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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1965-03-18, Page 94 • Public Vitally Interested Next week the Huron County Council will have an opportunity to re -open the subject of location for the addition to the county home, if a majority of members choose to do so. Enough has been said about the reasons for further consider- ation of the subject, so we will not be- labor the issue. R is important to point out, how- ever, that the site of the county home addition is unquestionably a matter of deep concern to most residents of the county. Proof of such interest is the tre- mendous response this newspaper has re- ceived to its poll of opinion. By Mon- day of this week 857 persons had ex- pressed their desire to have the county home addition located at some point other than Clinton. Considering that the population of the town of Wingham and the townships of Howick, Turnberry, East Wawanosh and Morris, in which the circulation of this paper is preponderant, totals 9819 per- sons, the response represents nearly 10%. Again considering that the total popu- lation figures include children who could not be expected to respond, it appears that well over 20% of the adult residents have taken the trouble to express their written opposition to the Clinton site. In most opinion samples of this kind a 5% return is considered highly rep- resentative. There is no doubt about the wishes of the residents of the north- ern municipalities of the county. A Sensible Decision The general public will applaud the 4 town council for its decision to ban the sale and use of fireworks within the municipality. The Advance -Times has urged for many years that this step be taken in the interests of public safety, particularly where children are concern- ed. • The prohibitive by-law does not mean that youngsters will have to forego the pleasure of watching fireworks displays on the 24th of May. A permissive clause will be included to allow responsible ad- ults to apply for a permit to purchase and use fireworks. It has been the prac- • tice of many groups of parents in town to pool their money and put on one grand show for the neighborhood youngsters, and under the new regulations they will be able to continue this type of enter- tainment. The by-law will, however, make it il- legal for unlicensed persons, notably children, to set off firecrackers indiscrim- inately. Any person who reads the news- papers know that each year there is a costly toll of property damage and a rash of personal injury accidents because young children are allowed to play with fireworks. We believe the town council was wise to take action on a matter so vital to public safety. Guarding the Front Door • A surprising number of people in Canada are totally unaware of the im- portant role which is being carried out by Canadian forces stationed in Western Europe and serving under the North At- lantic Treaty Organization. Many more • who do know something of the Canadian force in Europe seem to have an idea that our Army and Air Force personnel are enjoying some sort of extended holiday abroad. It was for this reason that 20 mem- bers of the Canadian Weekly Newspapers Association journeyed to Europe three weeks ago in an effort to acquaint them- selves at first hand with the role of the Canadian forces abroad. Your editor was a member of the party. A week spent at the Army and Air Force bases is enlightening indeed. The ,most significant fact is that our men are stationed only a few miles from the bor- der of the East German zone, which, is, of course, completely under Soviet domin- ation. Their purpose in Europe is to provide the surest of all deterrents—the • means of instant retaliation in case Rus- sia should decide to move against the West. There is a widespread belief at the present time that Soviet Russia no longer poses any threat to the Western nations a belief which is not based on any rprovable facts. Russian ideology is vast- ly different from our own and if we think back only three or four short years we will recall the belligerent attitude of the Soviet leader in the United Nations. We were very worried about the possibility of war at that time and there is no sound *reason to believe, as yet, that Soviet policy has been materially altered. Our own Department of Defence et reasons, along with the other Western powers, that the surest way to invite war is to leave the door open for invasion— and the armed forces under NATO com- mand in Europe are the door keepers. Their job is to convince any potential aggressors that they do not have a single chance of successful military operations against the powers with which we are allied. Admittedly, all this preparedness would be of little value should an enemy commence a war by firing intercontinen- tal ballistic missiles, but there is the very real danger that a future war might be initiated on a "limited" basis, by the use manned aircraft and conventional ground forces employing small-scale nuclear weapons. it is the job of the NATO forces to see that such a limited war never gets started. Canadian soldiers and airforcemen, on the whole, appear to be enjoying the experience of spending some time in Germany and France, but without ex- ceptions they look forward to their re- turn to Canada. Europe offers many advantages, such as the opportunity for travel and sight-seeing, but the average Canadian serviceman cannot afford ex= tended holidays in countries where in- flation and tourism have raised the prices sharply in the past few years. In addition, living is often rugged for their wives and families, for many of them must live in civilian accommoda- tions with the European populations where housing is scarce and sometimes primitive. These men are serving us in a de- manding role and our party found that they are true ambassadors for our coun- try. Canada is respected. Off Base • Our remarks a few weeks ago in this column about the apparent unfairness of Department of Education grants, we find, were a few months late. You may recall that after a particularly stormy week we pointed out that grants to our schools are .paid on the basis of the days on which classes are open and that deductions are Made when schools must be closed. Since that time we have learned that the department came to the same con- clusion last September. Under present regulations the grants are not withheld during stormy weather when busses can- not operate. However, the school must, be kept open for the use of those students who are within walking distance. Town parents should keep this fact in mind for the next time their kids com- plain about having to attend when the country students are home by the fire. 4 THE WINGHAM ADVANCE - TIMES Published at Wingham, Ontario, by Wenger Bros. Limited W. Barry Wenger, President - Robert O. Wenger, Secretary -Treasurer Member Audit Dureau of Circulation; Member Canadian Weekly Newspapers Associ- ation; Member Canadian Community Newspapers Representatives Authorized by the Post Office Department as Second Class Ma11 and for payment of postage in cash Subscription Rate: One Year, $4.00; Six Months, $2.25, in advance U.S.A., $5.00 per year; Foreign rate, $5.00 per year Advertising Rates tin application TANK WATCH—Soldier of "B" company of 3e Batallion Royal 22e Regiment with the controls for an ENTAC guid- ed antitank missile keeps on watch for. "enemy" tanks during manoeuvres on Luneburg Heath, West Germany. His regiment has been converted to an antitank unit and is equipped with the ENTAC SS -11 antitank guided mis- siles and the 106 -millimeter recoiless rifle. Missile itself is guided to target by thin trailing wires and is housed in the square container at lower left. Utioncioainte Wingham, Ontario, Thursday, Mar. 18, 1965 SECOND SECTION SUGAR AND SPICE by Bill Smiley Humor isn't Funny For the past few weeks, I've been confronted by an enigma, This word does not mean, as one of my students told me, "Some- thing a nurse gives you in the hospital, before you have an op- eration." The enigma is this: what is humor? And the reason it confronts me is that some misguided people asked me to be one of the judges in a compe- tition involving humor. Equally misguided by an inflated ego, I accepted. I should have known better. Not that being a judge is all that difficult. I've judged public speaking contests with great success. Everyone agreed com- pletely with my decisions. Ex- cept those who didn't win, and their relatives and friends. I've judged races at the Sun- day School picnic. And had to fork over a dime to every run- ner because, "I wooda beat him if he haddena tripped me for shoved me, or beat the gun)." And there'd be no trick to judging a beauty contest, I'm sure. Although there's always the danger of getting a bust in the eye from some disgruntled contestant. Or even from some gruntled one. But judging humor is a horse of a different color. There's al- ways, in fact, the menace of misjudging the dark horse, which turns the whole thing into somewhat of a nightmare. The character of humor is as perverse and varied in its quali- ties as the character of women. Picking the winner in a humor contest is as tricky as pick- ing a wife. Everybody else thinks you made a bum choice. Do you want Mabel, who bowls you over on first acquain- tance? Or do you want Gert, Who will wear wen over the years? Do you want an hilarious companion for an evening or a quiet chuckle once a week for generations? Humor is in the eye of the beholder. It's no use. Let's get back to the enigma. What is humor? Ask the first person you meet, and he'll say, "It's anything that makes you laugh." Well, it's not, necessarily. People will howl with laughter from sheer nerves, giggle inter- minably from drink, or titter un- controllably from a story whose point they have missed com- pletely. People will laugh at practical- ly anything. Only yesterday, I was looking out the window. A young matron, known for her high opinion of herself, minced along, serene in her mink. .Right in front of our place, zip went her foot on a piece of ice. Mere words cannot describe the half -gamer she performed, the way she looked, flat on her tummy, fur hat over her nose. Only a camera could capture the wild, desperate look she threw around to see if anyone had spotted the spill. Only the great Charlie Chaplin could have imitated the frantic scram- ble to her feet, the desperate ef- fort to stroll off as though noth- ing had happened. Did I Laugh? Thought I'd bust a gut. I was glad she wasn't hurt, but like most people, got a tremendous belt out of seeing the deflation of a stuffed shirt. Or girdle, in this case. What is humor? I've no idea. For some, it is the bitter, even vicious, parody of a political cartoon. F'or others, it is the dry, pawky humor of the realist, the man who sees life without rose-colored glasses. For some, Reminiscing MARCH 1915 On Friday afternoon last the roof of Mr. John F. McCracken's residence on the Bluevale road was discovered to be in flames, supposed to have been caused by a spark from the chimney being fanned into a blaze by the stiff east wind blowing at the time. Being without fire production nothing could be done to save the building. Many men soon gathered on the scene from the neighborhood and the Village of Bluevale and worked most heroically to save the con- tents. Most of the furniture was taken out of the lower floor but very little could be got from the upstairs before the roof col- lapsed. The house was built about forty-five years ago by the late John McCracken Sr., Messrs. Maxwell and Murphy being the contractors of massive timber, and was, practically, in as good condition as the day it was built. Some young people engaged a sleigh last Monday to go to Teeswater but when they reach- ed the C.P.R. tracks at the brickyard, Mr. Geo. Howson, who is some athlete, thought life was too short to drive fur- ther, so he jumped out and headed for Teeswater up the track and arrived there some time before the sleighload ar- rived. We have not heard what was George's inspiration, some say he had a girl there and wished to spend a longer time with her. A meeting for those interest- ed in good roads and automo- biles will be held in the Coun- cil Chambers on Friday even- ing, March 19th, at 8 p.m., to re -organize the Wingham it is the stuff scrawled on the walls of a washroom. For oth- ers, it is the mechanical, canned wit of the professional comedi- an, the pun, the gag, the topical reference. All 1 can say is, "Never again." Even judging a baby contest would be child's play, to this. At least the entries would all be made of the same materi- al. Automobile Club for the ensu- ing year.. Mr. Wesley Patterson, who sold his farm on the 12th line of Wawanosh last week is mo- ving to town, where he will re- side. A large number of young people attended a social even- ing at the home of Mr. Thos. Stacey, Model Farm, Turn - berry, on Friday. Mr. and Mrs. Alex Reid and Mr. and Mrs. Bert Vansickle were in Ripley on Saturday, at- tending the funeral of Mrs. Murdock McLean. Mr. A. K. Copeland has re- ceived a card from his brother, Erwin, stating that the Sham- ois Vest, the Wingham High School sent him, was received in France today, Feb. 26, and will be very useful, as he is along with the boys in the trenches. MARCH 1929 Dr. H. W. Colborne was in Toronto Wednesday attending the Committee of Mental Hy- giene, a division of the Ont- ario Medical Association, of which he is a member. Sparks from a chimney set fire to the roof of Robert Mc- Lennan's brick house at Blue - vale about noon on Tuesday, and despite hard work of will- ing workers, the place complete- ly burned. Most of the down- stairs contents were saved, but practically everything upstairs went up in smoke. A woodshed at the rear of the house was saved. The loss is covered by insurance. Gordon Godkin, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Godkin, Turn - berry, almost lost his right hand by coming in contact with a circular saw. As it was, the joint and cords of the first finger were cut, making a ra- ther bad wound. He received treatment at Wingham Hospital and there are hopes of no peri manent injury. Miss Louise t .Hanna leaves this week for Montreal to ac- cept a position in the Royal Victoria Hospital, as Assistant Dietitian.