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The Lucknow Sentinel, 1983-04-13, Page 6editorial page Lucknow Sentinel, Wednesday, April 13, 1983—Page 6 LUCKNOW ,SENTIIYEL "The Sepoy Town' ° Established 1873 1 HOM.AS A 1 1OMPSON • Advertising Manager SHARON J. DIET? Editor PAT LIVINGSTON - Office Manager JOAN HELM Compositor MERLE ELLIOTT - 1 ypesetter Business and Editorial Office telephone 528-2822 Mailing Address P.U. Box 400. Lucknow • NOG 2H0 Second Class Mall Registration Number 0847 Subscription rate, SIS.2S per year in addance Senior Citizen rate, SI2.7S per year In advance U.S.A. and Foreign, 538.00 per year in advance Sr. Cit. U.S.A. and Foreign, M.00 per year h% advance editorial Lucknow business community can support two banks The reaction to the closure of the Royal Bank Lucknow branch July 8 is unqualified shock. Lucknow has a viable business community as evidenced last weekend at the Lucknow Lions Club Home and Garden Show. It was reassuring to see the number and quality of exhibits on display. Lucknow is located in the heart of a rich agricultural community and the main street is not the only viable business area. Four farm equipment dealerships, a major manufacturing concern and three fuel oil services are all located in Lucknow and are supported by the surrounding farm community, Lucknow can support two banks and the people of Lucknow should have the choice of two banks located in the village. The Royal Bank decision to close the branch here is probably a result of poor head office decisions in the 70s when they opened branches in too concentrated an area. Branches in Goderich, Kincardine, Lucknow, Brussels and Ripley feed off each other and cannot hope to survive unless they attract new business on a continual basis. Market fragmentation has resulted. Perhaps as indicated by the business people of this community, the personnel appointed to the managerial Can you identify these two Lucknow businessmen? Phone the Sentinel 528®2822 Plan your Jamboree 83 project now positions at the Royal Bank were not suited to the agricultural community where the branch is located and this too contributed to the branch's low profitability. It is unfortunate for Royal Bank customers who will see additional costs and inconvenience to bank out of town, While the community wants to register a protest that the Royal Bank has not given the Lucknow branch sufficient time to succeed, perhaps it would be better to support the suggestion of Ab Murray, Lucknow village councillor, who wants to encourage another Bank to locate here. If the Royal Bank has too many branches in the area to succeed here and their personnel are not equipped to handle agricultural related accounts, then the village would be wiser to encourage another bank to locate here. All Lucknow business people agree, Lucknow has the business to support two banks provided the bank is willing to do its share to attract business. On thing is also clear. Customers expect customer service at a bank. Businesses have come through difficult financial times, with high interest rates charged by banks, contributing to many of their financial woes. People are not willing to see customer services eroded while the banks reap huge profits. Rural people do not stand in line at the post office or at the grocery check outs as our city cousins do and they are not prepared to stand in line at the bank waiting for teller service. Bank customers are not prepared to pay extra for services which should be provided as customer services and which indeed were once provided free of charge as a customer service, Banking is a service and as one local businesstitan commented "a bank should have personality". Those people in the area who dealt with the Royal Bank will miss the friendly efficient service at the Royal Bank branch in Lucknow. And some people say they refuse to bank with the Bank of Montreal even if it is the only bank in town. The poor customer service that sees people stand in line for up to 20 or thirty minutes, long lineups that extend to the front door, the refusal by management to put on extra staff at busy times of the day and the petty service charges for customer services such as mailing out statements, checking balances on accounts between statements and service charges for making deposits, are inexcusable when customers have paid such high interest rates and continue to pay dearly for the privilege of banking and borrowing money. If the Bank of Montreal is to be the only bank in Lucknow, they would be well served to increase customer service and do it with a smile. Criticizes federation director To the Editor: I feel I must question the credibility of H.C.F.A. after events of last months meetings to present time. At the March 3 members meeting in Blyth, a motion was moved by Cletus Dalton and seconded by Murray Howatt that Merle Gunby, Regional Director, take the motion to the directors meeting in Toronto that H.C.F.A. oppose the propos- ed 100 percent Agricultural tax rebate program. The mo- tion carried 48-18. Dennis Timbrell was pre- sent at the directors meeting in Toronto last month and had a one hour question period. My motion of opposi- tion to the proposed 100 per- cent agricultural tax rebate proposal was not brought to the floor. Why not? Regional Director Merle Gunby was present as well as other directors from Huron Coun- ty. On April 7, in Ethel at the members' monthly meeting, 1. ouestioned why my motion was not brought to Mr. Tim- brell at the directors meeting in Toronto. The rep- ly from County President Tony McQuail was that I gave no such direction in my motion. I have 48 witnesses to sup- port the direction in my mo- tion. I charge the H.C.F.A. is acting as a dictatorship and have taken a socialistic stand on the new Agricultural tax rebate pro- posal. I feel this should come out in the public so the rate payers of Huron know what is happening. It's healthy to have dif- ference of opinion and they should be expressed, but it's much more reasonable to disagree agreeably than let it deteriorate into hostile confrontation. Let us strive to solve our differences in a spirit of give and take rather than in an atmosphere of ar- rogant authoritarianism. Isn't democracy at its finest one foot in the furrow when members and their directors present their cases, as they do in court, and are willing to abide by whatever the outcome? Solv- ing frictions on the grass root level eliminates the lingering recrimination when there are no rules or when the executive has the sole authority to make the final unilateral decision. High taxes with plenty of freedom are more desirable than no taxes without freedom. Yours truly Cletus Dalton President Ashfield Township O.F.A. The Romans gave this month the name of Aprilis. It is derived from aperire which means to open, probably because it is the season when buds open. It is not my favorite month. My old granddad called it mud month and' he was right. It is the time of year when any loose earth seems to arrive at the back door. If it is wet, it cakes. If it is dry, it becomes grit and manages to find its way throughout the house. I know, i know. It is the month of warm rain. It is the month when the daffodils bloom and tulips are a blaze of color. It is the month when all the trees are budding and the earth seems alive with new life. The Dutch call it grass month and mayb that is why, in spite of what is hap Hing throughout our land, that i cann t put April at the top of my list. Cut ng grass is not my idea of a pleasant evening's work. it is too early to get much work done in the fields, too early to sit in a quiet thicket in a fence corner because the ground is too damp. It is too soon to realize that the rural countryside has height and color and depth and sweet smells and sounds. It is the month when all the pimples and zits of the winter come into focus, The barn appears to be falling down because of its drunken tilt to the east. The roofing paper has been blown off during a March storm and the roof sheathing is as bare as a wound where the scab has been ripped off before the healing process has begun. The fences need fixing. The potholes in the driveway have grown to pond proportions. The cement block stairwell leading down to the back door has shifted another half-inch. That will mean either a two-week chore for me or a couple of hundred dollars to a tradesman, The pesky rabbits have been at the young trees during this snowless winter and ringed the bark on at least two of them. The crazy starlings seem to have multiplied so much that the songbirds are frightened, Even the saucy wrens and the happy chickadees seem intimidated by these immigrants who waddle along the ground like drunken sailors ashore. Perhaps it is because – as you have by bob trotter •ightfully learned – I am basically lazy. The whole world around me is busy, busy, busy with spring and all I want to do is wait, sullenly, for the warmth of summer. The heat and humidity of summer never bother me. I like it. My wife says it is because there is too much of the devil in me; that's why I like the heat. And perhaps April is at the low end of my favorite list because, even more than the fall, it reminds me of the fact that 1 have seen many springs, that the blood runs slower now than it did a decade or two ago. The greatest tragedy of life is that thousands of men and women never have the opportunity to revel in success. We exist in weariness and labor. We do not farm; we are far- med. Thus April, flowing with life, is a stark reminder of our mortality. 'l'he message is that April is beautiful. It tells of the summer to corse but summer is not here yet. Should we do what the old kings and despots did'' They shot the messenger.