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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1996-01-31, Page 44—THE HURON EXPOSITOR, January 31, 1996 Your Community Newspaper Since 1860 pNN DALE - General Manager & Advertising Monger MARY MELLOR - Soles PAT ARMES - Office Manager DIANNE McGRATH - Subscriptions & Classifieds DAVE SCOTT - Editor GREGOR CAMPBELL - Reporter JOAN MELLEN typesetter, proofreoder BARB STOREY - distribution A Bowes Publishers Community Newspaper sSUBSCRIPTION RATES: LOCAL - 28.00 o yeor, in odvonce; plus 1.96 G.S.T. $EF ORS: - 25.00 a year, in odvonce, plus 1.75 G.S.T. id]. Stratford addresses: 28 00 a yeor, in odvance, plus 7.28 postage, plus 2.47 G.S.T Out -of Of -Area: 28.00 o year, in odvonce, plus 11.44 postoge, plus 2.76 G.S.T USA & foreign: 28.00 a year in odvonce, plus S76.00 postoge, G.S.F. exempt $UBSCRIPTION RATES: Published weekly by Signol•S,or Publishing at 100 Moin St., Seaforth. Publication moil regisnotion No. 0696 held of Seaforth, Onlorio. Advertising is occepled on condition /hot in the event of o typogrophicol error, the advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with o reasonable ollowonce for signature, will not be charged, but the bolooce of the odvertisement will be paid for of the opplicable rote. In the event of o typogrophicol error, advertising goods or services ot a wrong price, goods or services may. not be sold. Advertising is merely on offer to sell and may bJ withdrawn ot ony time The Huron Expositor is not responsible for the loss or domoge of unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other materials used for reproduction purposes. Changes of address, orders for subscriptions and undeliv- erable copies ore to be sent to The Huron Expositor. Wednesday, Jsnuary 31, 1996 Editorial and Business Offices - 100 Main Street.,Seoforth Telephone (519) 527-0240 Fox (519) 527-2858 Moiling Address . P.O. Box 69, Seaforth, Ontario, NOK two Member of the Conodion Communiy,Newspoper Association, Onlorio'Communiy Newspapers Association and the Ontario Press Council 1 Letters to the Editor Last pit bull bite in Huron in 1989 was .provoked_ by human car Editor, - • On that fateful day when the . Japanese - black bear, strolls down Main • Street„ - Scatorth, we' are all in big trouble. Just • because:: the Akita -Was bred specifically to- . fight these beast, I'm afraid . my Iwo will be completely ' useless. 'They. couldn't 'even' ' - protect me- from the mouse that sped dents~ my living . room floor last fall. • - ' So what am i trying forget' at? -This, just because 95 years ago there • was a dog • created. out -of 'several breeds, • to be the best in a dog ,fight; does not have much reflection' on how the -descendants of a similar breed are going to _- behave. behave. There is .no arguing that the media has scared us to death with Erie 'Pit Bull' stories while the hundreds of. other dog,. bites go unnoticed: Why? I'll .tell you why: • headlines." : - i got a hold of all dc>g bites ,retorted m, Huron County since 1989 last week to sec just _how bad this problem - really .wits. Do you' know what I found? One so-called pit bull bite back in 1989 by a • female. 'The official record ' states it as a provoked bite. • This means' the humans involved telt the dog was , justified in• the defense used. Out of 987 bites in all of 'Huron County only seven . were- from one of the breeds tagged 'Pit Bull'. They were number 18 on the. most bites list. The others,werc 113, 54, 29, etc. Many of the breeds were the ones often portrayed as the most loveable dogs. So my next step was to find proof in either direction on the other points printed in this paper the past two weeks. • Where did 1, go for this? The est Canada has to offer, the Canadian Kennel Club. For those wh'o don't know, these arc the 'big guys. In• order to pass any breed standard the club trying to get their breed recognized has to go to great pains to, draw up • • their proposal. Then after more red tape than this'paper has time to • print, the breed might or might not get recognized. So 1 think a thing like a breed that, `finds- it hard to distinguish children from other dogs,' will not by any means go unnoticed. This is in the standard of • the two breeds that are often mistaken for the ancient 'Pit Bull'. American - Staffordshire' Terrier 'Dog fighting was outlawed in most states ).h' ' '1900, and breeders of th Staffordshire turned fir attentions to producing a more 'docile animal that would function well as family ' , pet and guardian.' Staffordshire Bull Terrier: `From the past history of the -' Staffordshire Bull Terrier, the modern dog draws 'his character of indomitable courage, high intelligence, and tenacity. This coupled with his, affectionfor his friends, and children in particular, his off-duty quietness -and trustworthy stability, makes ` him the foremost all-purpose dog.' - So not quite the definition of the monster fife media would like us to,belicve. 1 ask other peoplewhatthey think of this fictional breed. No one liked them, but the interesting thingis none of them had' .dvet met one either.` Seafoi`th docs need a municipal law. For instance, any dog that* has bitten anywhere off its own property not, defending its master, should, indeed be muzzled when ut in public. But to . single out one breed because of a media, -hyped reputation . is just,old-fashioned and out of date. I'm certain • the people of Seaforth have more ingenuity than to just follow the crowd even if, they happen to be marching the . -wrong way. P.S. Any dog ovct 30Ibs is 'a 'lethal weapon' in the hands of the wrong owner. Worried about our best friends' future, Anita Hansen Seaforth -Old wedding photos needed for 1996 edition The 1996 Wedding. Edition is looking hack - hack o 1980 and before! (1 you were married in or bclore 1980, ,. we'd like - to use your wedding photo in this year's bridal special (or perhaps you have a Lovely photo from your parents' weckling, or even your grandparents'!) Photos' may be sent to the Goderich Signal -Star (Box 220, Gtxlcrich, N7A 4136), or, if you prefer, you may drop • the photo Litt at IIse Huron Expositor office to he copied. The copy will dig be sent on to the $ignal=Star. Where original photos arc sent, please ensure there is a lull address on the back of the photo or on the envelope. The deadline lite the 1996 Wedding Edition is Feb. 14, so start looking through your albums! If you have any questions, call Mona at, the. Goderich Signal -Star 024- 5707), or,your local paper. Shop class back in the good 'ol days Tech 21 is a remarkable program in only its -second year of existence at the Huron board of ed that allows elementary school students the chance to experience high tech gadgetry with practicaLpurposes first- hand. It's thc shop class of the 1990s. - It made me a tittle envious while i was there chocking it out since some of the stuff students in Grade 7 were learn- ing wasn't even around when 1 was going to school at Ryerson. But then I had to stop and pause for a•minute of reflection and silence for my old shop class, which along with drive- in movies, vinyl • records and stubby beer bottles is no longer part r)f this futuristic world that's about to enter the Second Millennium, Warning: The rest of this column contains words- and phrases which some readers may find offensive. , Okay, everybody put on your -goggles! No longer will students at SPS hear the void of Ictal shop great Keith Snell (or \1r. Snell as we knew him hack then) say "Come on -over here for a minute, we're going to learn how to use the hand - Some of the best blood and - guts stories 1 ever heard came . out of that class. And froin what 1 heard when' I lived in. Toronto; clvcryonc in Ontario must have had -the same shop - teacher in elementary school. In a laboratory somewhere they clone • the "perfect • shop teacher" with the morbid imagination of Stephen King and the story -telling ability o1' a sea captain. - "Watch what you're doing when you push that board through the band saw or .we'll be picking you up off the floor (and putting your finger in a freezer Niggle)." And for every machine and every tool in the shop, there was . a story of how some - unfortunate (rear or. unreal) student maimed .themselves in a bizarre accident. Even the power huller which looks relatively-harnitess couhl potentially he a killing machine. If you.pushed a utile fix, hard on that key tag you were pol- ishing, that innocent buffer which looked like a Persian cat on a catnip trip would plant its teeth in• that plastic key tag and slstsot it across the room. God he p - you. if you were in the Zine of lire. Mr. Snell said there was a pile of flying key- tugs that he Lound on top of -the cupboards at the other side of the room: (I. should I.- should have put a stip ladder up there and saved tuysell' the trouble oI' making my own key tag -1. one thing .oI' wonder for me in. shop.. class was the _"pimic • button," -a reel button -on ;the • wall by the 'door -which would kill the power in all machines in the shop in case of an Scott's Thoughts by Dave Scott emergency. 1 don't recall it ever -being used but 1 used to imagine some kid wearing a tie to class and getting it caught in the drill press and people div- ing over tables. to hit the panic button. But luckily, we never really had any casualties in the shop that l can remember, exC; pt for maybe a few people who stayed in the finishing room a little too long with the door closed. - �� ho knows, I- might have been a successful welder today. instead of writing tier a.news- palx`r il.it weren't liar the hors. riGe, account told by our .King of Suspense shop teacher. "Come. -on over here for a miiiutc, we're going Darn how to weld." - Mr. Snell - sparked up that oxygen/acetylene (which I had to look up in the dictionary, - and incidently came across the word "armed tapeworm" which is: a tapeworm leaving two, -rows of hooks an the head. It is u dangerous pest -of man, especially in European coun- tries. Its larvae.- callyd bladder wornts, are the cause of measly pork - ewww, yuck! Well; .1 warned • you. this might get .offensive) torch - (is" anyone still following?) Okay,- the teacher sparks up -the welding torch. The class takes a step hack. (i'tn already at the back). All you could hear is the hiss of the torch and the living something -or -other being, scared out of us. - - - The thing that .got to me the - most - was him :saying if the Ilaine from the torch ever travelled back • inside those tubes Iodic tanks (l still don't• know if that's even possible), "you .can kiss your girlf'riends next dery goodbye because this whole wing of the school• would be blown sky-high." .That did it. No welding career. - - • .Luckily I escaped Grade 7 and 8 shop class with not so much as a sliver which is sur- prising since. I once- put• my head through about six panes • of - storm windows : (which might explain a lot of things to some people). - gut that's another story. . . Cell phone user notices gap in Seaforth service Dcar Editor, Our Expositor of Jan. 2-1 arrived here tcxlay, and as always we look, liirward. to receiving it. . Your front page carries Iwo sharply .different points of view on the prolxt'.e d Bell -Mobility on, ' As i read both the articles by Dave Scott, two- -points immediately come .(o my attention: '1. Mr.. and Mrs. Murray. were given - -the ,first -opportunity to havy',thc tower on their property and receive Letters $62,50( over the nest 25 - years, but they turned the offer down, and now the. tower will he in their sired anyway . but - Mr, Shea- will' receive the S62,5tif}. - 2. Mr. Murray has been •- using a cellular• phone, • operating through Bell Mobility towers on other Can we afford a Di:atr Editor, • With • the recent linanciai ,cut; in the Huron County , road budget, leaving county. roads unplowed atter 1 .am and .the closing of branch libraries throughout thc- county due to lack of -funds, it - may be time, prior to the 1996 County of Huron budget . approval, to determine whether .county residents can afford to finance the people's property without too much concern. Now he !eels threatened that he will live in the vicinity of one. 11 -you • look at a Bell \nobility- • map oI- Southern Ontario, the arca under discussion -is a lighter blue - colour.,- indicating a 'fringe area'. • Another- toner in _ the . arca, is definitely rtes Jed. -When I drive from' 'fhittqu to Scaliirlh, if 1 wain to call to my home • in Seati>rth, 1 -must call bJtween Listowel and Monkion and use long distance. 1f 1 wait to- get • closer I am out of range. it also seems a little. peculiar that \•lr. Murray accepts the 500,00(1 watt radiation - front - the . txtlicc_ tower with no worries, but -gets so upset • when Bell • Mobility wants to use 100,000 watts!! `It would be interesting. tci see how many people would • sign his petition now that the facts have pec n imide available. • . : Yours truly. " Gordon Churchward Scali/rth retiree Florida county museum in Huron? operation of -a 'non-essential - service', such as the Huron Cciunty Museum. - In 1995, county -residents contributed S.308,819 of their municipal - taxes to the museum's operation of which 5262;220 went to salaries and employee. benefits. The province contributed $34,0(X) in .1995. Total expenditures to operate the Huron County Museum in 1995 were S437.920. - According to ' county records, 23,139 people visited the museum in. 1995. If you divide the number of visitors- . b) the cost of operating the museum, almost S 19 per visitor is paid. through taxes' just to be open. If you feel as l do that your taxes could be used fir—more 'essential services' (in the county. I suggest you contact your local council members prior to the regular.' meeting of county council on March 28 when the 1996 budget will be approved and let • them •know that you would like your hard-earned taxes redirected to more necessary needs: W.P. Fy.denchuk Huron Park Welcome Home organized for WWII veterans - FROM THE. PAGES OF THE HURON EXPOSITOR FEBRUARY 7, hitt, . . LOCAL BRIEFS - Mr. William J: Elliot, son .of Mr. William. Elliot, town clerk, has passed his first year cxamin- ation at - the Ontario. Agricul- tural College, with flying col- ours, taking honours in nearly every subject. , The ,many friends of Mr. Andrew Smith, formerly til' Egmondvillc, will be plcaud to hear that he is spending the winter very pleasantly -with friends in St. Paul. He is enjoy- ing good health; tie likes the city, and is having a good time generally. He has a son and daughter residing.in St: Paul. The, ice harvest has com- menced, and \nr. D:D. Wilson has a number. of teams hauling. it from the Egmondvillc-dam. The Seaforth hockey players went to Goderich on Monday night, and defeated the team of that town by nine goals to one. Two rinks of our curlers went to Goderich on Thursday of last week, and defeated the Curlers of that town by 27 shots. On Monday, two rinks went to Stratford, to play in the Ontario tankard series, .winning from Lucknow by 16 shots. • The • McKillop Board of Health . met in • the Queen's Hotel, Seaforth, on Monday. The secretary was authorized to• notify all school trusters to clean the wells ..and water closets by the first of May. . FEBRUARY 11. 1921 McKILLOP - A very pleasant social evening was spent at the, home of Mr. and' Mrs. Thomas O'Rourke, 611i concession, on Thursday evening, February In the Years Agone Jvc-c-t.A 3rd, when about- 100 neigh- bours and friends gathered to spend an evening with them before they removed to their new home in Logan Township: During the evening Mr. and Mrs. O'Rourke were called 'lorward when Nlrs. Wetistcr read an address and 'Messrs. Gordon Webster and Joseph Brev.ster made the presentation of a substantial purse. LOCAL BRIEFS - Mr. Robert Bell.and Mr. Earl Bell are in Columbus, Oleo, this wcekattcnding an exhibition of tractors being held in that city. HOCKEY - Our boys have yet to experience a.deleat-this section. in the second • round here Tuesday evening, Woodstock were obliged to take the short end of a 4-2 score. The score just- about indicates the play, the consen- sus of opinion. amongst the spectators being that the home tear could droduce a much better brand of hockey than they exhibited. The return game on Friday evening in Woodstock should be a hummer. FEBRUARY 8, 1945. Organisation for the district "Welcome Home" of our vet- erans has reached the point where the municipal councils interested have been asked to meet together and appoint a committee of the whole to take charge of the •affair. - At the executive meeting of the Legion Monday evening, it was decided to have thc secre- tary write the several municipal bodies. inviting them to a joint meeting to be held in the coun- cil chamber`, Seaforth; on the evening of Wednesday, Feb. 13th, • / • This "Welcome Home" is, apparen'ly, to some. long over- due. with our boys nearly all Ironic, or who will be by Marsh 19th, public sentiment is all hehir cj a real honest-to- gooxlncss expression of our thanks to the boys and gratifi- cation in their safe return. In the absence of President Basil Duncan, Second Vice - President Harold Finnigan occupied the chair. . * * • • The annual meeting of the. Seaforth Library Board was held in the Library Monday night. lltc treasurer's report for 1945 showed a surplus of receipts over expenditures of S74.34. The librarian reported 142. - new• volumes added in 1945, making a total number of books in the library of 4,074. There were 309 members and a total book circulation in the exi.e s of 9.000. . 1 he election of officers for 1946 was as follows:. Chair- man, P.B. Moffatt: secretary, James A. Stewart: book com- mittee, Miss S1i. McLean, Miss .Alice Daly, Mrs. C.E. Smith, Rev. H.Y. Workman: property couunittce Miss M.E. Turnbull, Dr. NLW. Stapleton: Miss G. Thompson, the librarian, was complimented by the board on her efficiency. FEBRUARY 11, 1971 Driving snow Tuesday morn- ing brought traffic 10 a stand- still on area roads as visibility was reduced to zero. • Wednesday wasn't any better. Snow which fell intermittently through the night filled freshly plowed roads. Picked up by high winds the driving snow made travel of any kind.dan- gerous. Area schools released pupils in mid-morning Tuesday to permit buses to complete their rounds before roads were com- pletely filled and to avoid being laced with rural students stranded in school or town. In some cases pupils were quickly taken home again within min- utes of arrival at the school. Seaforth buses didn't try to—v--- go out Wednesday. Some buses serving Huron Centennial School at Brumfield operated on main roads but for many rural students it was another day at home. The enforced holiday was the eleventh day in which students have been absent for all or most of the day. Separate schools may be used for social functions as well as meeting by parish councils, Catholic Women's ' Leagues, Catholic Youth Organizations and similar grounds without a fee was 'the decision reached by .the Huron -Perth Roman Catholic Separate School Board when an aincndmcnt was made to the by-law covering the use of schools.