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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1979-03-07, Page 4TNS ADVA(ICIE -TIMG-S F11 Yes, we are pleased As the publisher of The Advance -Times I am writing this particular comment in the first person for the very good reason that I want to extend my personal thanks to mem- bers of my staff. Elsewhere in this issue you will learn that this newspaper has won three awards In the Ontario Weekly Newspapers Assocla- tion's annual competitions. The Advance - Times placed second In the general excel- lency category for Class Two papers; first for editorial page and first for news and features. This is not the first time that your com- munity newspaper has won awards, but it is the first time that so much of the credit be- longs to our employees. The general excel- lence of the paper and certainly the news and features are a tribute to the diligent work and journalistic capabilities of Henry Hess, his assistant, David Dineen, reporter and Lavonne Baliagh, columnist and social editor. Lynne Pinnegar of our Mount Forest staff regularly contributes features as do other staff people from time to time. Our Mount Forest paper was close be- hind The Advance -Times, in third place for general excellence. Our congratulations go to The Midland Times which placed first In the same category. Our thanks, as well to all the gther employees whose faithfulness is vital in the weekly task of producing a high quality newspaper for our readers. Last, but certainly not least is my per- sonal tribute to my wife, Jean Wenger. With- out her Invaluable help over the past years no worthwhile achievement would have been possible. At various times she has served as typesetter, advertising sales person, histori- cal researcher and composing room super- Intendent. She is presently responsibile for typesetting production in our Listowel plant, as well as the design and assembly of the pages of The Advance -Times and Cross- roads. If you are wondering what is left for the old man himself, that's a good question. But then, why would the boss have to work with a gang like that around him? Where should the money go? Because the threatened loss of hospital beds in smaller communities has given rise_ to some sharp thinking about the disposition of public funds we have heard some Interest- ing comments from people on the street in recent weeks. Although there are dozens of ideas abouthoW and where tax and lottery money should go, one particular thought seems to be prevalent. In one form or another we have heard many people exclaiming about the avail- ability of large handouts to non-essential causes such as professional sports, while the chop falls on vital needs like health services. Of course the obvious answer from poli- ticians is that money produced by a national lottery cannot be used for a provincial re- sponsibility such as hospitals. That is quite true, but the people who They don't provide the funds are all taxpaying citizens. They don't really care who does the collect- ing. They see that their own money, whether paid to the municipality, to the provincial government or to the federal authorities is being used for purposes they consider trivial compared to the pressing need for services in their own communities. -Nor are they so far from the truth. After all, one of the reasons for the cutbacks in spending by the provincial ministry of health is the curtailment of federal grants to the provinces for health care needs. It is true that money raised through the federal lot- tery is earmarked for sports and recreation, but if the federal minister has enough money available to promise $18 million to arenas In the large cities to aid the enfranchsement of NHL hockey teams, perhaps it is time to alter the earmarks. think alike Warren Alimand, federal minister of consumer affairs, is all riled up about the spiraling cost of food in this country. So much so, in fact, that he is.pushing for a bill to restore competition in the marketplace. He says he is "fed up" with the rising cost of food prices, which have recently hit an an- nual inflation rate of 23 per cent. Too bad these upper level politicians can't get their act together. On more than one occasion Allmand's cabinet colleague, Agriculture Minister Eugene Whelan, has expressed his contempt for Canadians who whine about the high cost of eating. His sentiments were echoed only a few weeks ago by Ontario's minister of agriculture and food, Bill Newman, who also impatiently pointed out our childishness. Both cited the fact that it takes less cents from a Canadian dollar to put food on the table than anywhere else in the world. Both of these ministers, of course, were playing up to their farmer supporters . . . making heroes of themselves to the sons and daughters of the soil. Both are forgetting that the agriculture portfolio in any cabinet carries a responsibility not only to farmers but to all the citizens of the nation or the province. They are ministers not only of food production but also of food availability to consumers and consequently should be con- cerned about its price. Nobody in this part of the world is sug- gesting that farmers are getting fat and wealthy at the expense of the town and "city people., But many sound thinking farmers are deeply concerned about the vaulting price of food products on their way to the table. They don't like paying $3 a pound for beef any more than the rest of us do. Allmand is right. Whatever the means we must find out why the route from feedlot to dining room is so expensive. When ministers fail to understand the complaints about high food prices it's a sure sign they are out of touch with the people who elect them. It reminds one of Marie Antoinette's famous remark to the starving mobs of Paris: "Let them eat cake". Perhaps the quickest road to under- standing would be to put Mrs. Whelan and Mrs. Newman on a budget of $40 a week for food purchases. Eugene and Bill would find themselves without very much beefsteak. And then, on the other hand There are usually two sides to every story. While Mr. Allmand is pressing for a chance to put a stop to the growth and con- trol of big, non-competitive food chains,ins , there is plenty of evidence that business in this country already'suffers from too much government interference. Robert Naegele, president of Dow Chemical of Canada at Sarnia, says that he will recommend his company not spend $100 million in this country for expansion of Its facilities. Naegele cites the attitude of the Canadian government as his reason. He says government's interference In the conduct of business, Its action in rolling back the profits of corporations make Canada a poor place In which to Invest business capital. The fact that jobs are created by capi- talists investing their money in profit -mak - Ing ventures often seems to be lost on the so- cialists and the more greedy of the labor unions. Profits are the compelling factor In the business world, whether we like It or not. WithoutP rofits there is no em , yment ... and goodness knows we could And quite a bit more employment right now. Another interesting factor came to light the other day in a report on the economic condition of the nation. Productivity, or the amount produced by the average individual worker is lowest in the poor provinces of the nation. There were some Interesting com- parisons between the number of trees felled In British Columbia and in the Maritimes. After all the factors of better equipment, etc., were taken Into consideration 1t was evident that the eastern workers simply don't like to work 'as diligently as the westerners. And the relative wealth of the two areas bears a direct relationship. ` JA THE WINGHAM ADVANCE -TIMES Published at Wingham, Ontario, by Wenger Bros. Limited Barry Wenger, President Robert n. Wenger, Sec. Tress. Member Audit Bureau of Circulations . i Member — Canadian Community Newspaper Assoc. Ontario Weekly Newspaper Assoc. Subscription $14.00 per year Six months $7.50 Second Glass Mail Registratkxi No. 082121 Return postage guaranteed A A page of editorial opinion Wednesday, March 7 .. _... r,r r r r rI r I&I 1iiiiM+r rI m a r c III, III r MUSEUM MUSINGS The parking probhem has beenme with us for a long time. In days )gone by at times parking a horse was maybe more u'ouuio i sam parking a car today. When Wingham had numerous hotels, the hotel stables as well as the livery stables were available. In 1801-1802 a new Methodist Church (row United) was built. The old frame church was con- verted into a shed where members could put their horses. The Baptista had a small open shed and in 1816 the Anglicans built a new shed behind their church for their members' horses. In the same year C. E. Lepard of the Exchange Hotel built a new shed, 140 feet long by 60 feet wide, behind the hotel. It was equipped with electric lights and had the entrance on Victoria Street. A warm waiting room with toilets was located in the hotel for shed customers. This service was available for rive dollars a year. This accommodation, along with the livery stables and church sheds, was adequate for some years. As cars became more .popular the' hotel stables and liveries were either closed or torn down. The Exchange Hotel was torn down and replaced with a service station and the shed was closed. Later it was a garage and then an implement shop before it too was torn down. The only place left was the United Church shed. Parking horses at that time was a bit difficult. Even though the sleighs and cutters were parked on both sides of Minnie Street while the horses were tied up in nd the shed, there was not enough it room. > his About 1939 Clayton Fryfogle if purchased the Beattie Livery be_ building on Diagonal Road and en opened it for the use of farmers. m This was just in time because C. Lloyd and Son had rented the UP United Church shed for storage. t a Mr. Fryfogle canvassed the on- merchants for funds to keep his ew accommodation open. This pco_ carried on until the end of the war u a when Fryfogle sold the building re to Foxton Dairy. ,ea The Wingham Business see Association came to the rescue. The south end of the old Lepard ker, shed had fallen in and the town owned the land. The merchants Job raised the money to buy two old barns and hired a barn framer to build a shed out of the timber 10' from the barns. One morning Robert Galbraith, the founder of the Red Front, attended a meeting at the town hall about the farmers' shed. He told those present they were making a big mistake because in another year no horses,would be get out and attend open meetings mer can't pay $16,000 for a 135 coming to town. He was laughed Hospital closure areal threat such as the one held Feb. 21. horsepower tractor in 1975 and at as other wise men have been. W' Advance -Times proficient and eventually were We must question. We must $32,E for a 135 horsepower The shed was finally completed Wingham Edi listen. We must di for the truth tractor today without getting and paid for. Dear Editor, forced to close. Now only un- g more for his produce. Fuel costs It was said after that only one The le of Wingham and wieldy colossal institutions and we must haunt the govern- P Y �°p ment with our loud cries of have gone up, interest rates at farmer ever had. need of the district are very legitimately remain and it is the people who the bank have one u proud of our local hospital. It has suffer. People are on waiting lists "No! ". Only by continuing to g p, so why facility. In later years the town proven to be an indispensible extending over years for simple question their supreme right to not farm products? rented it to C. Lloyd and Son for asset to our community. It is surgical procedures that we now rule our lives do we have a Everyone else gets raises so storage and later sold it to efficient, well equipped and well take for granted. chance to prevent this calamity why not farmers? The farmers Canada Packers. from taking place. respond to a system which lost staffed. How many of our people We have to stir ourselves from realize that we are going to lose the apathy in which we are It is our hospital. Let's keep it. them money for four years. They our hospital? We are. The first mired. This hospital is going to Mrs. Raye Elmslie decreased their breeding stock so Rheumatic diseases, which step has already been taken. have to close. We have to do a good living could be made in include arthritis, remain one of The government realized something about it and we havefarming. Food prices cannot go the most important unsolved during its abortive attempts to to do it NOW. We cannot wait Dont blame down unless everyone else is problems which disease presents close Durhamand other small until it has dwindled so small that- willing to take less for his job too. to our community. Their serious - hospitals that the public will not it is not economically efficient. the farmers Mrs. Lynda Fitch ness is due to the large number of people affected, to the pain and stand by and meekly allow such Now is the time to act. Now, Wingham Advance -Times Editor's note— If you read this disability involved, and in the flagrant violations of human while we still have something to Dear Sir, week's editorial comment you vast.economic loss caused. With rights. So now a new, insidious save. We all have a personal In regards to the article "High will note that we don't see any the exception of rheumatic heart method has been chosen to interest in this matter so it is up Cost of Eating" in your Feb. 21 farmers rolling in wealth disease, these conditions do not achieve the same ends. to all of us, not just "somebody issue, I am a farmer's wife and I because of high food prices. Our cause many deaths, yet they rank This year we lose 14 beds. By else" to write to the Ininistry of get a tittle tired of people concern is with the distribution second only to mental illness in next year we will have lost 28 health, to our local M�P, and to thinking food is too high. A far- system, not with the producer. the cause of human incapacity. beds. The reason for this is that ,< theministry of health »;:;:>;:;:>::: >::::: •:,•:::. •::..:..::::•:.:• #. r for no «:<:>::z:.:: z:::s:........................ f c. r valid reason, has chosen the^::::�>:•:.......r:.:......:. ::.:•^ random figure of 3.5 beds per 1,000 of population. This figure is "not negotiable" according to the ministry of health as quoted by TODAYFS CHILI) Hospital Administrator Norman Hayes. This is regardless of a study done in Grey County which proved that areas comparable to �� BY HELEN ALLEN our own here in Huron County A require 5.4 beds per 1,000. Where did this arbitrary Daniel is a friendly 10 -year-old with a pleasant person - government figure come from? ality. He is a bit small for his age, but active and athletic Good question. There appears to and in excellent health. be no answer. So this year we lose Though Daniel speaks some English, his first language 14. Then who will stop the is French and he has always lived in a French setting, government from calmly attending a French school. It is hoped a French-speaking lowering its figure from 3.5 to 3.0 family will be found for him. Tho Daniel is working hard he Is having some then to 2.5. Once our hospital � g � gets so small that it cannot difficulties In Grade 4. His teacher is pleased with his support all the ancillary services attitude, however, and feels he will certainly be able to which it boasts now, such as finish high school. Any kind of outdoor activity appeals to this lively extensive lab work, outside youngster. He plays hockey, baseball and soccer. He is a specialists, surgeons, con• good swimmer. He enjoys camping, bike riding, tobogan- sultants, etc., then it will no ning. He is willing and responsible about doing chores. longer be a viable institution. At Daniel will be a fine son for a mother and father who that point the government will will want to give him their time along with their love. ,� \ coldly command it to be closed. To inquire about adopting Daniel, please write to We should learn from the Today's Child, Ministry of Community and Social Ser - 888 mistakesmade Britain where vice, Box , Station K, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2H2. in your letter tell something of your present family and your the some pattern evolved. All way of life. ~~"�+�• .-... �... small hospitals were gradually to et smaller forced g and less ffirr'� . �/f'r THE WINGHAM JOKERS—Front row, left to right, man, the late Alf Lockridge (coach), Pete "Mike" Murray "Rusty" Kerr, John "Slapshot" Fry, John Carmichael, Bill "Curly" Crawford, Bill "Dilly" "Turk" Merkley, Doug "Artie" Lockridge, Ray Dallimore, Bill "O" Henry, George "Slim" Skinn, and "Waxie" Walker. Back row, Gary "Tiny" Temple- the late Hugh Carmichael (Manager). t $tor tt r to ee e February 28,1979 `old-timers" to ice a team. At first I talking to a former Winghamite a To the Editor: It is with interest that I've been following the activities of the various Centennial Committees as they prepare for Wingham's 100th Birthday. Being a former resident of Wingham, I'm look- ing forward to visiting the `old home town" during the Centennial celebra- tions and renewing old friendships, etc. I recently received an invitation to participate in an `old-timers" hockey game on April 7th at Wingham. I've made a few inquiries, and as`I under- stand it, Murray Stainton is trying to round up enough bodies to take on our old Joker team. I was really excited about returning to Wingham to par- ticipate in a game of hockey in the new arena. But alas! It may not come to be! I've heard a rumor that Murray is having problems getting enough old thought this was just a lame excuse be- cause, as 1. recall, tin guys in and around Wingham alwa}le rose up to any type of challenge. However, the other night I was flipping through an old scrapbook and I spotted a picture of our old Joker hockey team. What a power- house! We had so much of that "inter- nal organ" we would take on any or all comers. Even the Leafs! (maybe beat them too!) It was then I realized what a mam- moth task Murray had taken on in try- ing to form a team. Murray and his boys may be getting a little old in the legs but their memories haven't failed them. They can recall the games be- tween the Jokers and the guys from Wiarton, Port Elgin, Paisley, Kincar- dine, etc., etc., etc. But don't despair Murray! I was i hockey player. He has heard about and says he has started to round up gear. He swears he will get there even he has to hitchhike! (He can't drive cause his eyesight is failing.) He's ev got an old Stainton Spitfire jacket fro back in the forties! We've got a few practice dates set and each of our players has been sen copy of Roger Neilson's preseason c ditioning program. We've also got a f scouts out checking on what's hap mg in the Stainton camp. I'll drop yo line later as the scouting reports are m ceived and let the Winghaand a fans know who they might expect to in the line-ups. A. Jo P.S. For the benefit of your read I've enclosed a picture of our old Jo Team. Letters to the Editor ,