The Goderich Signal-Star, 1978-12-21, Page 34PAGE 10.E_GODERICH SIGNAL+STAR,i'LWRSDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1978
Farmers, says Peter Hannam, are living in a pres-
suue cooker.
He ought to know. He is the president of the Ontario
Federation of Agriculture. He is having great problems
at his place, near Guelph.
He has had dozens of phone calls, many of them abu-
sive, about his corn -drying operation. Police have been
to his farm. He has been warned he may face anti -noise
charges if the machines are not turned off.
"Woe betide anybody who turns off those dryers," he
says betause it would cost $4,000 to change over to less
noisy fans.
It is a classic example. •For a dozen years, farmers
have been fighting a losing battle because urbanites
move to the country. As soon as they get settled, they
start to complain about noise, dust and, particularly,
odors.
Urbanites, says Hannam, are allowed by government
to impose their lifestyle on rural Ontario.
The other side of the story is the compulsion by
many people to have a home of their own with an acre
or two of land to go with it. I'm one of them. We have
our house -and -two -acres in the country right now.
But that big chicken barn was beside us when we
moved. We know it and were willing to live with it. We
enjoyed thein as neighbors.
Too many people are not prepared for this aspect of
country living. They want the:,•gricultural community
to conform to their way of life. They don't :like tractor
noise at midnight. They complain about dust and dirt.
They don't like cattle bawling. They don't like chickens
cackling or hogs grunting.
Most of all, they hate farm odors.
I have yet to see a city -dweller walk across a bar-
nyard without wrinkling his nose.
It doesn't stop there. They complain. Loudly. They
go to local councils and get anti -noise, anti -pollution
and anti -odor bylaws passed. Farmers have to live in a
pressure cooker, Hannam says.
"City people move to the country and think they are
moving to a park," he maintains. "Before long, they are
trying to stop odors, noises, drainage projects, machin-
ery on the roads and other necessary farm activities."
He knows. His father sold about 12 acres in the 1950s
when money was needed to keep the farm going "and
I've regretted that decision ever since. It was the worst
mistake we ever made."
Court cases have been lost by farmers fighting to
maintain their way of life. Too many times, the courts
of this country have ruled against farmers. Some have
MitsasIMSZYStatirtacrOSEACIMEZIMOVSSiOnzimmrsaNg
il The Farm W
It 1
1 A farmer is a man who works out
in the sun, g
i ' ' Wearing out two pairs of britches
W growing cotton enough for one.
W He milks his.cows or slops the hogs
W5 or feeds his steers too fat.
I He starts each year with nothin'
W and loses most of that.
At planting time or harvest,
checking weather by his hose, W
il What isn't lost to drought or flood W
W is eaten by the crows. W
W Gamblin' is illegal, whether racing W,
• horses or a hound, W
W But day by day he'll get away W
with gamblin' on the ground. W
P. A boxcar full of fertilizer, herbicide W
Wand seed W
W Couldn't make the best corn plant W
outgrow the poorest weed. W
W. The horses have the colic,
I He buys a sterile bull, W
A coyote got the last chicken,
W His ewes lost all their wool. W
w But .the only lines you'll see
W upon his wrinkled face
I Are those that are caused from grinnin' w
at the whole danged human race.
The smartest man would.starve
out on the family farm,
But his wife thinks he's a genius,
It doesn't do much harm.
The kids all help their papa 5
through the "work for nothing" stage; W,
Then they all drive 50 miles to church I
to hear a sermon on minimum wage.
Heaven help the family
that lives off the fat of the land,
Heaven help the nation
that doesn'tiunderstand.
By Doc Blakely From September Days
Lmvamsmrsams‘smmEtarstilmvgrsmonsolvvirsta
Magazine published by Days Inn
•
JOHNSTON BROS.
Bothwell Ltd.
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Letters are appreciated by Bob Trotter Eldale Rd Elm.,a Ont N38 2C7
been forced to curtail their operations. Some have been
forced out of business.
One can't help but wonder how many of those
learned judges ever had manure on their boots. •
It doesn't stop there. Farm communities are clut-
tered with garbage dumps, hydro generating,sites, gra-
vel pits, transmission corridors, airports, highways, pi-
pelines, nuclear dumps, snowmobile trails, poisondus li-
quid waste disposal sites and a dozen other urban intru-
sions.
Farming, warns " Hannam, could "be severely res-
tricted beyond all reason in the most productive areas
of the province unless government policies are changed
and a genuine commitment is made to preserve the
land and farming.
Don't hold your breath waiting, Peter.
Laws are made by politicians. Politicians need votes.
Votes come from people.
And most people live in the cities.
Farmers constitute less than six per cent of the popu-
lation.
Few politicians can get elected with only six per cent
of the vote.
OMMB
report
The number of
producers who sold milk
to the Ontario MA
Marketing Board in
October was 12,480
compared to 13,906 in
October a year earlier.
This year's total is made
up of 10,134 Group I Pool
producers and 2,346
Group II Pool producers.
Total milk marketed by
the OMMB during
October was 182.5 million
litres, a decrease of 3.3
per cent from October
1977. Again this month,
the Central Supply
Region showed the
greatest decrease being -
down 6 per cent from
October a year ago.
On a diary year to date
basis, total milk
marketed by the Board is
5.4 per cent below that..
which was marketed
during the same period in
the previous dairy year.
Estimates of
November milk
marketings- to the Board
are showing that
November 1978
marketings will be
almost equal to those of
November 1977.
MSQ utilization by
Ontario milk producers
was 5.33 per cent lower in
October 1978 compared to
October 1977. During the
first seven months of the
• Turn to page 11B -
CLAY —
SIIo Unloaders
Feeders
Cleaners
Stabling
Leg Elevators
Liquid Manure
Equipment
-Hog Equipment
BUTLER —
Silo Unloaders
Feeders
Conveyors
FARMATIC —
Mltls
Augurs, etc.
ACORN —
Cleaners
Heated Waterers
WESTEEL-RDSCO
Granaries
S & L - Hag Panelling
LOWRY FARM SYSTFMS
OR 9 lOttC lydlne, Ont.
011004131111-12116
eegereeseirerekritrieittitieiereamreier.rer. ass
Farmers' Week in Jan.
Southwestern Ontario's
Farmers' Week, January
48 to 12, will hibhlight the
role of farm women with
a Tuesday program on
farm management plus a
special women's session.
The afternoon session at
the Ridgetown College of
Agricultural Technology
focuses on women's role
of businesswoman and
home -maker.
The day's feature
speaker, Dr. O. L.
Crocker, will discuss
coping .with stress in
today's farming and its
effect on the farm family.
Mrs. Crocker, from the
faculty of Business
Administration at the
University 2f Windsor, is
an authority on business
stress management.
Stress, often seen as a
"quiet" problem in
management, has
become recognized as a
contributor to many ills
and as a major social
problem within current
agriculture.
Following the feature
presentation will be two
speakers directed
primarily to modern
farm women. First is
William Allen, farm
economist, outlining
various. farm
bookkeeping problems
faced in daily
Turn to page 11B
fAR
CLASSIFIED
$ Cust 4r.I work• .
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,size way hydraulic blade.
Bill Robinson, RR 2,
Auburn. 529-785 7.-43TF
WATER WELL
DRILLING
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• FARM • SUBURBAN • INDUSTRIAL • MUNICIPAL •
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WINGHAM
Collect Calls Accepted
"ONTARIO'S FINEST WATER WELLS SINCE 1900"
rrA%i/iii..,.
Take advantage of our early low prices, buy your fer-
tilizer, Now! You'll sleep better tonight and have a lot
happier New Year knowing you saved so much by
buying in December.
Lil SUBSTANTIAL SAVINGS
Pay 1978 prices on Fertilizer orders
needed, for your 1979 Growing Season.
LI FREE BULK STORAGE
Order Now and it will be ready when
We have an analysis to
your needs.,.
6-24-24 8-32-16
16-16-16 UREA"
PLUS MANY OTHERS AVAILABLE
The Good Guys at M. J. Smith need to know how much fer-
tilizer will be required for next year. By ordering 'now they
can bring in enough stock to be prepared. And being
prepared is important to them at M. J. Smith.
Get in on the High Rewards or shall we say, 'reap the
benefits' for ordering your fertilizer now.
WHILE YOU ARE HERE
HAVE A
COFFEE
ON THE HOUSE
No need to try - there's only one place to buy or sell
We can save you money
(Chatham
"ALL OF 00R FACILITIES ARE 10 SERVE YOU BETTER"