The Wingham Advance-Times, 1984-02-29, Page 48f
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A page of \editorial opinion
February 29, `1984
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Published at Wingham, Ontario, P.O. Box 390 - NOG 2W 0
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Parliament or schoolyard?
With the arrival of television cam-
eras in the House of Commons one
might have expected intelligent mem-
bers of parliament to become conscious
of the fact that their behaviour was
suddenly exposed to a nation-wide au-
dience. Apparently no such unsettling
thoughts have penetrated the minds of
those we have selected to govern the
nation.
One of the more brilliant ex-
changes last week took place between
Chris Speyer, MP for Cambridge and
our illustrious prime 'minister. Speyer
referred to Revenue Minister Pierre
Bussieres as "a 15 -watt bulb". In bril-
liant intellectual form Mr. Trudeau re-
torted that Speyer possessed "a one -
candle -power brain".
Television coverage of Parliament
reveals that the conduct of public busi-
ness and debate in the House of Com-
mons "is, at ' times, little short of
childish. Occasionally, but not often,
municipal councils descend to such a
level of infantile behaviour, and earn
the contempt of those who have elected .
them.
Speakers in the House of Commons
are customarily subjected to cat -calls
and shouted Interruptions. If the
speaker has an important message, as
all such speeches should have, the man
or woman who has the floor must shout
the words above the uproar of
opponents. Scarcely the atmosphere
which encourages serious consider-
ation of questions vital to the welfare of
a great modern nation.
The Commons is supposed to be a
forum for debate, but if the local high
school debating club descended to such
coarse tactics its speakers would be
barred.
The Speyer-Trudeau exchange
took place during what should have
been a deadly serious discussion of the
methods employed by Canadian,, tax
collectors — surely a subject of prime
importance to all Canadians. Trading
personal insults is a childish approach
to such a serious question.
Toronto near the top
Over the years the City of Toronto
has been forced to endure some very
unflattering nick -names, tjie most en-
during of which was "Hog Town". That
particular sobriquet was first applied
many years ago and its origin is no
longer known. Perhaps the words were
used in reference to the stockyards in
the city's west end. Itmay have been a
reputation for greed which led to such a
nasty nick -name, and if so, Toronto's
business establishments have man-
aged to maintain their reputation over
the years.
A recent survey in Great Britain,
polling businessmen and tourists who
travel extensively, places Toronto in
fourth position among the world's most
expensive cities. New, York, Stockholm
and Tokyo top the list.
You don't have to be a world
traveller to feel the bite of Toronto
prices. Two weeks ago we personally
made note of some of the ways one's
expense account can suffer in Ontario's
capital. Turning into the wrong parking
garage we made a circuit of the under-
ground cavern and decided to seek a
spot closer to our destination. It cost
$1.70 just to get out of the place.. Even-
tually we located another .underground
garage and left the family chariot for
the night. Twenty hours later out came
the car, but only after paying $17.50.
Several downtown hotels (modern
but not particularly luxurious) charge
over $100 per day for single accommo-
dation. Meals, room service, garage
etc., are extra. A reasonable breakfast
(two eggs and bacon, fruit juice, toast
and coffee) usually runs about $6.50. An
average dinner is over $15.00, Taxi
fares and other such services are com-
parably high.
No doubt the Toronto Chamber of
Commerce would point out that the
visitor can eat and sleep for less if he or
she shops around. But on the average
hurried business trip who has time to
shop around?
One thing we will say: what you do
spend in Toronto usually buys you good
quality. For many years it was the last
city in the country to visit if you wanted
good food °and interesting entertain-
ment. That is no longer true. Toronto
has become a truly cosmopolitan city,
due in no small part to the influx of vast
numbers of immigrants from many
other and older lands. The needs of so
many ethnic groups have broadened
and enriched the culture and lifestyle
of the city. However, don't -expect a
fun -filled weekend on the contents of
your piggy bank.
The power of print
An editorial in the February issue
of the Huron Church News, (Anglican
Diocese of Huron) comments on the
importance of the written and printed
word:
Admitting that the Word itself
(Bible) has to be powerful, yet how else
could its power have been conveyed if it
had not been written or printed?
Let none underestimate the place
of print and °the power of the printed
word. Because of its power the Bible
was first laboriously written and re-
written, then laboriously printed and is
now printed in profusion.
Because of the power of print, and
the knowledge and understanding and
opening of windows that it brings our
world, books are produced in moun-
tainous quantities, and magazines,
newspapers, pamphlets and all forms
of propaganda.
Print is the greatest communicator
in our modern world. It can get and
does get where the living agent cannot;
where the spoken word is forgotten.
It says and does its work silently
and at any and all times. It can be read
in secret; it gets full attention at quiet
hours; it lives on and on — years after
it has been written and even when the
writer is long since dead.
It is one of the most economical
means of conveying ideas; it travels
great distances at little expense; it
does not grow weary or sick. It goes on
declaring its message.
All this, anyone who is concerned
to say anything appreciates clearly. He
not only says it, but puts it into print,
knowing that, if what he has said has
any worth, through print it can go on
speaking.
Writing out (or printing) has an-
other advantage over the spoken word.
It gives the opportunity to consider and
clarify and strengthen the argument,
as well as to search out one's real mind.
The spoken word is often said without
this necessary purging.
. The spoken word is fleeing and
forgotten. The written word can stay -=
to be read precisely, to be pondered
and grasped ... Print by any and every
standard is the greatest means of com-
munication these days.
Now here's a thought
The Huron Expositor attributes the
following to a friend who thought the
message was timely.
I'm the fellow who goes into a rest-
aurant, sits down and patiently waits
while the waitress and waiters finish
their visit before taking my order.
I'm the fellow who goes into a de-
partment store and stands quietly
while the clerks have a little chit-chat.
I'm the fellow who drives into a
service station and neier blows his
horn, but, lethe attendant take his
time. -
You might say I'm the good guy .. .
But do you know what else I am?
I'm the fellow who never comes back.
It amuses me to see businesses
spending so much money every year to
get me back as a customer, when I was
there in the first place; all those busi-
nesses needed to do to keep me as a
customer was give me some. service
and extend a little courtesy.
Items from Old Files
FEBRUARY 1937
At a recent election in St.
Andrew's Presbyterian
Church, W. A. Miller, James
Nicholson, John Raby and
George Scott were elected
members of the session.
E erprising citizens of
th Belmore section have
be n txsy signing up the
resi ents to become
members of the hydro family
and secure the great boon of
electric lights and services.
The Wroxeter line comes as
far north as Ira Neill's farm
south of Belmore and we
learn that a sufficient
number of subscribers have
been secured to extend the
line to Belmore and as far
east as Elmer Zinn's.
Mr. and Mrs. Harry Goll
have moved to the 30 -acre
New Books
• in the Library
LITE ENGLISH by Rudolf
Flesch
Do you use: hopefully,
gizmo, for free, copout,
weirdo, zilch? This book is
fun to read and you will
realize that many so-called
"modern" words have'their
origins in the mists of time
and have now become .ac-
ceptable English.
HOW TO • BUY AND RE-
MODEL THE OLDER
HOUSE , by Hubbard H.
Cobb.
A unique reference work
takes the reader step by ttep
from the first inspection to
the rebuilding — from the
foundation to the rooftop.
Included also are the case
histories of 20 families ex-
plaining how they achieved
their dream houses.
GHOST STORIES by Susan
Hill
This is a collection of ghost
stories by famous authors.
Your spine will tingle and
you may be afraid to look
behind...!
farm on the Centre Sideroad,
near Browntown, in Morris
Township.
FEBRUARY 1949
The Wingham entries in
the Ontario Bonspiel in
Toronto made an ex-
ceptionally fine showing.
Congratulations to the rink
of W. H. Edwards, W. Tiffin,
James Carr and Dr. A. W.
Irwin for winning second
prize in the Seiberling Event.
Cameron Edgar' is moving
his stock of merchandise to
the former Anglo-American
Hotel in Gorrie which he
purchased several months
ago. He has had it
remodelled as a general
store.
Oleomargarine arrived in
Wroxeter and the butcher
reports stock "sold out" in
short order. Farmers and
town folk alike V availed
themselves of the op-
portunity of trying this
product and all agree it is
most pleasing to the taste.
George Caak has pur-
chased the Ferguson farm
near Belgrave from Ab
Nethery.
The Wroxeter community
welcomes Mr. and Mrs.
Frank Mitchell of Brussels
'who have purchased the
,farm of Frank Green and
have taken up residence. Mr.
Green has purchased a home
in Wingham.
At the afternoon service in
the Whitechurch United
Church, Sunday School
Superintendent James
Falconer presented prizes
for . attendance at ' Sunday
School during the past year.
Winners were Myrna •Stockill
with 40 Sundays, Arthur
Laidlaw `(31), Karen
Groskorth (33) and Muriel
Moore (34).
FEBRUARY 1960
At the meeting of the
Wingham Kinette Club, it
was decided to hold a
-cooking school sometime in
April.
At the meeting of the
Wingham District High
School Board, Principal
Frank Madill stated that the
enrolment averaged 521.3
during January with an
average attendance of 93.08
per cent. The board also
decided to hold Open House
in May to give the general
public an opportunity to °see
the new addition to the
school.
The Davidson well -drillers
of Wingham have been
drilling at the farm home of
William Webster, near
Whitechurch, during the past
two weeks.
FEBRUARY 1970
A general slowdown in the
building trades, which is
being experienced across the
nation has created a rather
drastic unemployment
situation in Wingham.
Extensive layoffs in local
plants have left many
workers without em-
ployment and there is no,.
method of predicting how
long the jobs. Will be
suspended.
Mason Robinson of East
Wawanosh and Fred
McQuillin of West Wawanosh
were elected to the board of
directors of the rest
Wawanosh Mutual Fire
Insurance 'Company. Mr.
Robinson replaces Herson
Irwin of Belgrave who has
served as a director for
several years and resigned
because of ill health.
Miss Betty Hetherington,
daughter of George
Hetherington of Bluevale,
was crowned Queen of the
graduation class of Guelph
St. Joseph's Hospital at the
Red Rose Ball held at Elora.
Charles Procter of
Belgrave left by plane on a
six -weeks' agricultural tour,
visiting Portugal, Turkey,
India, Ceylon, Hong Kong
and Expo Japan.
Olive Lapp was presented
with the Marguerite Burrell
Trophy by the Wingham
Figure Skating Club. Olive
received the award as the
senior skater showing the
most improvement, and for
personality and all round
help to the club.
Miss Margaret Bennett of
RP. I; Gerrie. was honored at
a surprise party and present-
ed with gifts, Margaret has
been accepted at the South
Huron Hospital, Exeter, in
the RNA course and starts on
March 2.
Clarification on
Junior Institute
Dear Editor,
I appreciated the well-
written article by Margaret.
Arbuckle on the Junior
Institute in Crossroads last
week, but I would like to
clarify a few minor points.
The $100 scholarship is not
offered by the Howick Junior
Institute but is a provin-
cially -sponsored award,
available to any member
within the province who is
furthering her education.
My daughters do attend
UCW meetings with me and
have attended a couple of
"senior" Institute meetings,
but children never attend
meetings of the Howick
Junior • Institute. These
meetings are held in the
evening so my husband looks
after our children.
We do appreciate our
husbands and boyfriends,
but they are not invited to the
June barbecue. That's the
girls' night out!
Mary Hall
�1 Howick Jr. Institute
•
Explaining situation at
Nappy Gang dances
Dear Editor,
In reply to the letter to the
editor in last week's Ad-
vance -Times, "What has
happened to the Meldodi-
ers?", and for the benefit of
those who may have been
misinformed, we, the Happy
Gang seniors executive
would like to clarify our
point of view.
The third Thursday of each
month has been designated
for the use of ,the Happy
Gang seniors for approxim-
ately -15 to 20 years. It is only
in recent years we have had
to reserve this date in the
clerk's office, due to
demands on the use of the
Armouries. These dates
were reserved in December,
1983, for the evenings after 6
p.m. for the full year of 1984.
At our January meeting
CAROL FARNELL presented first -place speaker
Patrick Cull with a trophy last Saturday at the Legion
speakoff in Wingham. Patrick was first in the senior
elementary division, Kevin Smith of the Wingham Public
IPS
School was second and David Helfenstein of Teeswater
was third. Patrick is a student at the East Wawanosh
Public School.'
we asked for suggestions as
to how to utilize those
evenings. At our February
meeting the leader of Gor-
don's Old Tyme Music, a
group formed primarily to
entertain the less fortunate
at local lodges, hospitals and
nursing homes, volunteered
to play for a dance. The offer
was accepted for Feb. 16
only.
The Melodiers band was
not sponsored by the Happy
Gang seniors. It was an
entirely independent organi-
zation. The free will offer-
ings were not donated to the
Happy Gang seniors.
The third Thursday
evenings are to be used for
entertainment as we see fit.
(Names withheld by
request)
Wingham
gPOTLIGHT
GOR p W LWDOD of Wingham will celebrate
his 13th birthday today. If that sounds fishy,
don't worry. Mr. Welwood was born Feb. 29
and even though he doesn't think of himself as
special, being born on Leap Year Day does
help to keep you young.
Gord Welwood celebrates
13th Leap Year birthday
By Margaret Arbuckle
How could a man have celebrated fewer birth-
days than his own children? Easy, if he's Gord
Welwood of Wingham and his birthday falls on Feb.
29.
Being a "Leap Year" baby is rather unique,
admits Mr. Welwood, but adds he's never thought of
himself as special. It does leave you open to a lot of
good-natured teasing, especially since today,
Wednesday, is his 13th birthday.
Mr. Welwood was raised at Whitechurch where
his father owned a service station. He went to school .
in West Wawanosh, Kinloss and at the Wingham
High School, as it was known then.
After graduating from high school, he worked at a
local bank for one year, before apprenticing to
become a mechanic. He got his mechanic's license
in 1956 and has been working in that field ever since.
Aside from his wife Louise, three daughters and
two grandsons, his first love always has been
sports. Mr. Welwood has played softball and hockey
over the years with teams from Wingham, Lucknow
and Belgrave.
Since Whitechurch had no team when he was first
starting to play ball, he was imported by Belgrave
as a pitcher and shortstop. He went to Wingham to
play ball in 1956, and in 1957 the local team won the
grand championship, one of the highlights of his
ball -playing career.
During his hockey career he -played for the
Wingham Midgets, the Lucknow Juveniles and the
Belgrave Intermediates.
Mr. Welwood got heavily involved in coaching
during the '60s and it paid off in 1969 when his
Wingham Intermediate softball team won the
WOAA grand championship.
He also pitched for one of the first local slow pitch
teams, a team that won the intercounty grand
championship in 1977.
In fact, he loves baseball so much he used to take
his holidays during the World Series. But he doesn't
have to do that anymore because most games are
played at night.
The New York Yankees used to be his favorite ball
team, but now he said he likes the Toronto Blue
Jays. However the Detroit Red Wings always will
be his favorite hockey team.
As far as his birthday is concerned, Mr. Welwood
said he has no special plans made to celebrate it.
When he was younger, he said, he used to celebrate
on two days to makeup for lost time.
One of his daughters even cried years ago when
her father told her he was younger than she was.
Having a birthday Feb. 29 does have its ad-.
vantages. As Mr. Welwood puts it: "I'm glad I'm
only 13."
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