HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1968-12-05, Page 9ti)
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Thec.nce 1n A Lifeth'ne
The parents who" attend#. Commence..
• ment Exercises at the, ,high school on Fri-
day evening were deeply impressed by the
brief i glimpse they had. of the complex
b lid ng in which their sons, and dough.,
retvareie `'receiving theirreducation. Quite
.properlythey should be --it hasost them
many,; millions • of. dollars.
Despite ,the impresslve 'figures, there
was no connection 'whatsoever between
rnoney' spent and emotions evoked when
the graduates , end aWard winners were
called to the platform. The emotions
would have been the same in a clapboard
country school with one room for eight
grades. It was the timeless pride of an
older generation bestowing ., its approval
and above all its hope oh the fresh young
kids, who are so willingly and, innocently
ready to take on all the problems the old-
er folks have quietly admitted to be be-
yond solution. •
But for the miracle of youth we of
the -older generation would be justified in
our °pessimism.
The professor who addressed the gath-
+ ring on Friday night had a message load
ed with truths -but we fear that. he couch-
. end it in such academic 'terms that its
import may well have been lost on quite a
Targe percentage . of both students and -
parents. -
- If we dare presume to interpret Dr.
Grant, we believe that he had two import-
ant propositions to bring to his hearers:'
First -- that every person who has been
privileged to reach the final" test of high
school graduation bears responsibility for
leadership in a world which is' drastically
in need of .the guidance. .And secondly,
that every graduate, and particularly those
who are going on to university studies,
must analyse the folly' of . violence as a
ameans 'of a mp1 Shing, whet' countless
genere1to of their
to aequir brebears have striveny peaceful and sensible means.
• He acknowledged that educators who
are truly and deeply concerned about the
future of this land are willing to .listen
patiently to` the voice of the student body..
He stated that the time is past when the
student should meet the headmaster with
fear in his heart. He pointed out that the
principal now sits in dread of the student,
organizer. He made the valid point that
they should meet as equals dedicated -4o
achievement of the same goal.
Perhaps we are wrong, but we believe
that all students today are battered by
an over -use of language—the double-talk
and supersalesm,anship which has become
a.part6of our times. There is a great need
to simplify the problems and to clarify
the answers. Student violence all over the
world is commonly marked by one press-
ing question: What do they want? And
very few students have any answer. •
As we looked over the several hundred
young people waiting to receive. the marks
of their 'accomplishment at the high school
on Friday evening we were encouraged to
face the future with new hope and faith.
These kids are(in no real danger•of throw-
ing away the heritage of a thousand gen-
erations. They are anxious, it is true, to
hurry into the. new . age, but they, are just
as dependable as their fathers and mothers
and perhaps a great deal more so. When
you and 1 are old folks we, will look upon
them with pride and. respect., Perhaps. we
may hope that they will be equally con-
siderate of their parents..,...
Government Or Santa Claus?
!his week the Ontario government pub-
licly announces the regulations contained
in new. labor legislation. Higher mini-
mum wages,,are included in the act as are
forceful directions about holidays with pay
and other rights granted by law to work-
ing people
The basic _idea behind a l l these rules is
commendable—protection of the laboring
'man from the exploitation of greedy em-
ployers. As usual, however, government 1,
officials 'have been truly generous with
someone else's. money,
As one example, the law •will. requi oe,
after January first, that a student employ-
ed after lChool ,hours .and. on Saturdays,
must receive a minimum of $1 per -hour.
That is just fine—for some students and
some . jobs. But we know several places
where employers will simply not bother
about giving jobs to young people at a
dollar an hour.
Supposedly government experts have
decided on the student.. minimum in the
light of present costs' of living — but
'students seeking part time work are not
concerned .about meeting the cost of living.
They are .out to earn some extra money
and many of them would be glad to earn
75c an hour if the alternative is no job
at- all •
Another regulation in the act calls for
a minimum• wage of $1.20 per hour for
learners. That amounts to $48.00 for a
40 -hour week to a person who knows
nothing about the job for which he has,
been employed—anl who ,is not only non-
productive,?but who absorbs the time of
another skilled worker for training pur-
poses. And even at that the $1.2Q rate can
be continued for onjy four months.
Where, we wonder, did they get thatl
four-month' training period? That length
of time may conceivably be enough to
learn a straight -forward operation that
will never require too much skill, but
four months is only the probationary per-
iod if the new employee is to be taught
one of the more complicated ,trades. Print-
ers, for example, are not considered fully
trained in less than five years.
Several million dollars have been in-
vested by the people of this province for a i
Guest Editorial
Grass
In about 200 years from now, there
won't be one, single blade of green or
dry grass. Either the animals will eat it,
or the overpopulated world will cement
and pave it. The cow of tomorrow wil)
have to contend with eating artificial
grass, a mixture of tree leaves and panzie
stems. Lawnmower manufactures will go
out of business because there won't be
vocational school right here in Wingham—
but the government of the "province has
effectively destroyed the training centres
which existed for rnanyyears in the shops
and plants in this town. Whether the
minister . of labour believes it or not,
$48.00 a week 'is too much to pay a raw
trainee
Three years ago the government ran a
smashing series of TV advertisements
about On the. Job Training a scheme
whereby the government would subsidize"
the cost of training people while they,
learned new trades and skills. When we
inquired about participation in this great
new plan we were incited to sit on a
committee ,which would meet in . London
to set up an apprenticeship plan for print-
ing shop employees. The whole purpose
of the OJT project was to provide a crash
attack on labor shortage and unemploy-
ment.
It sounded just great—it was great ex-
cept for the fact that three years later
there is still no- apprenticeship plan for
printers. As far as we know the com-
mittee is still talking in London.
Herels another regulation under the
labor laws. No matter'how badly an: em-
ployer may need help, nor how urgently
an employee may need extra dollars, it is
contrary- to the law to permit any em-
ployee to work more than 48 hours . in a •
week without special permission from the
government. Suppose a man wants to
built a house. He is anxious to earn some
extra money to meet the costs and his em-
ployer finds his • shop overloaded with
orders and short of sufficient help to meet
the shipping dates. • One might logically
suppose that in an intelligent society the,.
workman and his bd'ss could make a mu-
tually satisfactory arrangement which
would solve the problem on both sides.
But no. Big Daddy in Toronto says it
can't be done. The man who wants the
money for a new house has to scramble
around and find another employer who
has some work for him.
Certainly we believe the worker should
be protected. Toronto is making a real.
job of it. They could be' protecting him
right out of his mind. •
By Brent Telebus,
Howick Central School
any green grass. Songs about grass will
have to be changed to songs about dirt,
pavement etc. Snakes, frogs, Crickets,
grasshoppers, and the Kildeer will have to
find another environment because there
simply won't be any grass. One good•
point, • though, is that lazy boys won't
have to mow lawns.
THE WINGHAM ADVANCE - TIMES
Published at W ingham, Ontario, by Wenger Bros. Limited
W. Barry Wenger, President - Robert O. Wenger, Secretary -Treasurer
Member Audit Bureau of Circulation -
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SUGAF
AND SPICE
by Bill Sim y
Dear Mu Popcvich
We'll never forget Mm 114.
povieh. My wife phoned from
the bus': station the other doh
. just .11o; ne from her weekly
at at college, "Bill, I'm in s
terrible mess." f groaned�<
lently; "What is it -this time?"
To cut a long story short; 21611
bad started out with a little
Of Christian charity; or' platn
humanity,' and wound, up with
a problem that Would halie
made the Good Samaritan, take -
to his. heels,
Wires. I's' kix
goal's Disease.opovich She hacan walkPar
inches. On a good day, the
might " travel 40 feet in 40
minutes, possibly falling fiat
on b r face twice during the
procedure.
•
My wife helped her onto the'
bus in the city. Four days 1st
er, we practically hurled her
onto a bus going, back to the
city.
In the intervening time, she
•- was a thorn in the spiritual
side, a scorpion in our minds,
In short, we worried like hell.
about her. '
She is sweet, and- she has
faith, and shehas a sense of
humor. And she's as stubborn
as a mule.
She had come here to visit:
the Shrine, with a view to .a
spot of faith healing. The
Shrine is closed in the winter.
No priests, no services. Just. a
' big, dark, cold church.
We got her settled ina mo-
tel room on street level be,
eattse she -can't climb steps.
Arrangdi< for , hot food and
drinks to be brought to her.
Visited her. Made her' promise
to Phone her daughter to come
and get her. .
She was adamant: Saturday,.
somehow, she got to the Shrine
by cab. It takes ten minutes to
get her into or out of a car.'
Told the cabbie to come back -
in two hours. Door of church.
was locked. She sat for two
hours, high on a hill -top, in a
bleak November wind, On the
steps of the Shrine.
Sunday, after ... checking by
phone, we took her to the
..Shrine. Two hours .hard. labor.
Church like . a holy barn.
She did begin to see that 1
was all a bit fruitless an
agreed to take a bup back t
the city on Monday. After a
hour's struggle, we got 'he
onto the bus, Which is thre
minutes from the Motel: A
other chap and. I Carried• he
aboard. .
� U
Cane,, baggage, purse, all in
place. And the bus driver'..
look said loud and clear, "10w
can you be so rotten. as to ur
your poor old mother onto .a
bus when she can't even walk?
What kind of people - are your'
I guess this is because my
wife kissed her goodbye, and 1
patted her shoulder. And his
voice said, "Who's going . to
help her off ,the bus?"
And , we've been haunted
ever since by her dark, sad
eyes, and that sweet smile, and
that indomitable spirit: "If I
don't keep going, I'll be in a
wheelchair for the rest of my
life.'
What got both of us was the
coldness and the eager curiosi,
ty of the onlookers. The only
person who offered aid, the
chap who helped me carry her
onto the bus, was a rough-look-
ing
ough look-
ing character who was obvious-
ly a junkie or an alcoholic. He
said he'd look after..her.
' What a paradox! Ail those
well-fed, well -clothed, well -
looking people sat there and
watched, as though it were a
horror movie. And the only
guy in the crowd who looked
as though he needed help him-
self said, "We have to help' one
another, don't we?" •
A • certain Levite • was
mugged, rolled, and left to die.
Two of his own race passed.
One didn't wanna get involved:
The other was late for church.
And a Samaritan, an alien,
heard his groans; and said,
"Oy, . boy, what's with you?
You don't look so good:" And
bound his wounds and found
him an .inn .with wall-to-wall:
And was probably charged
for practising without a li-
cense: I often wonder what be-
came of the,Good Samaritan.
d
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M(ootm 6 RU$ BGD/ s
►g R
SpFEy
pN1A LEAGUE.
SAF
I VING•
co.ael
E I J
NO MATTER HOW they 48out it these
youngsters ` enjoy their work, They have
been taking the art course sponsored by
the Recreation Committee with Duane Fen-
wick as instructor. `These young' men amµ
Brian Pollock, John Kennedy, 8i11 Kennedy
and Ken- Fenwick.
---Advance-Times Photo.
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btu:ma&
Wingham, Ontario, Thursday, Dec. 5, .1968
News Items from OId Fi
DECEMBER 1919
On the evening of Novem-
ber 19th, about 50 friends and;
neighbours gathered at the
home of Mr. and Mrs. William
Elliott t� present their son Pte.
W. J. Elliott with an address '
• and alum of money. ` The add-
ress was read by Lector Mc-
Lean and the presentation made
by Jaynes McGlynn, Jr.
, Mr. Burgman has.received
word that oaring to the critical
condition of the coal supply it
may be possible that material
reductions will be -made to the
train service. We trust that it.
will not be necessary to cut off
any trains our --of Wingham.
Mr. and Mrs. H. Davis.cele-
brated their Golden Wedding
Anniversary at their home on
Wednesday evening of last week
This highly, esteemed couple
were married on November 19 ,
1869 at Stratford b'y the groom's
father, Rev. William Davis now
deceased. One year previous
to their wedding Mr. Davis
came to-Wingham .and opened
up a carriage shop when there
was but three hundred inhabi-
tants here and has continued to
be a respected citizen ever
since. , When Wingham was in-
corporated as a Village in the
year 1874 Mr. Davis headed the
poll for the first council and in
the proceeding year successfully
contested the reeveship against
the late C. Tait Scott.
Miss Helen Pocock, a recent
graduate of the Central Business
College, has been, placed as
stenographer, in the office of
McMillan and Co, , Toronto,
We are pleased to welcome
home from overseas Mr. Cas -
burn Austin, son of Mr. and
ti
S.S. Guest Editorial
Education is vital ...
especially for Canadians
The period in which we live may be re-
ferred to as the second industrial -revolu-
tion. The total accumulation of -learning
is reported to have' • : from the days
of the Roman Empire the year 1750.
It doubled 'again ' by 1900; for the third
time by, 1950; for the fourth time by
.1960, and is expected to double again in
this year.
History has proven that ,the most con-
stant factor affecting human life has been
the need for continual change. Today the
degree of change is more rapid and far
reaching than at any time in history. A
student graduating in engineering or
science will find half of his training ob-
solete in ten years. This problem is em-
phasized even more by the fact that much
of the knowledge that will be required in
1977 is ,yet unknown.
During the past twenty-five years the
occupation of Canadians has changed
By David G. Field
rapidly. The demand 'for unskilled and
• semi -skilled workers has decreased very
sharply; and the majority of jobs now re-
quire skilled employees, often with highly
specialized training.
During the past one hundred years,
Canada has developed largely through the
use of capital and human resources im'
ported from other countries. If we are
to control our destiny, and create an en-
vironment in which our economy will
expand, we must develop more of our
human resources.
• It is clear that •a country such as
Canada, which lacks population, must turn
to technology and scientific knowledge to
continue to prosperity. Every construction
project across Canada requires numerous
technicians and engineers which are sup-
plied by the growirrg universities and
colleges across Canada.
Mrs. William Austin, B line,
Turnberry: He is accompanied
home by his bride.
The Spotton Business College,
as a result of its 15 years suc-
cessful work, continries to draw
students ,from an everwidening
-territory. The last student to
enroll was Mrs. Olive Quirk of
Markdale, travelling over one
hundred miles to attend this
popular school.
Mr. Graham has gone to To-
ronto to accept his old position
with the T. Eaton Co , which
heheld when he enlisted in the
spring of 1915, with the Eaton
battery.
-DECEMBER 1933
All members of last year's
Public School Board were• re-
elected by acclamation. It was
thought that in W arfd three there
might be a contest betr3een J.0.
Habkirk and Walter VanWyck`
but Mr. VanWyck withdrew.
The members are: Ward 1„R.
H. Lloyd, Ward 2, N. L. Fry;
Ward 3, J. O. Habkirk, Ward
4, R. A. Currie. •
Miss Laura Mitchell who has
resigned her position at the
Bell Telephone Staff on Monday
evening, at the home of Miss
Celesta Garr. A most enjoyable
time was spent and Miss Mitch-
ell was 'presented with a beauti-
ful floor lamp.
Contrary to predictions there
will be an election in West Wa-
w ansoh Township this year, the
fight *for Reeveship being be-
tween Reeve W. J, Stewart and
Thomas Webster. Those who
are candidates for council va-
cancies are: Cairns Aitcheson,
John M ,cQuinip, Albert Bam-
Mir, Patrick Walsh, William
Rutherford, Brown Smith, David
Hamilton.
DECEMBER 1943 °
Mrs. W. J. Skinner ( nee
Hazel Brandon), a former resi-
dent of Wingham, now organist
• and choir leader at the Baptist
Church, Leamington, has ac-
cepted a similar position with
St. Andrew's United Church,
Welland. She will go to Well-
and December 1st.
A former Wingham boy, W.
E. Forgie who has become as-
sociated with Commercial In-
surance Agency Limited, has
for a number of years speciali-
zed in insurance of miningrisks
and is well acquainted with the
mining fields in all parts of the
Dominion. Mr. Forgie will op-
erate from the Toronto office
of the company.
The Ladies' Branch of the
Wingham Rifle Club met art the
home of Mrs. T, %', Platt on
Monday evening. Mrs. E. Web-
ster was elected Secretary -
treasurer for the coming year,
and it was decided that gifts of
cigarettes he sent to the mem-
hers of the Men's Branch of the
Club now in the Armed Forces.
DECEMBER 1954
The relative merits of con-
ventional and automatic gear-
shifts has long been a source of
controversy amongst mechan-
ically -mended motorists. And
after the acceleration test con-
4
ducted at Reavie Motors on
Monday, .we'll probably never'
know the1.answer.: It all started,
when Buick -Owner „TIM. Gurney.
was discussing with Brck-owner
George Fowler the question of `•
pick-up, especially in T3u.
Ji m maintained that 'a: sticksandar d
gear shift was faster on the
pick-up than an a.utometic and.
George' maintained that his
''automatic would leave any
standard standing at the post.
Jack Reavie and Hugh Allen,
who sell Buicks, listened to the
discussion' with interest, • but
without : apparently, taking .skies;
Finally George offered To .Shaw''
Jim just how fast hispr. f c d
joy could move onahe get-
away, and°the two cars were -
lined up in front of the garage
for the test of speed and accel-
eration. John Pattison, who
happened along was given 'a •
big red flag and asked to be
starter. Perhaps George was
over-anxious, or perhaps he
was wearing a pair of double -
sole shoes that day, but what -4
ever the reason his car happen
ed to edge ahead, just as John
was about to drop the.flag.
John waved him back to the
starting line, and a split second
later dropped the flag. Jim's
Buick took off in a flash for
parts unknown, and George, , '
tramping it hard, roared off in
a cloud of dust -back -wards!
They never did get the question
settled, for the party broke up
in disorder shortly after. But
the spectators, witnessing the
affair, concede that the rela-
tive merits of conventional and
automatic gear -shift has long
been a 'source of controversy --
and is likely .to remain one.
Florence Harris, who for the
past seven years has been em-
ployed at the Wingham branch
of the Dominion Bank, left t
Monday for London, where she
will take a position at the
bank's new branch at Wharn-
cliffe Road and Oxford Street..
The new branch will open this
week. "
MARY GIBSON
organist at Commencement
p