HomeMy WebLinkAboutWingham Advance-Times, 1981-06-10, Page 4!,A.s1?t9o.1:.�•i��.wnr.�r..�.�R!�'YTI�?�2►Il�,'.�t.S`.!'?'�t`�1
THE WINGHAM ADVANCE -TIMES
Published at Wingham, Ontario, by Wenger Bros. Limited
Barry Wen$er, President
Henry Hess, Editor
Robert O. Wenger, Sec.-Treas.
Bill Crump, Advertising Manager
Member Audit Bureau of Circulations
Member — Canadian Community Newspaper Assoc.
Subscription $16.00 per year
Second Class Mail Registration No. 0021
Ontario Weekly Newspaper Assoc.
Six months $9.50
Return postage guaranteed
cCXXJ
New drivers on trial
On Monday of last week new reg-
ulations for beginning drivers came
into effect. Young people and those who
have not held an Ontario driver's lic-
ence for two years are affected.
In both cases new drivers will be on
a probationary basis, during which an
accumulation of six demerit points for
driving infractions will automatically
bring a three-month suspension of the
licence. (Under a normal licence 15
points are required for suspension).
After a new driver has completed two
years of motor vehicle operation with-
out a suspension the probationary
status will be lifted.
Perhaps many young people will
see the new regulation as yet another
descriminatory act by the adult world.
Better, however, they should bear a
certain amount of resentment than be-
come occupants of caskets or hospital
beds. The decision to place new driv-
ers, particularly the younger ones, on
probation has resulted from the unde-
niable statistics of accident frequency,
vehicle accident deaths and injuries.
The probation system will automatical-
ly deny the use of our streets and high-
ways to those who have proven that
they have endangered their own lives
and those of other motorists.
One of the most shocking statistics
of our society has been the staggering
number of young people who have died
or suffered crippling injuries in vehicle
accidents. At times the figures have
reached the proportions of mass
slaughter. No community, not even the
smallest, has been spared the agony of
young people killed at the very time of
life when the promise of maturity and
usefulness is just over the horizon.
Police officers, doctors and hospital
staff people, those who must deal with
these tragedies first hand, have been
sickened by the carnage.
If the new regulation leads to any
reasonable reduction in highway
deaths and injuries it will be well
worthwhi le.
Poor start in life
According to a recent survey con-
ducted in the high schools of Huron
County it would appear that a great
many of our young people are already
in serious trouble—well ahead of those
years when personal problems are nor-
mally to be expected. A cardiovascular
survey carried out in the Huron schools
revealed that out of 50 students, all of
them drank alcoholic beverages at
least twice a week and some more fre-
quently; two out of 50 take drugs and
three-quarters of them smoke cigar-
ettes.
Health authorities are alarmed, as,
no doubt, are the teachers. Whether
parents are equally concerned is a good
question..
Admittedly, what is comMonly
called "peer pressure" is a dor,inating
4- factor in the situation. The fear being
different from one's fellows in adoles-
cent years is very real to young people.
But the question remains: what have so
many parents been doing, or failing to
do as the percentage of young addicts
has climbed over the past few years?
Yes, it may -seem unfair to blame par-
ents for the mistakes their children
make, but mothers and: fathers, after
all are the people who should have the
greatest concern for -their children's
future and the greatest opportunity to
set the standards which their offspring
will adopt for their own life style.
Obviously many of us in the older
generation have not set a very good ex-
ample for the, kids. We, with"the ex-
perience of self-inflicted bad habits be-
hind us, should have been more than
orc rlarity concerned for those yourtg-
.sters Who are so, close to our hearts.
Propane is practical
In the hesitant race to provide al-
ternatives to expensive and scarce
petroleum fuels, propane -powered ve-
hicles may be the first across the line.
Hydrogen, electricity, alcohol are all
strung in there some place, but pro-
pane, which we have in sufficient
abundance to export vast quantities
each year, seems to be the most prac-
tical at the present time.
One of the Big Three car makers
will produce a limited number of pro-
pane -powered cars this year and as ac-
ceptance increases that number will
certainly be increased. It is expected
that the propane cars will cost, initial-
ly, about a thousand dollars more than
their gas -driven counterparts, but
certain after -purchase benefits will
offs fat higher capital cost. In On-
tarib the five -cents -a -litre road tax on
propane has been dropped as well as
the seven per cent sales tax on propane
vehicles at time of purchase.
One Ontario company is well into
No crisis yet
The Grimsby Independent recalls
that more than five years ago, in the
fall of 1975, Prime Minister Trudeau
perceived enough of an economic crisis
in Canada that he imposed three years
of wage and_ arice controls to fight in-
flation.
Mr. Trudeau had, of course, spent
the previous election campaign fight-
ing the imposition of wage and price
controls, which had been urged by then
Opposition Leader Robert Stanfield.
Nevertheless, Mr. Trudeau and his
Liberal government eventually saw the
light and the crisis it illuminated.
Now, it seems, they don't see so
well.
In October of 1975 the inflation rate
was running at 10.6 per cent annually.
Now if is closer to 12 per cent. The 1975
Bank of Canada interest rate of nine
per cent has more than doubled to near -
the conversion business, , equipping
existing vehicles with the necessary
fuel tank and carburetor changes for a
price of about $1,500.
Propane presently sells for about
65 per cent of the price of unleaded
gasoline, but that is not all saving. Fuel
efficiency (kilometres per litre) is
about 15 per cent less for propane as
compared to gasoline, but refinements
in engine systems are expected to nar-
row that gap to 10 per cent or less. In
addition, clean -burning propane means
much Tess air pollution and certainly -
less engine maintenance. A taxi driver
with whom we talked in Amsterdam a
few years ago had been operating his
'vehicle through some 150,000 miles
without any engine problems.
Most drivers who are fed up with
constantly -increasing prices for off-
shore oil and the unending dispute be-
tween the federal authorities and the
Alberta government will certainly be
interested in a viable alternative.
ly 20 per cent, its highest rate in
history. At that time the Canadian dol-
lar was worth 97.26 cents in the United
States. Recently it dropped to 82.56
cents U.S., the lowest level in 47 years.
Mr. Stanfield's successor, Joe
Clark, has suggested that Canada is in
its worst economic crisis since the
1930s. The figures certainly bear him
out.
Not so, says Mr. Trudeau's finance
minister, Allan MacEachen. Times are
"grim" he acknowledges, but there is
no "crisis".
There are a lot of low and fixed-in-
come Canadians who would disagree
with Mr. MacEachen. But then, he and
Mr. Tfudeau were facing an election
when he made the observation.
They'd rather not turn on the light
and see,,the crisis. They'd rather oper-
ate in the dark and leave us there.
T
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4
By John Pattison
For, many, years the pcop.le,
of Wingham ask for a
government-owned post
office to < replace tkie one
located in a.small store in the\
Macdonald Biockc,
After it wasomtsed
much' discussion took place
in regard to' its location +,
Some wanted it on the
Tamyln property m(Cencotapii
site), which could. be had', for
$600. Others wanted it far-
ther north.
In 1903 Thomas Gregory
had bought the front; portion
of what had been the home of
Ben Willson, the first mayor
of Wingham, across the
street from the Town Hall. It
was his intention to build a
block of stores there. He had
the foundations in when the
government bought it for
$5,000 as the location for the
new post office.
S. S. Cooper, who had built
the House of Refuge and the
Clinton Post Office, was
awarded the construction
News Items from Old Files
JUNE 1934
Rev. and Mrs. E. L.
Roberts and son, Gerald,
have taken up residence in
the rectory. We welcome
them to the community.
•A Football Club has been
organized in Wingham and
will play in the Northern
League. Officers of the new
club are C. R. Wilkinson, H.
Gibson, N. Geddes and Earl
Wild.
Friends extend • congrat-
ulations to D. B. Arbuckle,
eldest son of 'William and
Mrs. Arbuckle •of the 12th
concession._•of East Waw-
anosti;' who 'won the gold'
medal in Economic and
Political Science at Western
University.
Mac Miller got the sur-
prise of his life while fishing
at the bridge in the village of
Fordwich, when he pulled
out' a speckled trout' which
measured 11 inches. It is
most unusual to secure the
speckled.,” beauties ,.in . the
Maitland, especially . at this
point.
Reeve Fred L. Davidson
completed the drilling of a
well for the village of
Mildmay which has suffered
a shortage of water for a
year. The depth of the well is
about 100 feet.
• George Williams, jeweller,
announces that, in response
to many requests, he is
opening a department for
examining eyes and fitting
glasses. He has engaged R.
A. Reid . of Stratford,
registered optometrist of 16
years' experien&'e, to take
charge of this department.
White shoes for sum-
mertime are coon com-
fortable and correct. They
are priced from 51.25 to 5.3.95
at Greer's Shoe Store.
JUNE 1946
Jack McKibbon was"
elected president of the
Wingham Lions Club. Vice
presidents are Frank Madill,
Wilbur Tiffin and Clayton
Gainmage; secretary is
Stewart Beattie and
treasurer Bob Hobden.
Harry Posliff has been
successful in passing the
second year examinations in
the Honors. History course at
the University of Western
Ontario, London.
Mr: and Mrs. Joseph
Brophy and family attended
the graduation of their
daughter, Frances, from §t.
Joseph's Hospital, Guelph.
Vivian 1-ifastings; f:was
declared Grant harnpiionin'
a sports program held in
conjunction ,with Turnberry
School Area picnic. She was
also the Champion Senior
Girl. ;'Champion Senior 'Boy
was•Glen Foxton and named
Junior Champions were
Norma Felker and Gary
Storey. ' •
On June 10 of this year, the
Rt. Hon. 'W. L. Mackenzie
King entered his 20th year of
office as Prime Minister. -
Eighteen applications for
Old Age Pension were'
'considered by Huron County
Council at •' its regular
meeting. •
Louis Dalton has pur-
chased .a house and barn in
Ashfield and expects to move
them.to the foundations left
by the fire on his farm on the
12th of West Wailyanosh.
JUNE 1957
Perhaps the greatest
political surprise in the
history of Canada was the
result of the general election
when the thoroughly en-
trenched Liberal party went
down to defeat to leave the
Progressive Conservative
party ahead by seven seats.
In Wellington -Huron Marvin
Howe was returned with a
large majority.
The West Wawanosh field
New Books
in the Library
NOBLE HOUSE by James
(lavel1
The author of Shogun gives
us a new novel filled with all
the color, excitement and
vivid detail for which he is
noted. The setting is Hong
Kong. 1963, and the Noble
House, a venerable trading
house, is in financial trouble.
The fate of Hong Kong rests
on what will happen to it.
KiNG OF KINGS by
Malachi Martin
David, the first great
captain -king, the shepherd
boy who slew Goliath,
conquered the Philistines,
overthrew Saul and rose to
become the leader of his
people, is at the centre of this
novel. The author has gone,
beyond the heroic legend to
show us a real man of his,
times, profoundly aware of
God's mission for him yet
burning with a personal
ambition that is strikingly
modern.
THE ' MIDDLEMAN by
David Chandler
Here is an American saga
of a maverick, a very private
public man who lives on the
inside —.and the outside—.of
the law. From the viol to
collision of business
legal muscle to
Hollywood studio board
rooms, Burton Z. Hammond
is The Middleman, who
stepped in at the top and
walked away with all his
enemies in his pocket, never
forgetting through it all that
his life was a prelude to
noble revenge on the .clan
who had dared to destroy his
father.
meet was held at Fordyce
School with Patsy Foran
named senior girl champion,
Marlene Martin in-
termediate champ and Linda
Martin junior champ. Terry
Wilson,. ]Silly Robinson and
Jimmy Moss topped the
boys.
Seven new members were
enrolled in the Wingham Girl
Guides. They are Brenda
Conron, Jane Poyton, Susan
Reynolds, Faye Yeo, Jane
Hetherington, Janette Hend-
erson and Ruth Hodgins.
A reception will be held in
-the Whitechurch .Memorial
Hall this Friday evening for
Mr. and Mrs. Orland Irwin,
newlyweds.
Mr. and Mrs. David Nichol
opened the Langside store
last week. It has been closed
for nearly two years.
The Burke Electric
Trophy, awarded to the 'top
team' in the league for the
bowling seasoh, went to the
Burke Electric team com-
prised ,or Lev Balser, Norm
Elliott, Cal Burke, Walter
Brown, Tommy Jardin : and
Hap Swatridge.
The Wingham Golf Course
was officially opened last
Wednesday afternoon.
JUNE 1967
Due to the sudden illness of
clerk -treasurer William
Renwick, town council has
found it necessary to hire a
replacement. Mrs. Richard
Procter was engaged as
acting clerk -treasurer. She
has had experience in the
municipal office at Brussels.
John Runstedtler,
manager of ,the Toronto -
Dominion Bank branch here
for the past ten years, has
announced his retirement to
take effect on June 9. Fred
Snow, presently 'inianagei of
the Elmira branch, will take
over duties as manager on
June 19.
Wingham Town Council
members turned down a bid
from the Ontario Housing
Corporation who have been
looking over possible sites
for a six -unit senors, ,;ens':
apartment building.: Chop .
of the Corporation was the-
' main street: park but council
voted to retain the park for
public'use: -
Alexander John Hamilton
of Gerrie received his B.A.
Degree in General Arts from
the University of Western
Why no privacy?
Well, by now you have filled out
your 1981 census form, whether the
long one or the short one. You now re-
alize that you weren't to be trusted.
You had to be threatened with a heavy
fine or a few months in the hoosegow so
you would do what you were told, like
good, little girls and boys.
If' you only got the short form your
time and the government's money was
pretty thoroughly wasted. They could
have garnered all that information
from the municipal voters list and the
telephone directory. If, however,, you
had to labor through the long form you
are still wondering why the authorities
in Ottawa needed to pry so diligently
into your private life. For example, no
matter how many children you have
Ontario. He plans to attend
McMaster University,
Hamilton, specializing . in
physical edit ation.
The grand opening of the
new Howson and . Howson
Mill• was held at Blyth with a
large crowd of area farmers
and townspeople on hand.
Miss Marian Harding of
Fordwich has successfully
passed her hairdressing
exams at the Paul Pogue
School in London. She has
accepted a position at
Dianne's Beauty Shop,
Mount Forest.
Wallace Conn has sold his ,
Whitechurch area farm to
Ivan Brubacker of the
Kitchener area who gets
possession June 15.
o—o--0
Return of the Curlew:
When FI'ed,Bodsworth wrote
his book Lit of the Curlews
in _1554, -the Eskimo curlew
.he described -was believed to
be extinct;. But it wasn't the
last curlew: Ornithologists
saw a pair in August 1976, on
James -Bay, the first re-
corded in Canada in more
than 100 ' years. And one was
seen on May 41, 1980, on Lake
Manitoba. •'
borne, their names will show up some-
where as living, breathing human
beings — given the threats and
thoroughness of the census people.
And then there is the question why
there was no gum on the official return
envelope. Enough that some beady -
eyed official. in Ottawa should know
how many times a day you go to the
toilet -without making it common
knowledge to the census -taker who
lives just down the block and around
the corner.
So they all subscribed to an oath of
secrecy. Sounds something like "now
you must promise never to tell a single
soul ... but I just heard that Jane and
Jimmy are breaking up. Seems Jimmy
has this cute little blond secretary ..."
contract . Mr, William
i .10ho>isoll .iif W ig!t was
appointedinsp ctur,' Torkoft
excavating wan srted in:;
19 D4,
lluringl t e winter' of •1904-
05, Cooper made many of the
frame's, etc.. in Clinton and
hoped • to ,. have the '" job
. finished''by :June, This was
wishfa thinking because the
main gUestion . In Wingham
for the next two years was,
"When will the post office be 4.
finished?"
Thebuilding was two
stories high with an attic, 38
x 50 feet in size, and was
highlighted by the Offset
clock tower. Much of the
work was pub -let. The
plumbing, iron ands tipper
work was done L yt'V %'and'
McBurney of Winghatii; the
painting by R. H. McI(ty-`and
the slating by John Wittaker
of London. The electric
wiring was ^-installed b
Walter Green of Wingham.
The stelae for the .building.
came from the Horseshoe
Quarries in St. Marys, 'ajld-
the brick from Beamsville
Pressed Brick Co. and Elliott
and Sons of Wingham.
The office was finally
opened for use in January,
1907. The official opening
was held in the Town Hall on.
May 31, 1907. It was built in
the reign of Edward VII,
which accounts for the "E
R" above the front window in
the tower. . The spacious
apartment on the upper floor
was the living quarters of the
postmaster.
From the time the building
was finished people asked
for a clock to be installed in
the tower. After many pro-
mises, one arrived in Wing_'
ham from England in April,
1913. Then it was seen that
the tower ""w""as not
enough.' to house the ie
bell that weighed 800 lbs.
1,, On September 4, 1913, W.
J.., Deyell was awarded a
contract to °raise the tower.
]'itis meant thaftheioogird
all, the top -part of the tower
had to be dismantled and set
over on the main roof while
the bell was installed and the
brick wall built higher. The
top of the tOwer was then re.
placed. This was' finished in
11 rch•,,1914.
The clock was installed by . '
. A. M. Knox, a local jeweller.
The bell was said to.have the
finest tone ,of any in Western
Ontario. On a table beside
the bell is attached "a 24 lb.
gong which strikes" the bell..
Above the belfrey is the
clock room, in the . dead
centre of which the move-
ment sits on a; large frame
from where connections are
made to the dials. The dials. .
are about 5'.6" in diameter
set in one-piece ,skelton iron
frames. The clock is run b
two weights, the stiking
weight weighing 350 lbs. and
the -running weight 150 lbs.
These work in shafts about -
30' deep, connected to the
clock by strong•cables.
The clock is wound once a
week and is regulated by a 50
lb. pendulum. The minute
hand is 2' $" long and the
hour hand is 2'. The total
weight of the clock is 3,000
lbsand was made by the N.
T. Evans Clock Co., Bir-
mington, England.
This post office was used
until 1968, when the present
one was opened. It now
houses a nursery school on
the first floor mitt the Wing-
ha
ing- II
ham and District Museum on
the second.
1<'
TODAY CHILD
BY HELEN ALLEN
George, who has just turned 7, is an appealing young-
ster with fair hair, blue eyes and an infectious smile. That
gap where his front teeth should be is not the result of a
fight, because George is a gentle boy who has never been
known to quarrel with anyone. The teeth disappeared in
the normal course of events and there will soon be new
ones in their place. .
Small for his age, George was much deprived in his
early years. When he first came into the care of the
Children's Aid Society he was considered retarded, but
that has been ruled out. Psychologists say he is behind
because of lack of stimulation and they recommend
ja>^ education where each child gets a maximum of
iasorge loves the outdoors and is beginning to develop
lipinterest in sports. He started skating last winter and
% enjoys football.
X1.4, thrusting affectionate child, George is expected to
grata to a new home. He needs parents who will
love him for the engaging child he is and will not worry
over academic achievement.
To •inquire about adoptingGeorge, please write to
Today's -Child, Ministry of ommunity and Social Ser-
vices Box 888, Station K, `Toronto. Ontario M4P 2112. In
your letter tell something of your present family and your
way of life..