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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1983-07-06, Page 8Page 4 Times -Advocate, July 6, 1983 Times Established 1873 Advocate Established 1881 Amalgamated 1924 dvocate Serving South Huron, North Middlesex & North Lambton Since 1873 Published by J.W. Eedy Publications Limited LORNE EEDY Publisher JIM BECKE'TT Advertising Manager BILL BATTEN Editor HARRY DEVRIES Composition Manager ROSS HAUGH Assistant Editor DICK JONGKIND Business Manager Published Each Wednesday Morning at Exeter, Ontario - Second Class Mail Registration Number 0386. Phone 235-1331 SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Canada $21.00 Per year; U.S.A. $56.00 C.W.N.A., O.C.N.A. CLASS 'A' and 'ABC' $ Keep getting there first Provincial police in Middlesex, Oxford and Elgin counties hauled a total of 1,503 vehicles off to the side of the road in a seven-day period recently to administer roadside breathalizer tests. Marty of those drivers may have been slightly miff- ed at the inconvepience of the situation, but in reality they should have been happy to oblige. The result of the random tests was that 93 of those 1,503 drivers were taken off the road. Forty were subse- quently charged with impaired driving and another 53 were given 12 -hour suspensions. . The remaining 1,410 drivers were allowed to con- tinue their travels and had the consolation of knowing that the chances of meeting up with an impaired driver were greatly diminished. "You might say there were 93 accidents waiting to happen and we got there before they occurred," commented one of the officers involved in the crackdown which was implemented due to an inor- dinate number of fatal and serious injury accidents in the three -county area since the beginning of the year. A total of 26 people were killed in 21 motor vehicle accidents in the first six months of the year and 67 per- cent of the deadly crashes were related to alcohol abuse. The crackdown will continue until there is an ap- preciable reduction in the rate of alcohol related BLUE RIBBON AWARD 1980 1;.,:.14, +CNA BLUE RIBBON AWARD 1981 accidents. For the 26 people who have died, the crackdown has come too late to save them and the innocent vic- tims, at least those who survived, must wonder why the action wasn't taken.sooner to make the highways a s fer place and as free as possible from those who rk the lives of others by drinking before getting ehind the steering wheels of their vehicles. The fact is that most people who drink have at one time or another driven on the gamble that they could get to 'their intended destination safely and without police detection. Once accomplished, the feat is tried again and again. Once they recognize that the odds are against them escaping police detection, a large number will aban- don the gamble. In th" case in point, the 93 drivers who were caught will probably think twice before repeating the offence. Another real advantage is that the other 1,410 will recognize the fact that they could bestopped again and so they too will think twice before drinking and then ,driving. In that regard, it may be fair to assume that the crackdown prevented many more than 93 accidents oc- curring and the police action should continue until such time as all drinking drivers realize the odds against detection are too great on which to gamble. Divide and conquer Divide and conquer could aptly describe the situa- tion that appears to be developing in the agriculture sector of Ontario. At farm meetings, the most common subjects discussed are Bill C653 regarding farm credit and the provincial government's proposed 100 percent farm tax rebate. The latter is tearing apart the approximately 25,000 member Ontario Federation of Agriculture. Grumblings have been heard from some corners that when agriculture minister Dennis Timbrell and deputy minister Duncan Allen came into office they didn't like having to face this strong agriculture lob- by group. It has been suggested the proposed farm tax rebate is one tool being used to fracture the OFA. • Whether the intention was deliberate or not, while the OFAs executive have accepted the proposal many "grassroot" members have been adamantly opposed to the idea. The crunch I come in July as at the OFAs mon- thly meeting i' or nto, the opinions of the members will be hear . when individual counties indicate the reaction to the 'farm tax rebate. In Huron a vote was taken earlier this year when the majority of 800 farmers turned down the proposal. In Perth, the general feeling is one of acceptance, but members are being contacted for their opinions. Whatever happens at the July meeting, farmers should accept the final outcome and support the OFA in its strong lobbying efforts. "Divided we fall, united we stand." Glad to let Syd relive youth There's often a danger in indicating a desire to return to "the good, old days" and one of the most recent victims of that is Grand Bend Public School prin- cipal Syd Fletcher. Syd, who writes a weekly column adja- cent to this one, was remembering the hard work of his youth in assisting on the family farm in the annual haying opera- tion ..nd he learned that something has been lost from those days when the whole family had a part in bringing in the year's crop. lie referred to the "pure slugging" in- volved in taking the bales off the baler and stacking them high on the wagon and then stumbling through the barn loft piling the bales as they dropped off the elevator. • Having spent a recent weekend involv- ed in just such an activity. I can assure Syd it is not totally a lost art, and I have the aches and pains to back up that contention. In six weeks, or so. the second cut is coming off the field and in the interest of allowing Syd to return to the gratifying feeling of the exhaustion which sets in after the last Toad is put in the loft (it hits me shortly after the first hale) I'm going to allow him to take my place. No excuses now. Syd, it's your oppor- tunity to regain that "something" that has', been lost from the days of your youth. • • • • • Syd's, column probably brought back memories (not so fond for those who have realistic memories) of the haying chores for many of our readers. While balers that throw the bales onto wagons now take much of the work out of the task, our forefathers weren't very..Or behind in designing methods to reduce the human labor. • One of the annual pleasures of summer at Winchelsea washeadingover to Uncle Wib's nearby farm to watch the haying operation. While many a load had been built by men pitching the hay onto the BATT'N AROUND with the editor wagons by hand, that method -gave way to the use of those giant hay -loaders which moved along the windrows and picked up the hay and carried it up its Tong expanse to be dropped onto the wagon with some steering assistance from a man on the load. Rope slings were placed on the wagons' and the load was divided into sections, each section having its own sling. The wagon was then taken into the barn loft and each sling in turn was hooked on- to a pulley system. A horse was then hook- ed onto the system and slowly walked down the gangway until the sling loaded with hay reached the top of the barn. A mechanism then carried it across the loft and it was swung into its desired spot and tripped to fall to its intended location. One of the most exciting aspects for the youthful viewers was in watching Uncle Wib take the wagon out of the barn loft. The horses, of course. had been unhitch- ed -and the wagon pushed to the edge.of the gangway and started to roll down the incline. Unclg Iib was hanging onto the the tongue and steering as the wagon picked • up speed in its descent and his short legs had all they could do to keep up until he reached that point where he quickly turn- ed the tongue and sent the wagon freely on its way to end up in a vacant spot amid the trees, fences, parked vehicles and Aunt Lulu's flower bed.' It was a sixth sense that never failed him, although it aka), constituted the excitement of a thrill show for those of us who spent the sheltered days of our youth in Winchelsea. Well, actually there were other exciting things that went on in Winchelsea, but that's a story best left untold...or at least delayed until fall kindles memories of leaf houses. • • • • * One aspect of haying that remains con- sistent through the years is the dependence on weather conditions, and this year's harvest for many was a welcome respite from the tribulations of last season when frequent rains turned the chore into a headache. This year's long dry spell was welcom- ed by those who had hay to get in, but they were certainly operating at cross- purposes with other farmers who wanted rain for grain, beans and corn crops that were suffering from lack of moisture. There are those who would like to con- trol the weather, but they probably haven't taken time to consider the ramifications of such a task. No matter what they produced, it wotildn't suit everydne, and the chance of even attain- ing the wish of the majority would pro- bably be difficult. Can you imagine sitting on a commit- tee responsible for establishing the weather for any given area on any given day? No thanks! c "She's out helping Lalonde stimulate the•economy with her charge card." Belong or get out I am a very divided character. That used to be called mixed-up. This week, I had planned to come out flatly and make a lot of new enemies and new friends by taking a stand on the Cruise missile and, maybe a little shot at abortion. But my Cruise thing got all mixed up' with the Fourth St. Fusiliers fightingtown hall, and I madene remark at a din- ner party which began such an abortion fight bet- ween two old friends, that I got scared and retreated into my carapace to write about something we all agree on: the weather. The weather is lousy. You can write that at almost any time of the year in Canada and make friends. It's too hot or too cold. There's too much rain or not enough. There was no fall and now there's no spring. O.K. That • dispenses with the weather. Now, I was going to say that we should test the Cruise missiles in Canada, which the U.S. is going to ask us to do, despite all the mealy-mouthed evasions of our P.M. and our Foreign affairs man, MacEachin, perhaps the only man in the govern- ment who can out -mealy the P.M. My argument was to go something like this. After all, we are a member of NATO to which we pro- vide planes that crash, tanks that you couldn't sell to Afghanistan, rusty, ob- solete ships, and as little of ournational budget as possible. But if you belong to a military alliance, you belong or get out. You can't be a little bit preg- nant. So let's give the �1. Sugar and Spice Dispensed By Smiley retold a snippet ftlom a novel I'd read, in which a hunter shoots a pregnant antelope, tears out the fetus, and eats it raw, claiming, "It's the hest part of the meat." Next thing I knew I was Yanks something we have lots of - wide, open spaces - and let them test their lit- tle monsters. Then the local town engineer came up with a plan to rebuild my street, and I swung right around. His plan included cutting down a dozen magnificent maples (the press report said "removing several. old trees"; would you say a dozen was several?, and removing a sidewalk where many children play.) The hell with it, I said. Let the Yanks use their own wide open spaces to test missiles; and let the town engineer cut down all the trees around his own lot. I was equally prepared to leap fearlessly into the abortion fray; abortion is necessary, but not necessarily abortion. We had some people in for a roast beef dinner the other night, and 1 casually sitting between two ladies, making like a tennis spec- tator as the abortion ball flew back and forth bet- ween them until the only thing I could offer was some rare roast beef. So. I'll have to push those topics off for a bit until I am not emotionally involved. Anyway, it's nicer to deal with peuple than ideas. The people may be a little crazy, but when you mix people and ideas, you have insanity. Many people have answered my request to "drop a line." David and Ivy Enns of Dalemead, Alta., are fed up to the ears with what they call Bureaucratic B.S. They've been fighting Revenue Canada for three years over tax refunds. "Yes, we have found it is vary hard to find any honest men. We have been trying to find our nine honest people; unfor- tunately we- have not succeeded." Jean Groom reads me in the Dutton Advance. She and her sisters apparent- ly had a crush on former editor Herb Campbell. when they were kids. "Back to your last column - "A Dispirited Corpse" - which really hit the nail on the head...Jack (her hus- band) goes up the wall when the forces are men- tioned on T.V. or in the papers. i'he sight of Trudeau is enough to raise his blood pressure to the limit...We can understand why your brother has left Canada in disgust over the mess the forces are in." Mrs. Groom's letter is warm and friendly and so nice that I would blush to repeat some of what she says. Incidentally, that col- umn brought more mail and phone calls, and angry, but not at me, than any for a long time. And another pleasant letter • from Myrtle Holmen of Wayne, Alta., concerning my column "To Bee or Not to Bee" in which I suggested, somewhat tongue in cheek, that humans could learn a lot from the bees and the ants. "Your daily pattern of the human race sounds so glum and uninteresting. A person's life and attitude make a difference in whatever they are doing." I agree. I was just trying to wake people up a bit who insist on living in self-made cells. Lunch still in place My sailing experience has been somewhat limited. Once I helped lift up •a tarp to propel our canoe across an Algonquin Park lake when the wind was in the right direction, and another time I found I could steer a pretty mean course with the paddle boats at Storybook Gardens, but I'm afraid I'm not really qualified to sail the Bluenose yet. Therefore I was a little nervous when 1 got. the chance to sail on one of the yachts at Grand Bend. After all, I got seasick ridingon the "Octopus" at the Forest Fair. What would happen when we started bouncing up and down over the bounding main? Amidstthe scorn of my fellow teachers who the boat was heeled over nicely 1 found that 1 was thoroughly enjoying Perspectives had alsi been invited on the expedition I opted for a `gravol pill' fifteen minutes before we left. Amazing though. Even though the wind was up to about 10 knots (how's that for natural language) and By Syd Fletcher « ..s myself. There was a tremendous sensation of speed even though the speed gauge only registered between 6 and 7 knots (about 8 miles an • hour for you landlubbers). Though the water was a bit choppy aI couldn't believe how solid the boat felt. The skipper said that there was over two tons of lead in the keel so that even if the boat was knocked down by a wild blast of wind that it would • always right itself. Very reassuring. An hour out from shore and one of my fellow novices whispered, "Got any more of those pills?" • Great stuff, -that 'gravol'. Everybody made it back to shore, lunch still firmly in place. Would you believe, still in place? And as for sailing, I've become a believer. A fan- tasic sport !