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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1973-08-30, Page 3t dopa !vet nts !ud which. Irl 250, 'awe 11 of thi ,a Felt ttOWn,, sup [d of d1779 Governer Dallis;' great of the tel M.`, ong,e fort tiie value a rich $4,120, lir men' at Sea Nott 2 and nover, M. 1780. lie n thelef ars la I starts er ren, . vessel he a privy with a arger +vith all a large cuna and a e a cha, f the :AAS 26,.10$ tight t' Ma sage lett theta ndingup listress ert m Captain and wits mes A,,r,,•' to, tbl NY, v, at ived the peering ley were engine isted eded on The two trip ng ata tples,, rf public on for granted Dntario. ation re visit ler ed Eur' a. su or in Gardina, sere ARS 29,110 Y ." in ,on, 1, . I Clerk ;con ath ctanly uildiN 4E1 s19,Q1 8.- Y._ COUP ittodk rn at to to 0thl ;tele., 1111 lents. of Ind n` e's one autiful Ilboat AY RON SHAW the distance distortion water even the most ex - ed sailor could, is ake ut of the Hucon sails for thoseof f that "The Canadian Id be an uhonest enough ld e since the rigging of Bob Wilson's 64 foot a been constructed, to a f about third, from enose plans. 43 years sailing'has been of life , for the lean 58 d captain and even his are now spent on the of the Great Lakes. five of Goderich, Cap- ijson first began learning Is of a sailor at the local ont. Under the direc- John MacDonald he d to sail right in eh Harbor and later with Red MacDonald MacDonald's fishing r out of the local hat- e years since that time plied the lake waters se end to the other and a Government Pilot foreign vessels on -Lake Georgian Bay and Lake r. "Huron Eagle" takes Wilson back to his years on Lake Huron as his wife sail the world's inland waterway during ummer---h 1iday _The Eagle put into Goderich IW week 'giving Mr. rs:--Wilson a chance to old acquaintances and it respects to the piece r where it all began. steel -hulled craft made aiden voyage in '1971 he was completed after rs work duringCaptain 's spare time. He built her himself and takes ious, and justifiable, the finished product. •four ,feet in overall the "Huron Eagle" seven feet of water, •11 -feet on- the beam carry a total of 1300 feet or pail. •She s about 25 tons of masts are Nova Scotia Spruce ;,and carry, gaff The "Huron Eagle" is ui'pped with a 160 horse turbo charged diesel which can, according to :istry certificate, move t at 11 knots. flies a Canadian Flag, e the working ships of teat Lakes, is under registry. 1300 square feet ofd sail's., share the s --eastern heritage with is and rig design in that area product of N ova , e, the "Huron Eagle" as large as many city nts and is outfitted to z persons in top notch The Captain's quar- e located in the after nd room for the four provided by the main rea midships and a fore- iso carries a completely galley and a selection and navigational aids zclude only radar. For ool nights at sea the— The Huron Eagle moves out quarters are kept in even com- fort by a gas furnace. Considering- there are no power winches on board it seems almost impossible that tree" than" could sail a boat the size of the "Heron Eagle" but Captain Wilson . insists there is really nothing to it. He points out several block placements on the Bluenose rigging which help to make it relatively easy to hoist all that sail. "Sometimes when I'm below and boaters see only m,' wife on board at the''Wbeel; they shat e their heads in amazement but the location of the rudder makes her easy to turn," he ex- plains pointing to the rudder placement straight below the wheel and: "about 10 feet up from the stern. "That's where the propeller is located too," he adds. What.;Captain Wilson "aodsn`'t oint Out are 43 years of sailing experience'which may have something, to do with his ability to put the 65 foot craft through her paces single han- ded. Letters to the Editor (Continued from page 2), , our activities has not only' proved 'the' worthwhile- nature of such a project but has made readers aware of the interac- tion between nursing home residents and the public which needs to take place, if activation schemes are to progress, and if a community of elderly -and - youth together .is to be established,' and where sym- biosis can occur. To all 'those who helped make Project S.N.A.P. so suc- cessful, thanks so much. Sincerely Brian Miller (S.N.A.P. Team Leader) • Open teller AN OPEN LETTER TO MR. GEORGE GATHERCOLE -'CHAIRMAN, ONTARIO HYDRO Dear Mr. Gathercole, I would like to convey to you the deep concern that many people in this area feel about the proposed large scale in- crease and expansion of the Bruce Nuclear Power and Heavy Water Complex located near Kincardine. 'Experts' assure us that there is no real danger, are not prepared blind faith in the many of us to show a opinions of AIN SL ' MARKET Liir LTD.. ON THE SQUARE 5244551 ROUND BSTEAK & ROASTS 11.69 6RESSEDlf0A5TPoRK SPARE RIBS TENDER SHORT RIB ROAST ,.101 SAUSAGE LB. 89C C Lg. S 1..19 �. Ls. $9c OPIN THURS.& FRI.EVfNINGS TIll9 p.m. t ss with ser Whslsssls Prices - We buy Direct Frew Preilicsrs' fst these 'experts', not only because they have let us down so badly, in the past, but in this particular case' those who, can be identified are individuals like yourself already - deeply committed to the idea of nuclear expansion, or are the hirelings of a- government equally committed. We- are told (Ont. Hydro News Mch./Apl 73.) that nuclear power stations in On- tario alone will use 75,000 tons of Uranium in the 70's 'which means before 1980 there will he over 75,000 tons 'of -deadly radioactive wastes in storage.at various points along the On- tario shores of our Great Lakes ,System. These wastes are, weight for weight, millions of times more daingerous than the worst industrial pollutants, and unlike industrial wastes' cannot, by chemical action,'he converted to harmless com- pounds. Once created they are indestructible. 'these these storage containers stand the test of time? Could natural factors - earth tremors etc. - rupture (hem? Elven the experts cannot answer such questions with any measure of certainty. Consider the ,poten- tial target they would present to _any Tial Ie riaiior, 'in a world where the great powers still think in terms of atomic warfare. Some crazed political extremist, circling over Douglas Point in a hijacked plane wquld have the potential power to destroy several coun- ties and permanently pollute the entire Great Lakes System. What a legacy we are creating for future, generations in our blind greed for 'energy'. A catastrophe of the same magnitude could he brought about b• • A n- al•functioning of the nuclear reactor, Again our experts say this is virtually im- possible. ;;History contradicts them. The Dougl s Point reac- tor was put out of commission by a jammed loading mechanism. Will it ever operate again? Across the border the Fermi Reactor went out of con - (Continued on page 12) GODERICH SIGNAL -STAR, THURSDAY, AUGUST 30, • 407 PAGtC 3 Benmiller teetotaler offered alternative to drinking -liquor "The history of the world is the record of a man in quest for hia daily bread and butter". • This statement was made by H,W. Van Loon in his book The S'ory of Mankind. Nine students representing the schools of G.D.C.I. in Goderich, F.E. Madill Secondary in Wingham and Central Huron Secondary School in Clinton are currently attempting to trace and record this "quest" in the s*nall '',but quaint com- munity „of Benmiller. - The students will be compiling the fruits of their summer's work, in a book yet to be named depicting the history of Ben - miller. e, This project, is a 'program sponsored by Opportunity for Youths valued at $8,475. According to Ken Doherty, spokesman for the group, "J.W. (Jack) McLaren well known artist from Benmiller, was the chief instigator of the project. Of the nine students working on the project, six are history and three are art students. Members of the program are Ken Doherty, Randy Van Stem- pVoort, Anne Newington, Barb Fisher, Julie Vallance, Cathy Benjamins, Rosanne Middleton and Cheryl and Carla Elliott. - At the beginning of the program, the project was divided up junto six sections with each historian in charge of one. The sec- tions were agricultural, social, industrial, pre -white settlement, ommunications and pioneer families., Most of the research was conducted in various libraries --- Huron County Library, university libraries ---as well as,,Huron County Museum and local cemeteries aid in the location of surviving relatives for interviewing purposes. "A very great aid in our search for the Benmiller history was the micro -film file at G.D.C,L. which dates back to about 1848," Mated Ken Doherty. The art segment of the program was conducted separately with the volunteer guidance of Jack McLaren of Benmiller. These students did their own interviewing and research for Material to.sketch and draw. for the book. Their main contact with -the history group was at the meeting held once a week. The main centre for the project was the high" school staff room. The students are quite grateful for the co-operation they have received from the school. "The object of the book is to depict the history of Benmiller in an interesting as well as an informative way," stated Doherty. -„ Following is an excerpt from the upcoming book. It is an ac- count of,.certain temperance acti(,ns in the mid to late 1800's. "David McKee 'stumped' through the Tractin the 1850's advocating the abolition of all liquor.,' Mr. 'McKee came from Britain, and, had run away from home to' become a cabin ..boy at an -early age. He, worked himself up the nautical ladder';_ hut finally faired his masters ticket, reportedly because of drink. Seemingly mended of his ways, he became interested in the Temperance movement, at that time popular in England. Taking upon himself the task of spreading the enlightened word concerning liquor to the western continent, he arrived at Goderich on the same day as a large shipment of whiskey. .That night he began his mission, by walking into a hotel and delivering^a bluster tirade about the evils of liquor to the openmouthed crowd. . By the 1870's, Temperance advocates were multitaadinqus and loquacious in Huron County. The Benmiller Sons of Tem- perance, Pure Retreat Division, Number 308 was a strong and energetic organization. ,In 1879 they built, according to the Goderich Signal, "a very com- modious hall," and reported that, "The building, when finished, will reflect creditable on the energy of the order here, and will, no—doubt, give fresh impetus to the cause of Tem- perance in the locality." The minutes of ,the Tem- perance meetings show that they were, in actual fact, weekly social gatherings. The administration part o` business included election of of- ficers, collection of dues, and correspondence with the Grand Lodge of Temperance, and was soon put to one side. Then the evening would begin. Singing, recitations, Bible readings, and speeches would be volunteered by the memben themselves. Topics for discussion were surprisingly relevant. They were helpful to the residents of the village, and indicative of common feelings, problems, and attitudes. 'John Stewart, for instance, would '.impart to the group some of his knowledge of plants and flowers, and the older, ex- perienced members would put forth, in carefully prepared speeches, advice on "Conduct", "Education", "Courtship and Marriage", "Gritty Girls", and "Lovemaking under Dif- ficulties" to name a few, found in' the meeting records of the 1880's. All these - topics were discussed aside from the sub- ject of Temperance which received regular attention.' Debating was a very popular, pastime at the meetings, thea sides sometimes being taken quite„seriouslyby one or two of the outspoken members, A list of a • few of the resolutions we found in the minutes of the meeting .gives some insight into the interests of the inhabitants;November, 1884—Resolve that the liquor dealers should receive , compen- sation;February, 1885; -Resolve .that co-operation is snore adap- ted to promote the virtue and happiness of man's spirit than competition; November 1885 -- Resolve that it is justifiable to hang Louis Riel; April 1887 -- Resolve that the work of seeding is harder than the work' of house-cleaning; 'Jung_ 1887-• Resolve that interference has -caused more misery than war; August 1889 --Resolve that a dirty good-natured woman makes a better wife- than a clean cross one;Novemberl892- :Resolve that the farmer does more for the advancement of the world than 'the mechanic. Such topics show that the people, had an _educated viewpoint, and were, aware and concerned about national events such as war, and Louis Riel, and of the finer things in life. Other entertainment would include Geography, Literacy, and Spelling matches, mock trials, gramaphone selections, greased -apple eating contests, taffy pulls, and peanut races. Temperance meeting minutes were filled with charges of breaking the pledge and im- passioned denials, So evidently. the original doctrine cif the organization was kept close to the heart, A member suspected of violating his oath w4F brought hefore the entire order and a Committee of In- vestigation was set up. At the next meeting, the Committee would reveal its findings and the disgraced member would be dismissed .from the order The movement was a popular one, for the records are filled with the initiations of nev members (of which no detail-, are given.) .Mr. Hugh Hill. one resident whom we interviewed. recalled that, although th, Temperance movement was (`.ont lnl:;e The control centre for the Benmiller historyproject s p ) eon- comes back to.this room where it is written up and ed cored by Opportunity for Youth is the staff room at G.D.C.I. entry into the book. Information which is collected from research and Interviews , Spokesman Ken lb, artists for the Rosanne Middleton.. Doherty la project, Cheryl M this background ,rein in•thIe photo with the three Elliott, Carla Elliott and are some of the art pieces which will bi'dlsplayed In the Innrdedlat♦ $snml ler are' TM artworks depict various aspects c• pioneer life that existed In ®dnmtller-in its., arty days.