HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1976-02-19, Page 4.1'I D DAY. P*UA*Y le, t$71
ease usds ispsusiii
•,liVehorde no • dlepirtie tido Ontario
Wank iIs�%. Frisk NNW" .ishea'
M�!t
Oithwiers II, billion hilt* care
thidglt�t whist lot sisshsd. hut his method •
islwasimees..
agar.lean a hw hospitals. turning
ps$iiitt$ out • onto the streets. and
f+orciig thousands of health . care
workers onto the broad lines we save
little: if any, moue~ in the end. •
Even though .Ontario now has the
•
highest premium rate for health in-
surance in the country - about SW per
year for a family .. the SSW 'million
collected by premiums accounts for
only 1e percent'of the f3 billion health
expenditure. •
In the faceof such a massive budget,
. Pie. Miller claims he will save ISO
tmilliotn dollars by closing hospital
bsds..but inattual fact. by the time the
patients artetreated at other facilities,
**saving would be much less, in fact a
mere pittance.
Ontario's doctors ' have taken an
admirable stand. .settling for only an
eight percent increase in --fees, but
savings must also be fold in oMai'
areas. ... .
•\
For one thing. it hits bs that
too many people 'are sing tort
about illness that in past years would
have been treated in the hone, ,1f tl
government immediately place S
minimum surcharge on patients for the
first. two or three calls per month to a
doctor. then perhaps the numbs, of
visits would be cut down. . .
Maybe the private :insurance com-
panies, should be allowed back into the
field again. as they' ran the system
very efficiently before OHIP was
forced on us.
Perhaps some incentive could be
made to doctors to cut down the
number of X Rays they order. or the
large number of unnecessary lab tests.
or longer than necessary stays in
hospitals. -
For too long. nearly everyone in this
lovely province 'of ours have thought
that health are costs were paid by
some unknown benefactors. but with
the costs now eating 30 cents out of
every provincial .dollar. it's time we
did some rethinking,
Sugar and Spite By Bill Smiley
The cold snap
There's nothing -like a real cold soap to
make you realise bow fragile is our
civilisation. We had a dandy recently. with•
temperatures far . below zero, in real
(Fahrenheit) degrees for quite a few days.
It brought the usual plethora of dead
batteries. burst water pipes, and ancient
furnaces giving up the ghost. •
i am firmly convinced that if Canada had
a solid mouth 01130 -below temperatures. the
country would fall apart, physically.
mentally and morally.
- There's something insidious and fearful
about a prolonged cold spell. You sense that
some giant beast is outside there. creeping
implacably nearer, silent and monstrous.
,until the final moment of horror when
claws of cold steel will clutch your throat.
and your eyeballs will pop out and hang on
your cheeks like frozen grapes.
Our house is normally a toasty one. The
merest touch of a finger to the thermostat.
and we laugh at the cold. Not so this time.
First it was a draft around the feet. We
threw an old coat down at the back door.
where the beast was intruding his icy
. tentacles. The temperature went down.
Next, while the thermostat read 70, the
thermometer read 50, and wouldn't go
higher. We closed off the back kitchen.
wbere there is a sink and a johnny. It got
colder.
We retreated -upstairs to the TV room.
and plugged in an electric heater. and
waited for the cold spell to end. The ther-
mometer plunged. The icicles on the south
root took on awesome proportions.
During a fpray to the kitchen for food.' I
checked the downstairs powder room. In
the sink. where the tap habitually drips.
there were a perfect stalactite and a per-
fect stalagmite. not quite meeting. In the
toilet bowl. there was a sheet of ice. glare.
six inches thick, and two black squirrels.
forced out of the attic by the cold. playing
their version of road hockey.
Outside lurked the Abominable iceman.
Downstairs the furnace coughed valiantly,
like a man with -emphysema and one lung.
The thermometer read Si.
Beginnings of panic. The furnace -men
weren't coming until next Thursday. You
make appointments with them months
ahead. like a dentist.
Call the plumber. "Nope. nobody here on
a Saturday. and besides. we don't do fur-
nace work any more. CaII your oil dealer."
Called oil dealer. Situation getting grim.
Thoughts of moving to a motel. Certainty
that car wouldn't start. and taxi as easy to
capture as lost virginity.
Oil dealer chuckles jovially. "Are your
filters clean?"
My what?"
Your filters. If they're dirty. your fur-
nace can't breath."
Ask wife. Filters clean? She says the
furnace man usually puts new ones in, but
last year he said they didn't need changing.
Tell fuel dealer. He chuckles heartily.
"They should be cleaned once a month. Try
taking them out altogether'for a while. and
call me back."
"How do you take them out?" Diagram
given over phone. By some miracle. I find
and remove the filters. They are black as
Toby's you -know -what.
_ An' hour later. temperature up to 5t.
Another hour later. up to 60. Cheers of
Victory. Put electric heater, face down. in
toilet bowl of downstairs johnnj+. Emerge
from TV room redoubt.
Four p.m. Saturday. Sun shining. Ven-
ture forth. Car starts. Go downtown.
Everyone jolly. Horror stories abound.
Colleague spent four hours.and $28 getting
car started. Friend had all upstairs pipes
burst. water. water everywhere. Neigh-
bor's almost -new furnace conked out at 1
a.m. Another colleague with brand-new
house. 'brand new electric heating system,
was able to get temperature up to only 17
degrees. with help of fireplace. Feel better.
Own suffering trivial.
Return home in good mood. Wife furious.
Let rotten cat in to get warm. Rotten cat
showed gratitude by committing No. 1 and
No. 2 all over back kitchen. where ice in
john now melted. But house a lovely. balmy
68. The Beast once more defeated.
But he'll be back. And down deep. I don't
really trust our technology to cope with
Him. Furnaces. for example.
They're much too complicated for an
ordinary nincompoop to deal with. They
require a guy with a Grade 10 education
and a skill with inanimate things.
Second Iasi time 1 called the furnace
man. the furnace was dead. ,Not even a
cough. "Try pushing the starter button," he
suggested.
Now. I knew some cars and most aircraft
have a starter button. i thought furnaces
just started.up on their own, when the cold
weather came along.
After three trips down cellar and three
trips back up to the phone. I located the
starter buttons. two of them. I pushed.
Nothing. I pushed and pushed and pushed.
Zilch.
Called the guy hack. He said he'd come.
Got home from work. the furnace was
humming. asked my wife what he did.
"He pushed th" starter button!" she said.
deliberately and witheringly. That cost me
twelve bucks.
Hut I. and my contemporaries. will have
'the last laugh when we run out of oil and
gas and go back to coal furnaces. Then
we' II see who the experts are. We know that
coal furnaces are not inanimate creatures.
They respond to a couple of hangs about the
ears with a shovel.
1
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dater • James E. FNrgereld
Advertising director . eery L. Heist
Sewer* meweger • J. lltwrard Wien
News see* • !bey CMrlt
Subscription Notes:
Caned. • 511 peer peer
Y.S.A. • 1111.1tt
Siem copy • .11k
'rade! you 101d • O
Ow' order
wiak 9111
"F►ee "for all •
The writerwill forgive me. I hope, for having singled out
the letter of Mrs. Caroline Cartwright from the,' many, who
have defended give-aways. contests. bonus enclosures and
other forms of gimmick merchandising tha( are so much
the rage in the home -maker's set.
I selected it because Mrs. Cartwright it clearly a literate.
intelligent and alert woman. It astonishes me that' a person
with those qualities should defend this lame -brained
philosophy of purchasing in a day when there's so much
concern over rising prices. . '
. While every index is at an all-time peak, my
correspondent writes of "free prizes" as if they were part of
a carefree child's game to wile away the tedious hours.
The fact is that Mrs. Cartwright is. first, a mark, a -patsy.
in carnival parlance. a second-class sucker and secondly --
what's Worse—she epitomizes the passive public that makes
any genuine effort to ground the soaring cost of living a
hopeless task.
So long as the majority SA women shoppers have this
uncritical attitude there isn't a hope in heaven of returning
to anyhonestly competitive system of retail selling in which
the basic considerations are quality and price: -
How can you expect even the most ethical manufacturers
or retailers to be primarily concerned with such old-
fashioned considerations when the customers give no in-
dication that they will respond?
A supermarket manager writes me: "There's little en-
couragement to make price -cutting our chief concern when
the majority of women are more interested in packaging
and getting something for nothing."
A product. he tells me. that is reduced in price never
moves as fast as one that's dolled -up in a new box or bottle
or that offers a free trip to the housewife who can best
describe its Merits in 50 words or less.
The fact is. of course. that such men are extremely
sensitive to their customers' desires. The consumer is
capable of being queen. of .creating truly competitive price
reductions. if she evinces -any interest whatever in com-
parative buying.
The onus. in short. is on the. Mrs. Cartwrights of the land.
To retreat into the reasoning. "Why not take a chance?" is
surely a form of ignorance or irresponsibility. Harsh words.
maybe. but it is they who dictate the trend of marketing for
us all.
This is not just some typical husbandly grumbling. It is
the considered conclusion of people who know what it's all
about.
"Just imagine what would happen." asks one of the
Better Business Bureaus. "if, for only one month, Our -
chasers bought only goods that had no 'gimmicks' to them ---
no 'free bonuses', no 'gift certificates'. no 'free' or nearly
free suits of clothes. no silverware. china or what have.you:
joist straight merchandising or service at fair and com-
parable prices.
**Soon it would be found." the statement goes on. "that
better values would be possible: there would be straight-
forward competition. which should mean lower prices.
"Take. for example. a box of detergent. If there were no
'gifts' in the box there would be either more detergent at a
lower price or the same amount in a smaller box. if the
latter. there would' be a 'saving in' the cost of the box; a
further saving in the cost of the "gifts'. a saving in the costs
of assembly. a saving in the shipping charges. a saving in
the size of the cartons in which the goods are shipped and a
still further saving of space."
As for Mrs. Cartwright's protest that the contests are fun.
entertainment. stimulating. I must confess I find this at-
titude stupefying. Surely there must be some more wor-
thwhile or challenging pursuit in even the most
domesticated lives than describing the advantages of
somebody's dog food or filling in the last line of jingles
designed for ret:'rded mentalities?
May i suggest that Mrs. Cartwright use her time to form
her own little consumer group. to acquaint herself with the
facts that are readily available from those women's groups
who are less docile about the punishing costs of'living. and'
to apply the pressure where it will do the most good.
From our early files
. .
I• YEARS AGO
February 24.111N
Organization of the Huron
County Milk Committee will take
place Saturday afternoon in
Seaforth District High School.
with Douglas , H. Miles.
agricultural representative for
Huron. Clinton as chairman.
This committee will replace all
milk producer groups in the
county. in accordance with new
policy announced by the Ontario
Milk Marketing Board.
There have been two offers
made to this neivspsper office.
from townsfolk who volunteer
their services to wind the clock in
the 0141 land now empty) post
office at Clinton's main corner
Ed Wendwrf who has been
making daily calls at the post
off ice for more years than he
would carr to reveal. was the
first to offer his services. Local
jeweller Alvin Vodderr• has also
offered to wind the old post office
cklck. and his offer includes carr
and attention to the works of the
clock.
lndieatiowts are that Gihralter
Manufacturing. Port Huron.
Michigan., will begin immediate
drilling expkiraticosts near Clinton
for oil and gas Harvey Amor.
president of the firm. and Ralph
Brady, Port Lambton. state the
firm has 1.0011 acres under kasr
in this area. •
To comtete in Legion Zone CI
duals at Blyth im March 11.1.
winners of public speaking
compel items het herr last week.
are Julia Walden. Grade S.
Clinton Public School. senior
winner, and Lorraine Tinsley.
Grade S. Air Marshal Hugh
Campbell Public` School. RCAF
Station Clinton.
Jack Peck is the new owner 14
Wells 'Auto Electric. King Street
Clinton He took charge 0f thr
Nosiness on Saturday. i'ehraar,
11 A native of Trenton area
where he woos raised on a farm
Mr. Peck has been in the auto
repair busts•• there 'Ind in
Tarnow) for 12 years.
Central Huron boy's basketball
team finished•the schedule in a
winning way as they downed
Stratford North Western last
Wednesday in senior and junior
games. The seniors' win put them
in first place with a perfect 6-0
record and the juniors have a 5-1
record for the season. The Huron -
Perth Conference Tournament
will be held at CHSS on Saturday.
February 26.
2S Y EARS AGO
February 22. 11151
Dr %'alter A Oakes.
prominent Clinton surgeon. was
re-elected chairman of the Board
of Directors of Clinton Public
Hospital for his fifth term. at the
annual meeting. Thursday
evening last.
Jeffrey Dixon. four-year-old
son of Mr and Mrs. Richard
Dixon. Clinton. had a narrow
escape from more sertouslnjury
Thursday afternoon last when he
ran into the side of a passing car
on Victoria St.. in front of
McAlpine and Daw's service
station. He was taken to Clinton
Public Hospital where a fracture
of the wrist was set.
A resident of Clinton and
district for -71 years and one of the
.area's best known figures.
Cornelius Hoare will celebrate
his *7th birthday no Saturday.
February 24. and is receiving
hearty congratulations
In an effort to ascertain
positive reactors. a tuberculosis
t•-st of the students of Grades S
and 13 of Clinton District
Colkrgiatc institute was con-
do cted Monday.
A British mathematician
declares that it is possible to
make a machine that can play an
excellent game of chess. 11 so.
this will mark another victory in
the age -sot struggle tt► frer
mankind from drudgery.
IIYEAR% AGA
February 2S. 11120
thea Saturday. Ferreery
Mr. Wm. Scotchmer. superin-
tendent of Trinity Church Sunday
School. very generously treated
the pupils and teachers to a sleigh
ride to his home on the Bronson
line. there being altogether about
40 persons present
Next Sunday being fir
Bilkey's last Sunday as rector of
St Paul's. he will preach a
farewell sermon
It takes all sorts of weather to
make a Canadian Winter. and
we've experienced all sorts since
the middle of October last But
while we've had a somewhat long
winter. it has not been par•
titularly severe. and we has(' had
little trouble with blocked roads
It is anticipated musical in
struction will commence in
Clinton Public School after
Easter A.W. Anderton vrilt he the
instructs* and this ts the first that
he will be able. to arrange his
itinerary tote here
Early Sunday morning. before
any of the family were up. a
terrific explosion took place in
the home 0f Frank Jenkins when
the front Wit out of the- kit. hen
stove. literally blowing the stove
to pieces. The cause of the ex•
plosion is, not ktmwn and the
family feel quite thankful that
their home was not.hurned down
inlhe harbain.
Markets were Wheat 51.30,
oats, etc to 45c. buckwheat. 60c.
hurley. I. butter Sic to 37c.
eggs. 25c to 3Sc. live hogs. 113 2S
TS YEARS AGO
February. 22. 11101
Fanny E. Welsh. a former
Clintnnian. was given a farewell
supper in Sarnia Reserve 0n Jan.
3e1th prior to her departure for her
home in Godorich. She was the
recipient of a haltering address.
accompanied by a beautiful
album, given in appreciation 01
her services being Inc same years
a tewcher on the reserve.
The clerks. abnat thirteen in
number. of the firms of Jackson
Bros and W. Taylor and Son.
partook of the hospitality of their
respecti%e employers to an
.oyster ~-upper at Mclellans
parlors on last Saturday night
These two firms. although in
opposition in the Moot and shoe
business for years were on
friendly terms always Jackson
Bros were anxious to devote all
their attention and also have
more room for the clothing
department and disposed of the
.hoe businesc to the other firm
and this supper was made ci
happ} finale to the winding up
and transfer of the shoe Inci
fir Bennett, of Blyth. will
purchase a cushion if four or five
towns .r villages in Huron will
agree to use it Clinton should be
one of them
W Mlulock. Postmaster -
(General. has given instructions.
it is said. to prepare designs for a
new set of postage stamps
The Doherty Organ Co has
.,cured one sof the finest spaces
.it the Glasgow Exhibition. where
It will make a display of its world
renowned organs
P McNeil, of town. has an old
coin. which is. no doubt. valuable
for its rarity 1t is a four cent
piece measuring 11, inches in
diameter. 3 11 of an inch in
thickness on the obverse side
hiring inscribed Georgics 111.
1) G Rex. with a picture 0f
'George" while on the reverse is
'Britannia. Goddess of Liberty.
1797 '•
Milk and bread tickets aet, now
being talked of as a means a1
spreading disease. These are
often greasy and filthy being used
for months. going from house to
house and handled by all classes.
Cheap cnup0n tickets or tickets
numbered to be -punched. such as
.ire ustpl in many places. are
being urged generally to take the
place o/ those now in use. We may
ask now that the milk tickets
have been found to be lauded with
bacteria. what's the matter with
the public libtary herds?
'Seals'
Dale Editar: '
This letter is Mari tee to
all conwrostpeeple le
write at Mee te: tits
Romeo Leslaae, 1Mlinistsr
State (Fisheries), lietrtt'
COIN mi 's Ottawa, Ont.,
behalf it,the harp Mals.
many petitions amid
llas
have been made on
these beautiful creatures.
still the'slaughter goes osi:
The Committee on
and Sealing met with
government and scientists
Ottawa .in ' 1117S and
then that sealing off Canada'
east coast should be banner.;
Dr. Dean Fisher,
of Zoology at University
British Columbia. has said
"that if sealing costinuss,
seal population on the seat
coast will be extinct in 10+-1$
years.
Please urge the Govern
ment to take the necessary
action to ban sealing and save
these animals before all we
can say is "the , seal Mall a
e.
beautiful animal".
Sinceiely,
Audrey Graham,
Hayfield-
number.
ayfield-
Belts
Dear Editor. -
This writing was in m
Daily Word and t is . tett.
have been wanti o write
about the seatbelts and these
words say it all.
"Man must assume the
responsibility for his
thinking. Even though God
has put his law in'our hearts,
still this law is not forced
upon -nus. Having free will.
can accept it or reject it. This
is our privilege."
And the same should go -for
seat belts. If we took a vote on
it, a few million people would
say the same thing.
I haven't heard one 'person
say it is right.
I wish this letter could get
into the hands of whoever
made such a law. If you know
who. please send it to him.
I am one hundred percent
for Karen Hepinstall of Elora,
Ontario: Mr. R. Hanna of
Auburn and D. Hannenberg,
42, Clarence Street. Ottawa.
Ont. K iN 5P3
Yours truly,
Mrs. G. Wilson
RR 5. Clinton
P.S. i wish you could •cir-
culate a petition all over the
country. 1 sure would be glad
to sign.
I wrote out these few words
about drinking before I read
your write up.
if they cut out that rotten
drinking for our precious
young people. they would be
doing something to save their.
lives and others instead of
bringing the age limit down to
13.
Unprovable
Uear Editor:
The Bible. the basis for
Christian belief. tells us that
man was directly created by
Jehovah God. (Gen. 2:7
American Standard ver.)
But for more than a cen-
tury. scientists who believe
that man evolved have tried
to find support for their
theory in the fossil remains
living things Often they have
given the impression that
they have found evidence
about man's, supposed
"apelike.' ancestors. One
such supposed ancestor was a
small creature called
Australopithecus, found in
Africa. However. scientists
now say that this could not be
man's ancestor.
Also, after all the decades
of intense searching. how
much fossil evidence has
been found? The 1870
"Nature -Science Annual"
says: 'Nine out of every ten
Australopithecine fossils is a
tooth. and not always a very
good tooth at. that.
Everything else exists in bits
and pieces, some of them are
mere..nubbins ... and in spite
of the seeming plethor of
finds. the pieces are actually
still extremely rare. All of
them . every last one - would
fit into one very small clinet.
Reconstructing entire in-
dividuals ... solely from the
contents of that one civet is a
task of stupefying difficulty."
Yes. how difficult it is to try
to prove a theory that is
unprovable! The Bible gives
us the correct information as
to how man got here. That
information from the One
who ought Id know. the One
who was t:sere at the time, the
continued oiit paw 5