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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1973-02-22, Page 2PAGE' 2—GODERICH SIGi4AL:STAR,. THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 1973 EDITORIAL COMMENT limmommammimmalmai Find an alternative Opbn house at the Huron County Jail on,,Sunday was a success on a scale so grand that none of those, either suppor- ting the ; jail's retention in tact. or op- posing it, would' ever have imagined such a turnout. • More than 2,000 people stood in that slow shuffling line to have -the oppor- tunity of looking through the 130 year old structure which has been officially closed' to the public since 1841 when similar crowds made efficient operation of the building an impossibility. People came for all reasons. They came to show their support of the Save the Jail Society responding to.a telethon staged by the historical group; they came out of simple curiosity; they came to see what all the fuss was about; they came to look at the building in terms of potential and make up their own minds about what ifs future should be and they came for countless reasons no one could ever guess. But what is important, is that. they came. In ,coming they proved what, County Council refused to believe, that the building could attract people simply on its historic and unique background. To this we will hear the' argument, "but this was only one day, they would never keep coming back," and to that we say rubbish. In the dead of winter" local people stood in line for as long as one hour and forty five minutes. To us this in- dicates that during the summer tourist trade visitors to this area would show the same interest. They came from all over Huron County, and many from points far out- side our County boundries, proving there is no apathy regarding the jails future. That., is not to say, all support its preser- vation, doubtless there are those who do not, but many many people voiced the opinion that it should not be torn down, not even one wall of it, and we agree. The decisions which County Coun- cillors will take soon will be irreversible if they decide to destroy the court yard wall. We beg them, on behalf of those who are giving so much of their time in the fight to save the structure, to recon- sider their course of action. Some time ago a ;proposal that -the town of Goderich' supply parking where the present park exists along Gloucester Terrace was discussed and we urge the local' municipal representatives to renew, thissoffer. This would allow the proposed Assessment office expansion to be con- structed on the land presently occupied by the parking lot, thus saving the jail wall from demolition This one solution to the problem seems a good one but perhaps if more investigation were carried out other solutions, even better ones, could be found. We are certain there are alter- natives. County Councillors should be remin- ded that they are responsible not only for the administration of government on behalf of the electors they now serve but that they bear the charge to provide for the electors not yet born. Surely part of that charge should be to preserve something of this county's history. , We urge the County Council represen- tatives from Goderich to take up this fight, .on behalf of all those who want that building saved, and we plead with the other County Councillors to Ord an alternative to destroying part of this 130 year old portion, of .local history. Peace' Prize winners? For the 19th time since 1901, the an- nual Nobel Peace'Prize is to be left un - awarded. The five man Nobel Committee of the Norwegian Parliament gave no of- ficial reason for its decision to withhold the award, but it is generally believed that the Committee was unable to find a worthy recipient. The prize money, ap- proximately $100,000. will be kept in the Nobel fund., In the same year, a mathematician.$ as decided that every man, woman and child in the world is worth at least the explosive -force of 15 tons of"TNT. Stock- piled weaponry in the Russian and U.S. military forces divided. by the world population results in -that 15 ton dividend of each of us. All of which shows our unfortunate. emphasis. Hostility seems' more natural and, real than peace. If the efforts spent on more and better weapons' were 'ex - , on more and better attempts to reconcile men and nations, perhaps each of us could disown our 15 ton theoretical share of TNT in favor of "goodwill toward all mankind". Let us hope that in 1973 'the Nobel Committee will be able to find that man or woman worthy of the Peace Prize who will help us resolve the dilemma. Aid increase The bap. between rich arrd_poor nations'- keeps growing, and today the greatest problem is "a disenchantment with foreign aid in affluent societies. Although it seems incredible in a nation where many people think nothing of spending bet- ween $5 and $10 for a single meal, there are. 400 -million people living in • the poorest lands who earn 'the equivalent of $' yes, one dollar -- per week. If you take another measure, in the developing countries there live more than 900-millioyrr farmers and peasants whose annual incomes average less then $100 -- which-works out to about .28 cents daily. - The--critics--of--aftl--w>Ih°--say-these---are- distorted figures because living costs are that much lower. And yet we must examine them,„ for if we don't we cannot get a concept of the devastating poverty that haunts most of mankind. ' The 1972 annual report. of the World' Bank, the globe's largest multilateral dispenser of development aid, shows.that Canadians have 'been comparatively , generous. Canada has paid $100 -million W.. we.., 01.111.401 *CNA to the World. Bank's affiliate, the Inter- national Development Association, in ad- vance • contributions. The_ Association makes tong -term loans over 50 years at no interest -- the kind of aid the poor countries need most. Unfortunately, only in Canada, 'Japan and a handful of the smaller European nations is the flow 'of official assistance to poor lands showing a meaningful in- crease. Only the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden will reach the _target set by the UnitedoNations, 0.7 per cent of the Gross National Product (GNP) by 1975. The United States plans to give only 0424 --per-tent (Or-a—third of the—target). Canada's contribution is expected to be 0.59 per cent. Those billions of human beings less favored than we, are poor not because they are lazy (as many would have you 'believe) but because of social, political; and historical factors. All affluent nations must adopt more enlightened attitudes toward aid. This is the only course for . mankind if we are to have a better world. SAH O1AN ' COMMUN ft ir *CNA lthc ob'utcb ._. SIGNAL -STAR —0-- ' The County. Town Newspaper of Huron 6"/",).4 ` 772. S 14 A/AL. .TA +L (1 HELPFUL }-ANTS" FOR . DEALING, WlT"N THE ASSESSMEWt PARK►WG PRoALEM. Goderich Signal Star Editor' Shirley J. Keller is still on holiday this week enjoying' a well deserved rest and in place of her regular "Dear Readers" column we publish this in- teresting letter. The letter was written to, and first published in, the Wingham Advance Times. The Editor, Advance Times. - Dear Sir.: • There rea,l,ly„:ar'e a number of effective methods .of self- destruction in addition to' the reliable rope, gun and sleeping, pill. Close-up observation' of several has left me undecided as to preference .or desirability. The' choice is ours.' Speed is Fast Of thr.t there is no doubt. As the Advance -Times editorial reminded ys the destruction being inflicted, particularly on young people, by the pot and heroin line of poisons,, is ap- palling. They blast both mind and hodyand pushers should be hit early and hard. Not much argument here, just the question, "Who is a pusher?" Casualties from other drug lines far exceed the 'speed' line casualties. 0' Pushing Is: :Easy Liquor Is Quicker! Mrs. M. was younger than Thomas R. Her daughter told me that her mother had never smoked much but that for several yearalcohol had been her reason4 r living. In fact at the last it had been her everything. "Mother hasn't had a bite to eat for more than six weeks, only whiskey. Her kidneys have quit, her liver is shot, one lung has collapsed and she is bloated like a -balloon," her daughter said. The only symptom I was able to verify for sure, was size. That was on the second day when Mrs. M. was wheeled down the hall to take - my place in ,l:onstant care while . I .,was moved to the ward to fill the space so obligingly left vacant by Thomas 'R. As the night- progressed, the cries, whimpers and moans from constant care dropped off. I heard the nurse calling the priest and in a few minutes he hurried down the hall, probably in time. In the mor- ning the bed was: empty. Two tunes I recall coming softly from the little radio at the nurses' station were Percy Faith's "Some Enchanted Evening" and James Last's "Make This Night Last Forever" but the volume was turned real low. One whiskey ad says "Mellow enough for Him, Mild enough for Her". Evidently not HER brand! A vermouth claims to be 'one of life's little surprises'; now that sounds. more ' like it! Candy Is Dandy! Then there is Carl. Carl is .19 and still living. Carl 'has diabetes and finds that: the dietary limitations imposed on diabetics are 'a damned nuisance'. Then the coma comes and back in comes Carl. The hospital didn't insist that Carl cut, down on his 50 cigarettes a day but -it did come down flatfooted on the ,jelly beans and peanut butter sand- wiches Carl's fiance was smuggling to Carl. So Carl signed himself, out after 9 p.m. He will be- .'back, maybe several timesbut probably not very many. - How Common Is Sense? Sometimes we are inclined to blame the advertisers for not .- telling the complete story. Could be, but Thomas R. hated TV' when I knew hinn and I have no assurance that 'Mrs. M. ever read a whiskey ad: The claims made for jelly beans and for peanut butter are quite positive but'reasonably modest. Could 'it' be that we have just a bit of personal obligation to discover that uncommon faculty called common sense? Then maybe. we -will keep , somewhere' up front in our minds, the suspicion that the old hazards have the same -old hell built in as any new hazard can muster . . . ' and with an 'awful lot more takers! G.W. Tiffin. The fact is that all citizens of this province and country come uncomfortably close to • the 'pusher' category. Tobacco and liquor sales are on the up and up and with our provincial and federal sales outlets and tax setups, if we are not actual pushers we . are one step removed from that rating. True, it usually takes longer for the highly .regarded tobacco and liquor processes to do the job but, the end result can be equally as' effective and com- plete. Founded in 1$4t and publiihed every Thuiday at 3f West Sl , Goderich, Ontario Member of the Audit Bureau of Circulation, the CWNA andOWNA. Advertising rates on request. Subscriptions payable in advance, ft.00 in Canada, $410 in all countries other than Canada; single copies 20 cents. Second class mail Registration feumber 0716 Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of typographical error, that portion of the advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for but the balance of the advertisement"' 'r will be paid for at the applicable rate. to the event of a typogiaphital error advertising goods or vereicesalawrong price, goods orservices may not be sold. Advertising is merely an offer to sell, Ind may be withdrawn *1 any time ' Busine>its and Editorisi Office TELEPHONE 524-$331 • area 'code 51S Second class mail registration number -0716 • Published by Signal -Stu Publishing Ltd. 'ROBERT G. SHRIER--.president end pu6Kshsr SHIRLEY J, _ KELLER- t ditor R. W. SHAW--iditoribt staff EDWARD J. BYRSKI_sdv.rtising manager -^ ' DAVE R. WILLIAMS—advertising representative Tar Is Terrific! Thomas R. was my neighbor across the hall for three days and two and a half nights. A long time heavy smoker, Thomas would- be doing most of his smoking before filter tips reduced the tar and nicotine content. At- 63, his complexion . .was pale but not white. He had some' color; it was sort of an off-white with yellow, grey and green tints. From his wheelchair in the sunroom doorway (where there is just a bit more pair circulatioh), Thomas failed to appreciate the cartoons .at, 'suppertime. They come-on after` the six hours of daytime giveaway programs - you can get with cable TV. Doctors said the bron- ,choscope showed Thomas' hang to be no larger in size than a pea. Thomas' only comment was 'rasp:gasp-wheeze' and that stopped just after mid- night on the third -night. It seemed to bother the other fellows in the room; they sat up for the better part of an hour after' Thomas'., died...and smoked! - The package one of his room- mates laid between us in the TV room next day said "Mild.. Cool . . . They satisfy." Probably not Thomas' brand . . and look at sill those tax stamps! Dear Sir: We, the undersigned, who are vitally concerned about the fate of the Goderich Jail, would like to present through your Editorial ,page, a suggestion which would save the Jail, the Wall, the Assessment Office and the parking lot as well. Supporting pillars could be- errected 9'n'the parking lot. The Assessment Office addition could be built over the lot, thus affording' the required, office space/ and a coverecr_parking t Graham, Fran Brady, Dorothy Weston, Elane Brandon, Carolyn J. Snell, Eva Utter, Cliff Utter, Percy Renner, Lillian Penhale; Marion McFadden, Mrs. Lorna Merner, M.C. Merner,' Lorne E. Merner, Grant Turner, Fred Turner, Edith Turner. Carol Penhale, Thomas Penhale. Dear Editor: .area' below. This simple solution, which was drawn to our attention, would then please all parties who are at present in disagreement - namely - the County Council and many Goderich residents as well as interested people, in the surrounding areas. ' , Yours truly, Frederick A. Clift, Margaret i-). Clift, Betty Garrett, Florence Oddleifson, James Garrett, Ed Oddleifson, Mrs. John MacKenzie, J.E. Hovey, Marg Maymap, Gwen Pember- ton, -Marie Watson, John Lind- say, Jeanne Lindsay, Evelyn E. "`Johnston, Dorothy Hovey, Nina Haw, Milvena Erickson, Greta H. Du Boulay,a,,Carl E. Diehl, Lucy R.W. Diehl, W.E. Parker, Elva, Metcalf, Vina Parker, P.H. Du' Boulay, Ethel Dewar, Betty Burch. Members of the_ Bayfield Branch Huron County Historical Society. Additional names of Bayfield residents interested in the preservation of the Goderich. Jail and Wall: • Ida • Jane. M nerey, Carrie Heard, -Audrey G aham (Mrs. G.). G.J. ` Grah m, Wynn Graham, Bill Be our, . Rev. James • Reddoch, . F.E:, Mc 'ad - den, Ruth 'Wallace, Doris Red- doch, Lillian Higgins,, Brown Higgins, Agnes `Cameron, Pat My Opinion of the jail and he---jail---walls is that they should be repaired and put in shape to handle to -day's roughs - there is no better place for them. I ought to know, for I spent some time in there myself. This happened about 80 years ago. We lived in Colbourne at the time. My father used to live just , across the road from Con. Murphy who' was the jailer at the time, Dad was going to Goderich so he took me with him. We went through Benmiller, across the Maitland river over the bridge just • above the falls. When we'got there dad went to the jail so see Con, as they were good friends at the time. He knocked on the door. Con came out and said hello to my father and then he looked down at me and said "You are the fellow I want!" He grabbed me by the shoulder, swung me under his arm, and into the jail I went- kicking and yelling! The door shut behind me! There I was in jail Dad came in, shoved Con out of the way, rend said "You. are not putting him in jail while I am here. I thought Dad was .quite a man. Well it did me .a Vit of good: I .have not seen that jail since, but I think it should be repah'red and put" in shape for use at all. times. As far as the 'County Council is concerned they should have their' heads soaked and be thrown in there until they dry out. If they crack in drying — well what about' it: they have very little thought anyhow. As for me, I have not done anything very bad since. The jail has done me a world of good, as it would a lot of other people. So listen, people, and save the old Lail and the wall also. Ern Law- • Erie Clinton Age 88 Dear Editor: Thank you for your paper's excellent news coverage of Ah - meek, Chapter ' I.O.D.E. ac- tivities during the,,past year. Yours very truly, Edwina McKee. Dear Editor: I wish to protest the behaviour of the custodian or warden at the jail on Sunday. „ We had been in line' for one hour in very cold weather, despite this everyone was cheerful and in good spirits. At 4:45 p.m. this very rude man tame down the line, stating "we may as well go home as he was cldsing the doors at 5 p.m. At 5 p.m. exactly we had just reached the entrance, when he pushed us forward and others backwards. Two young.lads fell overand were pushed outside, and the door was . locked. This could have been a real disaster. if the crowd. had surged forward. There were ,hundreds of people in , this narrow hall way; .and some of them were very young children. (Continued oh page 3)', LOOtING BACK El 70 YEARS FEBRUARY 22, leo The Department of Cr, Lands is sending out a cis to alt` the farmers of Province, asking them to ward to the Department , demands for farm labor. Government is making efforts to bring out desu farm help and they desire far as possible, to be able locate the farm laborers will "come from the British! this spring in ,., the very , homes they can find for the, It is expected that the Gose nnent's policy in -this regard relieve the stringency of farm labor market, and the farmers, who have suffe somewhat from the scarcity help. The new G. T. R. sthtioa complete except°°f9r the o desk, which is expected in a days. An office for ,the;ffrei, staff is beirig fitted up in freight depot. Capt. W. H. Gundry, of West African Field Force, i. Tuesday afternoon to rejoin force after spending a few m, ,ths at home on furlough. Ca. Gundry expects to be hot again a year from next surnm, and will then remain here a devote himself to business. all wish him a pleasant r`'oyaa a quickly -passing year in IN: Africa, and a safe return ho., at the end of the term. If you want to shut off t. view from any window you c: do it very cheaply by dissolv'. in a little hot wateras mk epsom salt as the water willa, sorb. Paint this over the w', dows white hot, and when d .you will have a very fair mitation of ground glass. 25 YEARS FEBRUARY 22, 1948 Hydro power was off ear Wednesday morning for t hours and consumers" jump to the conclusion that t. power ' shut -offs reported fro. the cities had struck Goderic. but it was later explained t the cause was the burning of pole. So tar no cut-off h been ordered for Goderich, the utmost economy in the • of power ' is urged. A: continuous stream of tertainments, large and smaP will be flowing in Goderich f• the next few months. They w'' be ,sponsored by the Godes'. Lions Club in conneotion wi• the club's drive to raise fun in its "Food ,for Britain" ca, paign. At a meeting of . various group chairmen ,. „Wednesday afternoon, each ., them unfolded a series of ide:' to be employed for the raisi of funds. The official summing up the votes in the Provincial by election. of February ..,160 ' -conducted by the returning ficer, W. E.. Southgate, Seaforth on Monday. The to.� vote for Thomas Prydw Progressive Conservative, w ,7,615 and that for Benson R. Tuckey, Liberal, was 6,961,1 majority of 654 for Mr. Prydt Mr. Oliver Grigg of town 1•. at his office on Tuesday an nut size egg which had been laid', a hen of mixed White Legho and Plymouth Rock breed.. measured seven inches in cir cumference one way and ni. inches the other. When broke it proved to have a double vol 5 YEARS FEBRUARY 22, 1968 In an emotion -charged' sessibn which saw council chambers jammed with mon than 20 spectators; town coo cil decided Thursday to provide financial assistance to two Lon. don doctors to establish pra' tice here, but at the same time establishing a medical centm gave a green light toil survey8 determine feasibility o1 here. The meeting followed 1 special council session iasi Monday at which approval it principle was given ' to tit proposal by the doctors:tiyhd would guarantee .24.hour emergency service to the cora munity for one year, in er' change for n, $5,000 establish menti grant per, man. Wayne Gorr(elt, a grade ll student at Central Hura° Secondary School, was wing of the prepared speed classification of the Hume County secondary scho"tri publk speaking :finals held la't Tuesday at Goderich Dist" .ollegiate Institute. Arleta Pollock, a grade 19 student at GDCI was run .up. To*n Council authorised harbour committee to call Of dere on a marine service at Snug Harbour during 1car! regul*r' session Thured evening. '