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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Seaforth News, 1950-03-02, Page 3Says Thatched Roofs Are Best Of Alt 'No method of covering roofs has yet been ,invented which caa equal thatch in being both weatherproof and resistant to extremes of tem- perature.' declares William Martin, a thatcher for fifty years, who entphasizee that 'there must be no attempt to cheapen the work at the expense of the craftsman' During the thousands of years of progress since men first built oases, it is really rather remarkable that no method of covering roofs has yet been invented which can equal that in being both weather- proof and resistant to extremes of temperature. Not ouly does the thickness of the thatch mattes the Molise waruter its winter and cooler and summer, but the reeds have an effect like a cavity -wall, with simi- lar insulating properties. As a thatcher of some fifty years' standing, I have always found the job very interesting, 1 actually started work with my father and grandfather when a boy ed about ten years of age. It is a highly .skillpd jbb, if properly done, requiring a good eye and plenty of patience, but it is work of which .anyone can be proud. Now what about the materials? This is where the farmer conies in, for he can ,produce for thatching practically everything needed on the farts. The . thither can be freshly cut front' the woods—ash, hazel, fir -poles ,and, so on, The rods and spars can also be got from the under'wood—the hazel and withy, The straw of straw -reed, too, is grown on aimost every farm, in the south-western counties of England, the wheat straw reed is very. popular. This is wheat put through a special attachment called a reed -comber, which is fitted to an ordinary threshing machine. It comes through the machine cleaned of all corn, and flag and weed and the butts are all one way and un- bruised, This straw -reed is sold usually at about twice the price of ordinary straw. To thatch an average-sizeroot of fifteen squares with wheaten straw-reed—a square is 100 square feet—would cost $500 to $600. This is the cost of an entirely new roof —if put on to an existing thatched roof it would cost aout $350.-11, however, all materials are supplied by the farmer, the cost would not be likely to exceed $150. And how long, you may ask, would such a roof last? I should say that, with straw -reed, from thirty- five to fifty years, with the excep- tion of the ridge, which requires renewing about every ten to twelve years. Norfolk reeds will last much longer, but the cost is very much ltiguer. cry often, when 1 am working on a roof, people stop and ask etc questions about thatching. They admire the neatness of the thatched roofs, and inany ask what is being done to preserve this craft, and why more young men do not take up such satisfying work. It is perfectly true that, during recent years, there has been a steady decline in thatching. The cause of this, in my opinion, has been the low rate of pay the thatcher received for his work, as a result of which the thatchers' sons refused to take up the craft. At last, however, the thatchers are getting an adequate reward for the service they render to the com- munity, and if thatching is to sur- vive there must he no attempt to cheapen the work' at the expense of the craftsman. There. are at present 778 full-time that hers in this country, but 600 of these are over forty years of age. These are far too few in number to cope with the work needed, but the Rural Industries Bureau is doing all it can to en- courage young mcu to take up the craft. I am pleased to say we are meeting witty a certain amount of Lea ds 1 Gr at rib's!! Clement Attlee lead 11 Struggle Winston Churchill Sketch front photo by Karsh, Ottawa, success, as there are now about forty trainees learning the work, but more are still required. Thatchers' associations, too, are being formed to maintain and im- prove standards of work, and this is a step in the right direction. I ate often asked if thatching is a dying craft, and my reply• is 'definitely no.' In the south-western countries of England, I find many people are buying old cottages and having them reconditioned with a coat of thatch put on the old roofs. Its many cases, unsightly gal- vanized iron and asbestos sheeting is being removed and entirely re- placed by thatched roofs. How long, you may ask, does it take to learn to make a good thatcher? This is not an easy ques- tion to answer. As I have already told you, I have been thatching myself for nearly fifty years, with all kinds of material, and l am not too old even now to learn a point or two. Held By Czechs — Aldon Johnson is one of two Mor- mon missionaries seized by Czechoslovakian officials in Moravia Jan. 27. The Czech foreign office said Johnson and Stanley L. Abbott are being held for trying to enter a prohibited area. American officials in Prague expressed "grave concern" over the case. Up And Atom—Stunner .Pike (left), who will taloa over as act - ink chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, confers with retiring chairman David Lilienthal, Pike, who had been vice- chairmatt, will serve as head of the AEC until President Truman appoints a 'permanent ohairntatl, Grandma, Grandpa, Need Milk Too 1,lilk is no longer just for the children, Scientists are finding out new reasons why all the members ofthefamily need it Mother needs it, especially if site's nervous. Dad needs if if he doesn't want to get old before his time. And Grandpa and Grandma need it, Then they aren't so apt to get laid up with a broken hip, We know that milk furnishes a digstible protein—that's why it's such a perfect food for babies. It also furnishes -minerals, Calcium is the mineral that your body needs in largest quat'tity. And it's the one that- your diet is most apt to be short of. It's what makes up the lime part of the bones. dlilk is one of•the best sources of digestible calcium. Why is it old people's bones break so easily? Experiments point to a lack of calcium in their diets. You can't maintain strong bones on simply tea and toast. It's bard to think of such things as your bones dissolving away. But tests have shown that calcium is. leaving ttte body all the time, And :.ince 99 per cent of the body's calcium is in the bones it ]las to conte from them. You've heard about the "tagged" atoms (radioactive isotopes) that let one trace these particles of mineral as they shove through the body. Such bone -building mineral was fed to some white rats, The scientists found that at first it located in the bones, But later it was excreted and had to be re- placed with a new supply, For obtaining this required cal- cium milk is a good food to tie to. For example you'd have to eat seven pounds of carrots or cabbage or 47 pounds of potatoes, to get as ntucn calcium as from drinking lust one quart of milk. One quart (tour glasses) of milk a clay will furnish all the calcium needed for the average child. The amount of catciunt needed by ad- ults is practically as much. in adolescence, children heed one and a half times this amount. The pregnant woman needs as much or more than the adolescent. If one is out of the habit of drink- ing this much milk, there are other ways of working it into the diet. Some liquid milk with the steal is always recommended. Out it can be used liberally in the cooking, too. Bread made with dried milk furnishes the calcium. Calcium does other things to you besides making harder bones, It's necessary for the clotting of blood in wounds. It helps regulate the heat of the heart. And it helps keep- your nerves stable, Vitantiits of the 8 complex have something to do with nerves, too. One of these — sometimes called Vitamin B-2, at other times called Vitamin G (to stand for growth)— you now generally hear by its par- ticular name, riboflavin. All adults should want to get plenty of riboflavin. - B'or it is called the vitamin that "helps ex- tend the best years of life." That 's it helps you keep the qualities of youth—to postpone the signs of age. Sounds like the "fountain of youth" idea; doesn't it? But here's a part of 'the explanation science gives; Your body cells need ribo- flavin in order to use the oxygen brought by the blood. This better use of oxygen is like taking deep breaths. You get a sense of well- being, which is one of the charac- teristics of youth. So, if you feel nervous std run- down, get plenty of riboflavut. Then blue Mondays (we hope) won't seem quite so blue. The Tale, Not The Tail, Of A Kilt Esther Butler is a Scot, a ferscut Scot, and she maintains her Scot- tishness while she is its the South of England by stitching at kilts for dear life. • "In thirty-seven years, stated Esther in an air interview, ::I've sewn enough tartan to stretch round the world," She was a girl of fifteen, making coats for a Glasgow firm, when the famous Variety artist Sir Henry Lauder came in and or- dered a kilt. She was not experienc- ed enough then to stake it for high but later in life she became a kilt maker. She carte South fifteen years ago and now sits comfortably and snugly in a country caravan listen- ing to the birds singing outside as she works. By keeping hard at it from early morning till late at night, Esther Butler manages to stake six kilts a week.. There are eight yards of tartan in each, every stitch is sewn by hand with sills and- march• e ing'the pleated back and plain front of a kilt is the tricky job, for the check has to look the sante all the way round. She has to know more than 1,, tr hundred different tar.ans —for each Highland elan has its own tar min, anti there are dress and hunting tartans, modern and ancient ones. Nine out of ten of Mrs. But- ler's kilts are exported to America. She can recognize her own work ' anywhere and one day when site was in a London Hotel talking to a friend and they sat near two ob- vionsly "aristocratic Scots, the girl wearing a kilt that Mrs. Butler in- sisted was her work, Her disbeliev- ing isbelieveing friend, bet her a pound that It ' was not. Mrs. Butler went up to the lady and asked her name. "Whets site told me I nearly fell through the floor because of my impudence," she said, "but it was my kilt," "Butter" From Mud" In the latter part of the year 1869 someone applied to the owner of a wharf on the Thanes for space on which to erect a butter factory. The extravagant rent offered in- duced ttte owner to investigate. He discovered that the tenant really intended to stake something that would pass for butter, and this from the Thames mud. After some chemical treatment, a pure, white fat could be obtained front the stud. 'rhe product sold well, Quiz Question A motorist was 100 yards from an open railway crossing tearing along at 60 miles an hour. A train, com- ing down the track at the same speed, was an equal distance from the intersection. Problem: Did the motorist get across? Answer: Yes—a beautiful marbIte cross purchased by his widow from his insurance motley, Meyers An Idea For Busy Mothers Little hubby Seaman has beta playing Indian for nearly sit months --ever since he was three tnotttlts old. Today, like any good little pa- poose, lte enjoys nothing better titan being toted around Boston's Back Bay, strapped securely to Itis cradle board. This pattunse-style perambulating started when two arrive Boston mothers sought to he freed from baby sitting --or pushing. Mr. and .Mrs. Dawes McDonough enjoyed liking and mountain climbing, but when little Jean ar- rived, they quickly realized they couldn't posh her carriage up over the +', Sotraitthry scouted around and hunted up pictures and read an article about Indian cradles or car- rying beards. tniprovisiug a hit, tett following speciticatious closely, they built one for Jean, using an old army ruck- sack carrier and webbed army belt- ing. I)iscardittg the Indian squaw's forehead strap, they substituted the belting. attaching it an that it slip- ped over Mrs. Mcl)cmotigh's shoul- ders, Shortly after' *Mrs. Richard Sea man mat her neighbor carry;ng Jean — papoose style. She, too, liked the idea immensely, since site and her husband enjoyed outdoor sports and also were seeking souse method by which Bobby might be included, So they copied ttte cradle, laced Bobby inside his blanket, strapped the whole contraption over Mrs, Seaman's shoulders—and off they went. Lo, the happy little Indians AULD SCOTIA (From A Reader Who Enjoyed' 'What Heather Means To The Scots!) Ye tak' me back tae my Henan' Hama, Tae a wee Clachan in th' Glen; Tae a Heather thack'd Hoose, wi' it's wa's sae white, Like the Sna'-tapp'd mountains that I ken. Whaur th' Heather blooms au° Bracken' grows, An' tumblin' burns roll t'wards th° Sea; Whaur Skylards sing their sangs ia6 Spring, That's whaur I lang tae be. Whaun day was done at set o' suit, We'd sit 'roue' th' auld Stand hearth; Write, read or sew. by fire -fiche' glow, Th' happiest folks on Earth. A thing now rare, we'd say a prayer, Thank God for His mercies shown; 'Ere rest oor head on a Heather bed, That t'would a treasure be to own. It's noo lang Syne, but wi' tochts sae fine, Ye've brought tae me o' Hanle; I've seen this Wori' free end tae end, But there'd naething quite th' same, Like gore heather'd hills an' bonnie Glees, Oor rugged coasts alt' raging sea;. Unconquered still auld Scotic stands, ByGod's will, she'll aye be free. 'Copter For Cold -Weather Rescues—This is an artist's conception of the first Air Force helicopter designed especially for use in Arctic rescue operations, the Piasecki H-21. rig as an airliner, the craft will be able to land on snow, ice, water, tundra or marshlands. A hydraulic swivel hoist enables it to haul in litter cases and snake other pickups at spots where landing is impossible. For emergency purposes, the Ft -2 can carry 27 passengers and two crewmen. m JITTER Ifimswc A ase 79867 AT Tee est measly 9ia7Atrtr, cszr TWMOW or try JiOSIN SAVTH5 SMQIc6'"'�' WS MAO Mlsr,ee AN sued no.,.. Ir= YOi AND d'7`lia. sTfa'Ef1T:: vouotAsstsrusrAnn roofs Y,N FTRIr,.i,. swollen 9m 00 /N, etc !h VrA bt.' -, AnY000110550 oven txereANaen,•; By Artlnur Pointer