The Goderich Signal-Star, 1974-08-08, Page 2PAGE 2-OODERICH SIGNAL-S`T'AR, TI-LURSDA Y. AUGUST 8, 1974
EDITQRIAL COMMENT
LOOKTNG BACK.
•
Stop'
the slaughter
Masses ,o•f mangled metal strewn
across the province after the mid-
summer long,'holiday weekend were the
silent tons of over 40 persons whb lost
their lives in traffic accidents. Buckets
of tears have been shed. by the families
Who IQst:loved ones; by friends whose
pals were snatched from them; by
people i;n ' general who weep with
frustration and fear for their own safety.
When will --the slaughter end?
Death 'did not overlook this part of On-
.tario„ either. Four .teenagers. died in an
accident just ,north of Goderich, Just
four of forty or more traffic victims .:.
;but four from the district. Four friends.
Four loved, ones. Four teenagers from
the district.
When will the slaughter end?
During the weekend; ,provincial of- `°
ficials suggested that a serious study be •
made into the advantages -of, lowering
the highway speed limit.i Some•feel this
,is the, only way to curb the slaughter, the'
endless killing which goes on on• the'
highways. Look to the United States of
America, these traffic analysts say.
There, hundreds upon hundreds of lives 'r
have .been saved in recent months
because the ° speed limit has been
reduced and strictly,enforced by police.
Let's -Stop the slaughter,, •n
A , National Roadside Traffic Survey
conducted between April 17°and June 15
in eight provinces finds that about one
quarter of the drivers providing breath
samples had been drinking. According
to early results from the survey, ap-
proximately „one .third of these drivers
had blood alcohol concentrations at or
above the legal limit of1.08 percetat. This
means that, in. this night-time study bet-
ween the'' hours of 10 p.m. and 3 a.m.
Wednesday through- Saturday of each
survey week,. about fine in 12 drivers
'tested was legally Impaired.
Let's stop` the slaughter.
Seat
Let's_
usage was measured in the
same survey, according to a^ report from
'Transport' Minister• Jean •Marchand.." Of
those drivers with lap belts available, 13
percent were observed wearing them, -
'while of those drivers with both'tap-and
shoulder belts available,' eight percent'
were observed- wearing the' complete
system.
Let's stop the slaughter.
A fine'start
'Those persons who took the time and
the effort to , attend . Theatre. Passe
Muraille in the courtyard at the former
• Huron' County Jail last week were
thrilled by the performances there. The
story of the farmers' rebellion of 1837
'was told in the most fantastic dramatic ;
offering this county has seen in a .long,
long ti'me:
Theatre Passe Maraille, an'ultra-talen-
ted collection sof professionals. made a -
hit a year ago with The Farn' Show, a
story about life )n Goderich Township.° .
The • same , unadorned • 'staging was
evident again, "only this time, the rustic
setting of• the jail .courtyard along' 'with ,
the , rough ' lumber ramplike structure
upon which the\ actors and actresses so
nimbly•maneuvered made the background
even more striking -and the scenes even
more inventive. 'As one awed spectator
reported, the five member Cast had the
audienpe believing there were hundreds
in the wings during the rebellion scenes.
Two special 'scenes stood -out in the
.evening's performance. One was the
delightful.. portrayal of a horse-drawn
cart stuck in the mud. The other•was the
tender scene of the young bride whose°
husband was leaving home"to' fight; in
.the streets of Toronto, 'for •the�1 armers'
rights. .
Perhaps the•scene depicting a conver-
sation. between Tiger Dunlop and Col.
Van Egmond whipped up the most° en
thusiasm in the'�attentive crowd because
of the association of these -two historical.
figures -with• -the surrounding area..,
The Jail Board deserves the conirrien-
•dation of thecommunity:for bringing the
show to Goderich, If this is the .Calibre of
entertainment to be expected'. in the jail
and its Courtyards in the months ahead,
the lasting success' of the controversial
project is assured.
Ttlifrf NOT Ti4E. •
?Ord HOMIER •:s
TAkts+ tf1E react! �t�,••L
"It W,gs rather naive of .me to thin k that was the cost of the house.
During. the week just passed,.
I. had the opportunity to be in .
volved with the Young
Voyageur program. My
daughter was one of the 20
Goderich hosts , for" . the 20
'visitors`' from Grand Prairie,
Alberta: As a mere .mother, I
was permitted to participate
the ' scheme by Sharing our
bathroom with a young lady for
seven days and providing a
few �chauffering services.'
The program for the Young
Voyaguers .in Goder''ich was
arranged by Doug Bundy,' a
science teacher at: GDCI; and
his' wife Lou: To :say;.that Doug
planned an exciting program
.for the kids - is somewhat of an
understatement-. 'To my way gf
thinking, -Doug did' the the im-
possible 'thy. _. keeping ; 40
teenagers . busy and happy for
one long weeks
'In fact,. Doug's weeklong
agenda was so succ_ essful...arid
so'we1'1 organized...it left only a
minimal', amount of free time
.'for ,the travelling "guests and
their, hosts' 'to explore those
many activities which could
have,,.been enjoyed locally"but
were not on the timetable.
The guest at the . Keller
household was a petite 17 -year
.old brunette by the name of
Karol 'Palmu. A polite,
inquisitive and hig'hl
•
•
"When we got to Toronto we
noticed" right away that
-something was missing. We
finally figured .out what it is. It.
'•,' is•,the stars. We always have
`` stars at night ,in Grand
Prairie." • .
'The group visited Niagara
Falls for a .day and once again,
Karol's assessment of the.city
was less than enthusiastic..
"The falls were reat,f' she
exclaimed, "but Niagara Falls
is much too commercialized. It
"costs money to d:, everything?'
***. •
One of the highlights of the
week for. my daughter and her
guest was the. visit to the•Men-
nonites in the Elmira area: Ac-
cording to. the girl the tour
guide was .a Mennonite
minister whu explained `•his.
people's faith with enough
humor in' his delivery to hold
'their attention for hours.
As for the famed
Shakespearean Festival;' the
girls termed it as "all right".
They saw The Imaginary `In-
' valid, reputed to be ene of the
best attractions 'at Stratford
this 51immer . and were only
slightly impressed.
The whole attitude of, the
girls seemed to be a • commen-
tary about youth in ' general.
The young people seem totally
y unimpressed with things,grand
exuberant teenager, Karol
told us she liked Ontario • but
would be hap}y to eget' back to
Alberta.,. Why?
"' "There's something missing
here," she said thoughtfully,
and luxurious, .sparkly and
large., They like the simple
things - like stars and the
folksy friendliness' of a country
minister: '
With young people like that
coming up, surely -the country is
heading for an exciting future
Where the real and lasting
things will ' be upheld, and
preserved.
* * * - —
Getting down to the bus on
that, last morning with the
youngsters was the thrilling
part of the visit for me. On that
Friday. morning telling.
8:30, a
light rain was falling. It wits
soggy • underfoot and
overhead..just a damp
miserable day. • •
But the 20 Goderich kids and
the 20 Grand Prairie kids along
with their chaperones ,and a
good many of_ the host parents
stood .outside and around the
bus as if it was the brightest,
sunniest, driest day of :the year,,
Nobody seemed to notice the
rain.
Huddled in'little groups- par-
tly because of the rain but'
nosily because of a marvellous
kinship which had developed
between them - the young girds
and boys used those :final
precious moments•„ to stare
away that extra measure of
memories: They lingered in the
downpour, hating to board the
bus which would „take them
away from each other, probably
for good.. They jostled each
other good naturedly, 'letting
that brief contact warm ` them
with 'a feeling of ^ together`riess
they hoped would last after
faces ,,had faded into the
distance: �.. •
As the bus driver called
"Everybody in", a few tears
75 YEARS AGO
The cornerstone of the Odd -
fellow's hall was Paid on Thur-' °
sday night. No' ceremony was
observed, the stone being laid
in place in the presence of . half
a dozen' members. 9f the Order.
On one side 'of the stpne is the
date 18991 while the other has
the letters LOOF above the '
three links. Within it were .,.
placed copies of the Signal, the
Star and the News -Record, a
list of the members of the
building committee and a list
of the gentlemen who donated
the stone. The dedication of the
hall° will take place upon its
completion and will be an oc-
casion for a ceremony.
The Marine Band's' weekly
outdoor concerts ,are becoming
very. popular and. are looked
forward to eagerly. The band'
will render a , program on the
Square this Thursday evening.
For many a day the streets of
Goderich•.had not presented so ,
lively a scene"as they did nn
Tuesday, when two large par-
ties of excursionists spent .the
day in town. The larger party,
about 600 in number came in
'from Seaforth, with a few from
Clinton.' It"wasSSeaforth's civic
holiday and the 33rd battarion
band used the occasion as an
opportunity to run an excursion
to this town. The other. excur-
sion -came in. from Harristori
and points between and num-
bered about 30Q people.,, The •
I-larriston group dame in under
the auspices of the -Harriston
Royal Tempelars of Tem-
, perance. ` 'The combined
started to flow. There. were a Harriston and . Palmerston -
few embraces, d few hand- brass bands accompanied 'th'e;'°"
shakes, lots of waves. The rain panty so that the town had an
didn't matter. It . wasn't' even, ' abundance Of music during the
there. day.
Finally on board the bus, Although -it was rather cold
windov3s opened along both and breezy, there''wM a large
sides and hands and hes number of people at -the harbor
protruded from everywhere.' . Park on Sunday. -The arrival of
"Thanks' again."` * the 'schooners Sturges and
.,See you."v
" G
Goodbye oderich:" •
"Hooray for Mr. Bundy."
"Don't forget my address.
"I'll. write."
bus droned down the
As the
street toward the highway,
finally out of sight, the stinging
and wet, wet rain was'
noticeable at last. Everyone
scurried for the cars. -
In our car, riot a single word.
was spoken on the short hop
home,
ti
Ontario statistics '73
Blaine, laden with corn from
Chicago, was watched with. in-
terest by many. ,
• 50 YEARS' AGO
Some time ago the Goderich
Star announced that we would
give prizes for the 'best display
of gladiolas growing in the gar-
den, open to growers Tri
Goderich and surrounding
'townships: The first prize was
$2.50,1second, $2.00, third $1.50
and fourth.prize $1.00. Growers
who' wish tb have their garden
gladiola plots 'examined by the
judges. should .send their name
and 'address to the Star office
no later than next week.
In spite,of a backward spring
this is -proving to. be a great
,year for the crops. As a sample
o the growth the writer had '
the.. pleasure of seeing Roy
Linklater's crops before he`
started cutting this week at his
farm nekt ,the Leebu*rn church,
and it does °fine's heart good to
see the wonderfully fine looking'
,,,crops. In driving -through in an
auto'mobile one is almost lostit
to view by reason of.the height 4,
of the growth. Mr. Linklater
has 60 acres of. wheat, 80 acres
of :oats and 12:acres of buck- '
wheat. ' .
It has been suggested that all
men of over 80 years of age or
,;.over meet at St. Patrick's hall
on Wednesday, August 13, ford,
the purpose of having° a group
photograph .taken° the p,bject
being, to preserve a record .of .
our 'older citizens to whose
foresight .so much Of the'present
attractiveness of our town' we „
owe. Would all interested turn
in the names of those of "this''
age to the Star, of the Signal of-
fice 90
f-fice'so our com'm'ittee can make
arrangements to 'have all
present. , . '
- a
5 YEARS 'AGO
At a recent luncheon meeting
with the Ontario Safety League
Directors, the Honorable .Icahn
R. Rhodes, Minister of ,Tran-
•
sportation and .. Com-
munications, reported ;that
1,959 people died in traffic ac-
cidents:,i>5''C ntario in 1973, and •
more than 97,000 suffered per-,'
stinal injury. Bothigures were
up over the preceding year:
However, the Minister stated.,
figures for ••the first quarter of
1974 showed a downward trend
"ovr the corresponding period
for, ';last year:
'4
Dear' Editor,
Because of the excellent riews
cove'r,eige provided by your
paper and other newsimedia in
the area, the people of Huron
County are no dubt aware of
.-the Young .Voyageur Program
which recently- saw '20' teen-
aged boys and girls from
Ga`f ie Prairie,.' Alberta
..visiting our area.
These stueents and their two
escorts were excited about the
program which was provided
for them; and I am sure that
besides having: ,a. tremendous
time; they' learned a lot about
Ontario, about Goderich, and
about : the ' people and their •
culture,•'-
On' behalf 'rof my wife and
'my'self, who acted: as the local
cof.ordinators and receptionists,
I would like to express my
gratitude for all those , who
helped to make the week a suc-
cessful one. The host families
who took a student into their
home kr a week• are to -be com-
mended. Without them the
•p'rograrri would ,not be possible:
To the Town of Godehich; the
Goderich Lions Club, the
County of Huron, and several
aocal
businesses,'Who provided
financial and other assistance,
I' 'ould;like ta.express my sin-
cere thanks.
orne-
The months. of planning, and
the ,week of the visit, was not:
without .its problems,,
frustration's and tiring hours.
Nevertheless, 'we feel the
program was a' successful one
and were very pleased with the _
response from •t a ,visiting
group. • •
I am'sure the' will return to
Alberta with fond memories of
Goderich,' Ontario,and frien-
dlyits .
citizens. •
Si.nce'rely,
Doug R. Bundy,
erica
•
*CNA
CCKIA
Oo t!b
SIGNAL—STAR
..-1160-,t. The County Town Newspaper of"Huron
4
n'
Punded irr 1 8 and published every .Thursday a' Gade' h 'O^'ar,a Member )' 'he
CWNA and WNA"Adve4ji's''ng .raves an reques' Subscrnp'�ans pavab'e �, adv rlCe
S8:50'in°Canada $1000 !n all countrre ..,'her ;nary q in ch s igie,.c Ip'es 20vicents'
Sec,nd class mal Req's'raian Number 0716 Adver'�s•nq s ac^ep'ed n' 'h c�nd•' �^+
that �n. the even' pf typ�)graphical error 'he adver'�s,ni space )ccup4"i by/he
erraneaui5 ,lerr1 toge'her 3v''h reasonable `All l,pance'5, s gna'ure v'i.tr'n)' be :barged
for bur 'he balance If 'headven,se%mmenb w Gl be bad fbr a' •he apo' ,".4p a rlt�e In 'he
event .lf,3'ypographidal error adve''•stnq quads )r sere ces a' a Jvr hq t3'''"e gpids
service may 'p' be syld Adver''S'ng is merely i`',t 9"er'I sell qnd may be w'heP,Iw+'• '
any "rrtle - The S'grrai-S'ar iS"n3!' resp ns bie f)r •'ie !lss v jam'9ge
m�inuscrtp's )r phd'os
" ',Plaints* and Edittriat Office
TELEPHONE. 5244351
aria codec sf9
Malting Address: ,,
P.O. BOX 220, Goderich
'S tcond class rrialleiegistratiuih, urber- -0hl6
0
Published by Signal -Star Publishing Ltd. ,
ROBERT G." SHrttER•-•-°presidefit and j$ublishet ,,
SHIRLEY J. KELLEReditor
BILL DIMi lCK--bditorial et.alf
JEFF SED ON ---'.editorial atatf
EDWARD J.BYRSKI---advertising manager
DANE R. Vtllt.WWAMS—advertising 'represeft�t'ativot.
•
BY ,RON POULTO'N
of thalaronto Sun
Home to O'oderlch
It wasp one of those drowsy Sunday mornings that are
made •tceorder,_.fer shall towns. There see'ued'to be only one
car on the streets, and it' was carrying four Torontonians
who were driving around, oohing and aahing at the sight of
the gingerbread woodwork on the: houses and the. clean
sweep of the lawns.
No one was gardening. Nb one was strolling., It was as if
some invisible ray ' had swept the place, transfixing
-everything in its path: Nota clog barked; not a 'radio blared.
Yet it was. coming 'up to 8 o'clock.
The air had breakfast bacon on its breath when our driver
said, "They don'.t hurry their Sabbath's in -:towns like these.
They're .out of bed, I know, But it's the kitchen, the.Church.
or the golf club: That's probably where they -are."
He stopped, the car in the, mit4d,le of a street, wondering
whether a particular housewe wanted to see was this waypr
that, While we Were „cogitating a car appeared,, and the.
driver braked to a halt alongside - and said„. "Can I help
you?"
After he'd dri'tten off, the fellow beside me turned and
grinned. "Can I help you! Now what do you think of that.?
Can•you imagine anybodv•bothering to stop and ask 'Can I.
help you? in a big town?"
We • spent a pleasant, drifting -hour like that, driving
around Goderich: watching it, stir and stretch until 'an;oc-
casional garitiener came out. They must have a law against
'lawnmowersecause l''e didn't hear any.. • •
By 10 o'clock a breeze had sprung up to ,make the. sails
-yawn' in t.the harbor,' and a dozen bt,af's•'sidled past the
breakwater and into the lake. It wasn.'-t long,before the har-
bor wall, was lined with fishermen, while up in the town
rocking chairs were doing their jobs on porches and garden4chairs werebeing. moyed .into the sun to dry after a night of
rain.° ' •
Then it was Fl•abachi time, and hours of easy talk over tall
a
'drinks before the 'moon climbed high' enough to order
Goderich to go to bed and -ready itself for Monday morning:
I brought • a' copy of the Goderich Signal -Star back to
Toronto, just to 'refresh my memory of a good day spent in a
good town." But •it's hard to do. City smells and 'city noises
derail the train of thought.
,Some of you will know what I mean since this .city, is full
Of people who were born in small towns. Cities are distrac-
ting places. And although;Toronto is a fascinating one; if it's:.
f'' permanence you're after you won't find it in a metroipolis
where, yesterday's historical• site i's, today's parking lot.
Toronto hasn't mellowed enough to give its people'a' sense
of community.W-henr a city ages right it pawns villages
within its borders where the locals meet- in favorite cafes and .
friendly shops: ' Superma,rkets and Ontario Place don't
°qualify or really compensate. The "small towner' in Abel big
city becomes lost in the crowd; and gets Ilia mind and pocket
picked.
- I gather (from an unboastful cipher on its front page) that
the Goderich Signal -Star has been in business for 127 years -
There's continuity for you!
Its editor -i#1 page features one of'those filler eblu'inns that
' resurrect stories that happened years ago. If you. were to
. compare .them with the tone; of the .latest news from
Goderich and its 'surrounds, you might conclude that' life
hadn't changed all that much from vithaf it was, say 75 years
e ago.
In the copyi I. have the editorial paid .attention 'to 'Water
Safety Week.' An item reerinted from 5Q years ago reported
that a boy narrred David Wenger had won a prize for a cpm
position about 'Save 'The Porest Week.'
' A stranger might dismiss ,such continuity 'as deal. J don't,
myself, having come.from a town where the social events sof
the season were the church picnic 'in , River Park and the
Christmas concert in'the Sons, of ,>lJnglan.d HaiP
A stranger looking for bright 'things on that peaceful Dior
ning in Goderich might, in fact, have felt downright distip-
pointed. But to the four of `us in the car it . felt like home.
The Goderich Ladies Fast:-
ball Club wound up regular.
play Monday evening defeating
Brucefiel'd"6 for the WOAA
league championship. The team
now has a bye -.of one 'week
Before entering the.finals. ,
Bill Clements house .ireSalt-
ford has been moved off the
Saltford flats to a point, about
half a mile up the road nearer
Highway.21. The Clements had
been. having problems with ice
during the winter month„ "find'
with' some spring flooding.
A fire .,ver the lake bank at
Bin.gh'im '' Park Monday
`broughta larges�, crowd 'to the
park than probably had been
seen there 1iitce it opened. Cars
filled "the' roads for .'blacks
atoting the park; with people
attracted by5,0,fool flames that
were rising over ,.the bank.
Firemen put the cause of the °
blaze, located in .timbers 'put
over the 'bank to stop erosion,
as 'careles?t picnickers who had
been barbecuing supper near
the,,,top of the bank,•,
u