compositor MERLE ELLIOTT - Typesetter Business and Editorial Office Telephone 528-2822 Mailing Address P.O. Box 400. Lucknow. NOG 2H0 Second Clr.ss Mail Registration Number 0847 • Satsteripdaa rate, 515.2.5 per year la adyrusee Settler athes one, 512.75 pea -year la advance U.S.A. and Foreign, $38.40 per year la advance Sr, CIL U.S.A..' awl Forel., li36.1111per year Is *avarice The new year, 1983will be a very special year in Lucknow as the village celebrates its 125th birthday. Former residents and old boys and girls who were raised her will be coming home for the Jamboree weekend in July. The Jamboree committee has been hard at work for months planning the gala event and they need everyone's support, Get into the spirit of things. Grow a beard, sew an old fashioned dress for the Jamboree ball, decorate your home or business to reflect the pioneer spirit. The Sepoy Town is rich m tradition 'mak its Scottish heritage: Donald Dinnie, the Caledonian Mmes and the Scottish ancestors of many families who still live in the area - Proud of his Scottish blood, James. Somerville, the father of Lucknow, named the village for the memorable events associated with that city in the quelling of the Indian Mutiny, a barbaric uprising of native rebels. In the fall of 1857, the Relief of Lucknow herakted the quelling of the mutiny and it .was the Scottish regiment, although outnumbered 10 -to one, who lifted the siege and won the. day. • Every Lucknow area resident whether native or adopted should be proud of the history and heritage that is ours. The Jamboree is a great time to renew old acquaintances and meet• new friends. Plan a special event this year to commemorate the anniversary 'involving your business or organization. Plan to take part .in all the Jamboree events throughout the year. WO make this anniversary an old boys reunion never to be forgotten! I The holiday season is a special time for family and friends, parties, gift giving and travelling. Thousands of people will be on the highways during the holiday season, heading honie to family and friends. While the message is applicable any time of year, it is imperative that motorists exercis. e extreme caution. The highways will be busy and motorists will have to be conscious of others, more than ever. Increased traffic creates problems in itseff but many drivers will undoubtedly have had a few drinks while celebrating New Years with family and friends. Watch out for the other guy and have a safe driving holiday. If you are entertaining, make sure that people whom you know will be driving home, are in command, of their faculties and don't force drinks on people trying \ to leave. A little precaution can save a life. Take precautions in the home as well during the holiday season and make sure the decorated tree is not a fire hazard, ready to ignite. Keep the tree watered and iiSz not leave the lights burning for extended periods of time or when the family is not home. Be certain that the tree is secure in the stand, or secured by string or wire in some other manner. Also check the lighting system to make sure it is in proper working order and don't leave the tree up long after' is has become dry and brittle. Have a safe and happy holiday. --Goderich Signal -Star Sentinel raiiks high December 18th, 1982 To the Editor: Once again it is that pleasant time of year when thoughts turn to friends who have been kind, considerate and helpful throughout the year just ending_ You rank high on my list. The weekly arrival of The Sentinel broadens my scope for selection of items to be included in "Report from the Country".'This late Saturday night news feature is now well into its third year, and positive feed -back seems to be increasing. This is most gratifying, and seems to indicate that between us we are accomplishing an excellent bit of PR for the small town newspapers. I do hope that we can continue - Allowing memory to wander back over the old year stories that you supplied come to mind. There was that interesting account of George Salkeld's 100th birthday; the story and picture of a six-tegged calf; and about "Fluffy", the strangely pink dog, the pet of Mr. and Mrs. Allan Cranston. For this help 1 am deeply grateful to you. In conclusion, may I extend my very best wishes that your Christmas may be merry, and the New Year fihied with a good measure of happiness. Yours faithfully, Arthur Carr, CKCO-TV's "Country, Editor". one footin the furrow by bob trotter story is told of George Handel in the depths of despair just before he composed The Messiah. • Away from his native land and liv- ing in near -poverty in England, he liv- ed as a hermit in the few weeks ittook him to write his glorious music. In the end, he emerged with a renewed spirit and a greater sense of creativity. The hustle -and -bustle and crass conunercialism of Christnias these • days is enough to turn some men of goodwill into a spluttering Scrooge un- • til the lines of this great oratorio came ringing through the snow. "For unto us a duld is born ... and the government shall be upon his • When the spiritual ideal is born in the souls of men, it is a gold Walking in darkness, either moral or physical, is the death of joy or hope or self- respect. It is the path of too many peo- ple in these troubled times in this tired vworld. But the light of Christmas can still •shine brightly into weary, heart- • broken lives. You may be tited, driven, worried, weak, ill, depressed and overburden- ed with care. The Christ spirit can re- juvenate. You have been trying to carry the burden of government — recltrees self-government — upon your. shoulders. The Child is born when you turn self-govenunent over to a power greater than you. "And Iris name shall be called Wonderful. Counsellor, the mighty God, Abe Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace." ' We are prone to take such words as 'wonderful' and make them trite and hackneyed. To be truly wonderful im- plies miracles and that is what can happen if mankind would only recognize the power of God. A few years ago, the Guiness Book of Records was supposed to be out- selling the Bible. But the Bible is still, in spite of misguided translations and misinterpretations, the greatest story ever told. It is the Counsellor, the great guidebook to self-government. This Child .whose birthday is celebrated this week, is God Ihmseff, the might God, always present within and always available, closer than our hand, our Father in heaven and the kingdom of God is within... 'the Prince of Peace." • Think of what perfect peace of soul could mean! You would no longer be affected by what others think of you or say to you or do to you. Most of us are so con- scious of what we think others are thinking about us, we no longer know who we really are. We are ruled by outer things, what the Joneses are do- ing, what our neighbors are getting.. We worry about our jobs, our payche- ques, what the boss thinksof us, even about that our children think of us. We live these lives of "quiet desparation" when we could become the sons and daughters of God. That, tome, is one of the greatest promises of the Bible: Ye have the power to become the sons of God. . Who but God could make such a pro- mise? And it is His birthday we celebrate at this time' of. year, the day Jesus Who became the Christ, was born. Does it matter whether December 25 is the exact historical date of His bir- th? Does it matter whether you are a Christian, a • Jew, a Buddhist, a Moslem, a Hindu, a Taoist, an agnostic or an .atheist? • What matters is that thehope of all mankind is celebrated: the hope for peace and joy and kindness and giving and sharing and, mot of all, love. Peace and love, alone, that which the Christ Child broiight to the earth, could bring about the 'changes that all men, deep 'their heart of heartS, their quiet place, their clbset, Must surely crave. • The love 'exemplified in the life of Jesus the 'Christ whose birth we celebrate. My love to you this Christmas. by don Campbell In that glorious era when young Queen Victoria ruled over a vast empire "upon which the sun never set", she proved that women could equal men in determination, fortitude and courage. Unfortunately, her ex- ample did little or nothing to raise the status of her female subjects. Today, few of us can doubt that women equal men in every way except physical strength.. In the days of the Canadian pioneers, physical strength was an absolute essential character- istic for those who would battle nature, and in this respect, women were 'at a distinct disadvantage. It was assumed that women woo/al marry and. under the protection of a "good provider", settle into a rife of doznesticity surrounded by as many offsprings as God would provide. Barbara Buchanan, the **stranger" of the Redtrees community, came face to face with cold reality at the death of her young husband. It was true that Ewan Brdie had allowed her to lodge in his cabin, and that the Friends of Skye were kind and thoughtful to her in her bereavement, but she knew that the time was fast approaching when she would be forced to hitch up her late husband's wagon and leave for a place she knew not where. As some compensation for Ewan's kindness, she cooked his midday meal and supper and when he left to sleep at his mother's house each night, she was left atone to brood on her uncertain future. There wis a crown grant waiting to be cleared in the Township of Mono. It was a place for which she and her man had yearned ever since they left the shores of Scotland. They had endured the hardships of the long johrney. and scraped and saved to buy their few possessions without an inkling of the cruel hand of fate. Her husband had died before he set eyes on the place "frac his very ain". Barbara had Iitt!e choice. She could -not go to the crown grant, neither could she live alone even in Toronto, which already had too many paupers. Her only option was the long journey back. She would sell all her precious possessions to pay her return passage to Scotland_ One day, AS Ewan worked at° clearing the bush, he was surprised to see his mother hurrying towards him. She was weary from her journey and had to sit for a few moments to catch her breath. ° "Did ye no ken the Buchanan woman left ye cabin today. Och lad, how could ye let the poor lass gae. Whatever will become , o' her the noo?" Ewan dropped his axe onto the ground and wiped his forehead on an already sweaty shirt. He was angry at his niother's words. Hadn't he done enough for a stranger? He appreciated her grief because he himself had buried a dear ofie only a few months before; his wife's smiling face still came back to haunt him, causing his heart to skip a beat and a hard sob to lodge in his throat_ "She had tae gae sometime, moth- er," Ewan said casually. "I canna gi her any mare than I did. What would ye hae me do?" Elizabeth was exasperated. "Gae after her lad. Di ye no see 'twas God's doin' .tae bring her tae ye? Yell be needin' a woman_Twill be a ling time before ye get another chance." Ewan looked at his mother in aril- azement. "Di ye no ken I still love my ain lass, though she be in the grave?" He shook his head sadly. "She was such a bonny wee thing." Looking earnestly at his mother, he felt ashamed that she should have brought such thoughts with her. "The * Buchanan woman is a plain, incomely • lass and I dinna fancy her. In any case 'twould be wrong tae take her at a • time like this - we both bein' still in mournin'. 'Twould not be Christian 'like!, Elizabeth would not accept his reasoning. She was a practical soul. Love at a time like this was a rare commodity. A pretty face is not food for the belly, and on a farm, there is no substitute for ' a strong practical woman. As for being in mourning, what did that matter? All grief must pass'vvith time_ The dead are dead and those who survive must go on living. "Take my advice lad. Gae after her whilst there is still time. Any woman in ye bed is better than none at alI!" Elizabeth said with crude but truthful philosophy. Ewan was disgusted at his mother's counsel. He avoided her glance, picked up his axe and gave vent to his anger by furiously chopping at a tree. Elizabeth walked away. At least, she told herself, she had given him something to think about. From time to time she glanced back at per son, and if her words had taken airy effect, he didn't show it. He just carried right on with his task. It is said that a man can change his mind as easy as he changes his socks, and Elizabeth was not too surprised when Grant the blacksmith gave her the latest account of her son. . "I' though I had best tell ye," Grant said with concern. "Something must be amiss. I saw your lad Ewan laying a whip to his horse and galloping down the Sixth Line as if all hell was in chase!"