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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1975-08-21, Page 11Tnot's more like i Hats off to the Wingham town council and°Counciilor Angus Mowbray in particular for the excellent work done in replacing the effectiveness of the Lower Town dam. The 'unsightly acres of weeds in the river bed have been covered by water and the area has been restored to the natural' beauty which means so much to the usefulness of the Riverside Park. Ever since the flash flood of May, W74 and the dashing out of the by-pass culverts at the east end of the main dam, the pond has been dry and a forest of weeds replaced the shimmering attractiveness of the- pond which has been a feature of the Wingham landscape for more than 100 years. For many months the future of the natural beauty spot was in doubt as town, conserva- tion authority and provincial officials dis- puted the feasibility and the cost of restoring the structure. Upper level officials, of course, could talk only in terms of a prelimi- nary study which would have cost more than the actual repairs which have been done during then past few weeks, plus guesstl- ,h qr edijA)d,Rdd M mates in the range of perhaps a million dollars to e.,ntlrely replace, the old 'dam. Some members. of the town council, we understand, were opposed to -spending motley on repairs to the dam, basing their contention on the fact that, another flash flood could wash the entire protect down the Maitland Admittedly, there is a certain gamble involved. With extremely had luck, such a catastrophe could occur nekt year but the law of averages and the history of the past hundred years would Indicate that the odds are better than that. If, for last nce, the dam remains Intact for only ten years, the $15,000 capital cost for the present repairs would average' 51,500 per year, and that is just about the amount of money which was lost last year in camping fees. The attractive trailer park which has brought so many visi- tors to our town in the past simply lost its charm when the pond was dry. As we have pointed out in this column many times, the work and money spent on our park system would, to a great extent, be wasted without the lower pond. Don't argue. -just pay The ramifications of gasoline and oil pricing seem to be so complicated that the average driver and home owner has been left out in the dark, except for paying the bills. It was not difficult to understand the" first move. The Arab countries simply decid- ed to put the muscle on those nations which were dependent on them for oil and the other oil producers followed suit. What is a great deal more diffictylt to ecomprehend is why the oil producers right in our own land feel obliged to jack their prices up just as high as possible. It would have been logical to assume that Canadians were, in a fortunate position because our country is virtually self-sufficient as far as oil is con- cerned. The major oil companies here were not squawking about their incomes before the great price hike. Why, then, the sudden clamor for higher prices at this particular time? Probably because the Arabs' proved •►that consumers could and would , pony up with double -and treble -the previous prices: Most incomprehensible of all is the federal government's new tax of 10 cents a gallon. There is only one explanation for that slap at our gas tanks. The government, just like the Arabs and all the other opportunists, could not miss the chance at a fast buck. Better to spread A couple of weeks ago The London Free Press devoted several pages to the details of a report on the future of the Thames water- shed—a report which has been three years in Oithe making. Outstanding fact, at least as far 'as the Free Press was concerned, was that the City of London could and should continue to grow. The report, however, went into great detail about the problems which would be faced because of the city's growth over the years. Supply of water and •disposal of sewage will be tremendously difficult, be- cause the Thames is already overburdened ie, with wastes. Vast sums will have to be spent to provide land and services for new homes and industries, as well as to assist the, ailing river. When the experts turned their eyes to the smaller communities in the Thames valley, such as Mitchell, Stratford, St. Marys and other centres, they issued the warning that further growth of these places should be con- trolled because they, too, would face prob- lems with water supply and sewage disposal. w What, one wonders, is the merit in en - There were some suggestions from on high that the extra tax would discourage un- necessary driving by those bent only on their own pleasure. That reasoning, however, doesn't really stand up. If the basic intention was to protest dwindling oil reserves the first move would have been to ban all sport vehicles such as snowmobiles and pleasure. boats. • A more reasonable excuse for the fax is that it will provide funds to cushion the price of fuel in the Atlantic provinces which are farther away from our Canadian oil sources. (If that is the reason, why place -the burden of good neighborliness only on the'car drivers? Surely that is an obligation for all taxpayers, whether or not they drive cars. There has even been talk of the govern- ment itself going into the oil business, pre- sumably to provide us with fuels at a lower price than that charged by the existing oil companies. Judging by our experience with such government-sponsored, services as the post-office•andthe national railway, we can, not be tremendously optimistic about an. Oil Canada operation. We would do better to take our chances with the boys who have been in the oil business for the past 50 or 60 years. They may be greedy, but at least they know what it's all about. t around couraging an already big city to keep on ex- panding and telling the smaller places to stand still? Have these experts learned nothing from the costly experiences of places like Toronto or the utter bankruptcy of New York? Hundreds of thousands of To• rontonians are looking for other places to work and those who can afford to do so. buy or build their homes as far away from the city as they can. It is obvious that there is a certain point beyond which the economic and social values of city life disappear. Toronto city council, under the urging ,of its mayor, has long since passed a bylaw, limiting the height of new buildings to 45 feet—a.holding action to give the planners time to sort out the problems of increasing population. London would do well to stop growing right now. At present it is a pleasant city, offering not only the advantages of a larger community, but reasonable access to the fresh air of the countryside. On the other hand the upstream towns could well use a somewhat larger economic base—some ad- ditional industry and expanded job opportu- nities. We cannot afford this 1, For many weeks Omstead Frozen Foods at Wheatley, on Lake Erie, has been idle be- cause of a strike. Not an unusual story in this day and age, but one which provides a very clear example of the idiocy of which other- wise sensible people can be guilty. The Om - stead strike is costing not only profits to the company and wages to the employees, but the very livelihood of countless farmers and fishermen. Located in an area where a high percent- age of our vegetable crops are grown, the plant provides just about the only market for the farmers who grow such perishable crops as snap beans. These crops, to a large ex- tent, will be lost for this year. In addition, the Lake Erie fishermen have depended on Om - stead as a market for a large part of their catch—and there is no way to save fish until the strike is resolved. Natural) , we have no idea who is right or wrong in fflis labor dispute. The company may be trying to rip off the workers or, on the other hand, the employees' demands may be unreasonable. The only thing that really concerns us is that we do not seem to have any sort of government clout which can demand that work resume and whatever settlement Is eventually reached be made retroactive to the time of re -opening. THE WINGHAM ADVANCE,TIMES Published at Wingham, Ontarioe by Wenger Bros. Limited Barry Wenger, President Robert O. Wenger, Secretary -Treasurer Member Audit Bureau of Circulations • Member — Canadian Community Newspapers Assoc. Subscription $10.00 per year. Six months $0.25 goonnrl._C1Asa. Mail 13.eilistration, No. 96,1 8u rn oostaae ntu rateed Ontario Weekly Newspapers Assoc. To United States $12.50 A page rasa s ditoria I THINK MY DA'Y5 ARE 14131\115ERED r/'rX ffyr�rNfrfr/,ir' .. eolne r.`iirr...Dfc ,Wil4,44,44 is3 ✓M, 4.0.1 !% THE VOCTOR IbLP ME I WAS Al SOUND A5 A POLLAK News Items from Old Files AUGUST 1928 Miss Bertha MacKay, local • manager of the Bell Telephone, received . a merited promotion last week when given charge of. the Kitchener branch. 'Miss MacKay is a graduate of the local office, entering as an operator. Miss Agnes Scott of the staff, has been appointed chief operator here. Borden Jenkins, son of Mrs. Ed Jenkins of • Wingham, missed death by inches when his motor car was struck by the morning CPR train at the B Line crossing, as it was backing into Wingham; He escapedwith a -;badly. cut -Ace and was shaken up. The car was an absolute wreck. S. J. Pocock, a St. Marys mechanical genius, has develop- ed and patented an automatic gasoline pump, that will deliver any desired number of gallons to a car by merely dropping quart- ers into a slot. The pumps are set so, no matter what price the fluid is, they can be set to deliver a quarter's worth by the *simple twisting of a small wheel. Miss Bertha Smith of Wroxeter has accepted a position as teacher in the Lakelet school. During the heavy electrical storm on Thursday night, the telegraph instruments at the sta- tion in Bluevale were all burned out. With the over -abundance of school teachers, methods of ap- plying for schools are changing somewhat. Application by letter ';lacks the personal touch, and ,',Jacks applications are more ah .„more being made to school board's. Miss Lina Barber left for Tor- onto where she has secured a position. George Spotton, M.P., for North Huron, donated,four beautiful pictures of typicaCan- _adian scenery, to the Wingham High School. J. Barrett of Waterloo has pur- TODAY'S CHILD BY HELEN ALLEN Frank is a pleasant boy, amiable, co-operative and keen to please. Very anxious to be adopted, he longs for a family and a home where he will belong. Recently turned 12, Frank is healthy and active, sometimes hyperactive. He is on medication to slow him down a bit, though he does not take it at weekends. Frank is not academically inclined and is in special education. He is progressing well, though needing a good deal of individual attention. He likes doing things with his hands. Using cardboard and paper he created a model of his school which won honorable mention in a recent Science Fair. Frank gets along well with children and enjoys adult company. He likes sports — plays soccer and baseball and enters track meets at school. Frank will do best in a family where he will get much love and reassurance and where he knows and understands what to ex- pect and what is expected of him. To inquire about adopting Frank, please write to Today's Child, Ministry of Community and Social Services, Box 888, Station K, Toronto M4P 2H2. In your letter please tell something of your present family and your way of life. For general adoption information, consult your local Children's Aid Society. EAGER TO BE ADOPTED chased the garage in Bluevale from Gordon McKay and will open for business as soon' as pos- sible. J. J. Fryfogel last week sold his handsome hackney horse to Jos- eph Miller of Milverton. The horse carried off many prizes last year and it is understood Mr. Mil-' ler will exhibit him at.,Londr and Toronto. 0-0-0 AUGUST 1940 W. Innes Paterson, who for some time has been concentrat- ing on taking up oil leases in the Blyth area, announces that pre- parations are about,eompleted to commence drilling, which is ex- pected to get underway at once. The site is on the Allen farm in Hallett Township. Plans are also well underway -leading up to dril- ling a well in the Greenock swamp area. Gordon Small of Teeswater, who has been brakeman on the CPR. into Teeswater for some years, and a resident of that town, has accepted a position as conductor on a run out of Toronto. Fourteen applications for old age pensions and three for mothers' allowances were con- sidered onsidered by the Huron County Old Age Pensions and Mothers' Al- lowance Board which met last week. A large number of friends and neighbors gathered in Gilmour's School to honor Mr. and Mrs. Al- lan McGill, who were married recently. Majors E. A. Corbett and H. C. MacLean have completed the ap- pointment and locations of regis- tration booths for the national registration which will take place in August. Every citizen must register according to law. Huron County's proud and dis- tinguished record of Empire de- fence over a period of 70 years is deserving of a better reward than the present military set-up in Canada affords it. So a county delegation, headed by Warden George Feagan, is requesting that a distinctive Huron unit of the non -permanent active militia of which the county boasted up to four years ago, be re-established. At present Huron is linked with Middlesex for militia purposes. Miss Jean Campbell of West- field has gone to Kitchener where she expects to take a position. A quiet wedding was solem- nized at the home of Mr. and Mrs. John Craig, Whitechurch, when their daughter, Janet, was united in marriage to John Robert Hall of Wingham. Craig Nightingale of Listowel has been appointed manager of the Dominion Store here, replac- ing Earl Gray who has signed up for service in the 99th Battery. 0-0-0 AUGUST 1951 Last week the board of the Wingham General Hospital re- ceived very welcome news in the form of a letter from the Ontario government, which was accomp- anied by a cheque for $24,000. The payment came as a result of per- sistent efforts on the part of John Hanna, MLA who hs§ been plead- ing the case with th)epartment of Health since 1947. The new ad- dition was added to the hospital in 1945. Local police have started a campaign to check up on the safety of vehicles in this muni- cipality. Cars have already been seized, as indication that the safety regulations have reason- ably easonably sharp teeth. Earl Hamilton has purchased. the property and distribution franchise for Wishing Well bever- \ ages from' 'blathers Beverages. Bert Mathers will continue as representative for CKNX. Whipping out a foot -string ren- dition of the Great Eastern Reel, Mel Lavigne of Wingham topped all comers at the Ontario Old Time Fiddlers' Contest in Shel- burne, to take the championship and a $200 prize. Members of the arena commis- sion are anticipating the. arjva1 of materials which , will permit the commencement of operations to floor the arena with concrete. Shirley Lockridge of the Wing - ham District High School has just completed two weeks of leader- ship training at the Ontario Ath- letic Training Camp on the shores of Lake Couchiching. She was the proud recipient of her distinctive honor crest, presented to all girls who worthily discharged their re- sponsibilities as representatives of their schools. Rosemary Adams, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Harvey Adams of Wroxeter, danced the Highland Fling to win first prize in the amateur contest held in conjunc- tion with the Howick Lions Club Frolic. Rev. and Mrs. George Watt and family left to start their new home at the parsonage at Dun- gannon, after visiting in White- church with his parents, Rev. and Mrs. W. J. Watt: 0-0-0 AUGUST 1961 A big loss was sustained by Peter Jorressen of the sixth of Turnberry when his large barn was completely destroyed by fire during the early hours of Tuesday morning. Cause was not deter- mined. Friends of Miss 'Marg Keough gathered at the home of Miss An- na McDonald for a farewell party. Miss Keough has been public health nurse here for the past three years and has accept- ed a position in Dominica, in the Caribbean. A group of seven or eight young people organized a concert which netted $12.40 which will be turned over to the Golden Circle School. The performance took place at the Harry Spry garage on Patrick Street. Taking part were Susan Spry, Donna McKay, Sheila and Barbara France, Leora McMinn, Beverley Hastings, Patsy Walk- er, Neil Renwick and Dianne Argue of Toronto. Bob McKay and Ken Snowden looked after the refreshment stand. At a special meeting of town council, Constable James Miller, who has been the night constable, was appointed police chief, re- placing the late Gordon Deyell. Chalmers United Church was the setting for the wedding of Elsie Ilene White and Earl Rob- ert Borden Jenkins. They will re - Side in Wingham. Rev. Alex Coles, formerly of Newfoundland, was inducted as minister of the three -fold charge of Fordwich, Mayne and New- bridge United Churches. Mr. and Mrs. John Hanna have purchased Seddon's Restaurant in Brussels and opened their new business on Monday. TO THE Et1TOR Dear Editor: a, Home hospiteli; for the win*, ham patrol and Martin Isenediet was held • n Borax .and- the sur,. rounding area. Some of the scenery was much like that In Canada, \ Boras is a oily aboUt about70 much like our elties except there are very few highri apartment 1raildinge. 5m.. e n'f' ifsgiA t,S tm elude an Olympic sizedsvomming, pool and a zoo. Ila the cl d at=- VIT 4. most of us were we had an A. .. Anderson tour of a valve factory. In the middle . of the factory where there could' be three or four more machines there was a fountain, and foliageplants, • On the July 25 tour we visited Aslata Village.' It isa small vii- lage dating back to 0,0 lath Oen= tury. We also visited two churches, one over X1,:000 years , old, where kings auctlueens were , buried, The Viking*aveydrid,we' visited dated back to about 100 A.D. Some orienteering was done by r, a few boys which was set up by local people around A>rn►elancl. Some of the boys visited <a'glass blowing factory where the glass is still handmade. We had a very good time even though we couldn't speak Swe- dish. The Swedes' English im- proved `very much and we learned a few words in their lan- guage. The Norway Guys August 15,1975 Wingham, Ontario Advance -times Wingham, Ontario Dear Editor: I've recently read articles con- cerning the youth of Wingham and the fact that they don't do anything but idle in front of the town hall. This may be true but I wonder iif the adults of Wingham in particular the ones involved in recreation are not somewhat 1 Maine. rve been to my gal* ties in the Wingham ' area, - the latest being the ball game Tues- day, August 12, 1975 where Brophy Tire played against Clinton. At this game Isaw three ballplayers sit out the entire game. I do not know who the boys were or why the coach did not allow them to play but, I do think that recreation should be for any- one who is interested and wants to participate. It is no wonder that Wingham's youth are not participating if when 'they do there is the possibility that they will sit and watch and what's fun about that? Yours trply, Connie Kuc Library On Saturday, August 23 there will be an hour of children's films in' the council chambers of the town hall. Starting time is 10:45. NEW BOOKS The Updated Last Whole Earth Catalog Part catalog and part almanac, this updated version of the last whole earth catalog ,concerns tools and contains over 400 pages of available tools as well as hun- dreds of articles ranging from how to grow wild flowers to how to erect a balloon house and make brown bread. The Summer -house by Rosemary Harris Fans of Miss Harris will enjoy this re -issue of her first novel. The heroine, Laura, is convinc- ingly shy and gauche, although beautiful, and her gradual awak- ening is told with wit and imagi- nation. Drown -proofing: teaching your child to swim by R. LaCoursiere The author is a famous advo- cate of teaching babies how to swim before they walk and begin- ning with his survival course for babies he goes on to cover every aspect of swimming for both adults and children. After 1 Was Sixty by Lord Thom- son of Fleet This energetic autobiography could well be subtitled, Life Be- gins At Sixty. Roy Thomson tells his own story with his usual can- dour and the result is a fascinat- ing behind -the -scenes account of the newspaper world. Alexander Dolgu>h's Story by A. Dolgun and Patrick Watson Arrested in Moscow by the K.G.B. at age 22, Alex Dolgun, a young American, managed to en- dure 24 years of hard labour, tor- ture and imprisonment before he was finally set free in 1971. His personal story is a moving testa- ment to human endurance under stress.