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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Seaforth News, 1959-06-11, Page 3Mud Time On Country Lauds There's been a tendency around here this spring to dredge up an old term -"mud time." This is the thine of year, all right, and .conditions were'never better than they are now --but most of the :folks speaking glibly of mud time have no notion of what it. really was. There's a frost heave in the macadam, and an alert highway crew has dumped in 'Some cold -patch and put up a bump sign, but that is not what •comes to mind when I hear "mud time." True mud time was back before the highway bond issue was invented; it means more than a crack in the pavement. When we first had an automo- bile here at the farm, we watched carefully for the cracking of mud time, for we didn't want to be caught with the automobile at home. We used to leave it a quer. ter of a mile up the road, by the schoolhouse at the four 'corners. Then we'd walls, toting our gra• ,series. Because below us on the road was a bottomless morass, just off the lip of a statewide ledge. It was one of those things you could stick a pole in and not touch bot- tom. And just above us on the :road was a muskrat swamp which fed under the road through a plank culvert. The culvert would :freeze up and heave about four 'feet into the air, creating a dam which denied the swamp access to the broad, billowing sea. The muskrat swamp would then swell vp,.and the road would disappear. Nowadays anything like this' would be regarded as a public shame, and a salaried engineer, would give it his attention and ask for an appropriation. But not then. These places never were "fixed." You waited them out. To get around the muskrat bog you came up by .the other road, and to get around the slough of despond by the ledge you took .a bypass through Morrison's field. If you simply had to go, it was often better to walk than to try a horse, because Some places had no bypasses. When we left the automobile •up at the schoolhouse, we'd .ehoulder our purchases and cut through the woods, coming down STILL AT IT - Sad -faced circus clown Emmet Kelly amazes 6 - year -old Dawn McGuire. Kelly, an old-timer in the business, was part of show for crippled children. Under the pines and avoiding the flowage, Then, sometimes, the muskrat bog would subside With- out our knowing it, since we hadn't been coming that way, and we'd find we'd been walking for days when we could have driven. We usuakly, found this out when another"rauto>p,bile cared down along, giid'then got stuck • the bottomless morass. This one would still be catching them along in May and June, Some- body would then drive the old plank culvert back into the ground, and we were In contact again. The bottomless pit would often dry out on top with .a spring wind, but underneath it would remain soft ooze. Pity there are no records of its countless vic- tims, Grandfather used to keep a team harnessed in the stalls, to save time at night, and he'd pull out automobiles by the dozens all spring. We did it afterward' with the tractor. We'dsnake them out, and while the man fished for fifty cents, which we usually protested until he forced it on us, theauto- mobile would sfand there and drip mud, sounding like a parcel' of beavers slapping their tails on a dam, One time a man asked, "How much?" and as he seemed a little wary I said, "Oh, what- ever it's worth to you." "No," he said, with a big -shot attitude, "Yousay-a workman is worth Ilis hire, and yen just tell met":°' So I.`1 f td him' it cold be five d w v dollars, and he wailed like a hog stuck in a rail fence, So I told him to move along, that it wouldn't cost him anything. and he gave me fifty cents. Mud time. We used to wash the horses, Modern motorists who lament the saline season, and hate to follow a splashing truck on a wet pavement, have no idea what a horse does while he's' being washed. Sonte like it; but none of ours ever did. We'd .slop on water, and they'd kick and squeal. And sometimes we'd wash the buggy. There was a tendency. to arguethat the buggy could wait until mud time was over, when it could be washed all at once for summer, but we couldn't sell that to the women. If one of them had to be "car- ried out" to a Ladies' Aid, per- haps, she'd observe how the • dooryard had dried up, and with a fair spring wind caressing the countryside she'd say, "I'm not. riding out in _a muddy buggy." We didn't have pressure hoses; we had pails and a pond to dip from, We'd: 'scrape off mud with a stick, soften the rest with water, and scour it with a brush. The function of a dashboard was to catch mud, in those days. We'd have a half -yard of gooex ooze under the buggy when we got it clean, and I suppose our door - yard was built up that way over the years. Then we'd insert the washed horse in the washed buggy, and whoever was riding out would get in the seat, arrange the lap - robe, and in 200 yards of road- work the whole thing, including the lady, would be mud to the ears,' When the laprobe came home, you had enough dirt on it to sprout a quart of peas. There are still some unpaved back roads, but they have been fixed. Bad places are built up; they are machine patrolled. I drove on one the other evening, and it was far from impassable. It was nothing like the old-time roads when the frost was com- ing out of the ground and "mud time" really meant something.- By John Gould in The Christian Science Monitor. CHANGE FROM FIGURE WORK When applying for a job in Philadelphia a woman applicant was given a form to complete In the section headed previous employment and reasons for leaving she stated that her last job was at a nudist camp ancl the reason for Leaving ". , . a change of scenery." CROSSWORDe. 1 file -e VFb"IU .,V VbLL•N,IU' 0. F1rdt - leatheopeninr t 9. Slotlia 81 Leather • ornaments r Inn 11: Dally 11. Recited 16. Shoe bottom14. Animal c,,ute 18. Paddles 86. Panderer( 20 Indications 57. State the urn.* ACROSS2. Cheer 21, Warble:, :i9. Chafe 1. Craft 8. Twirl 22. UtoWatch 10. Spring 23. Watch ranee 41, Macke 4. Warm 4l Name 24. Sting 42. (41r1's name 9. blimp 01 5, Cast eyes 25. Cperatlr 40. (Contend 6. Malt beverage heroine 44 Tree butter 12. Animal's Loot 7. Therefore 37 Mean, -i7 'I^•.,� ontart 18. Eskimo but 14, ltuVer (Sp.) 15, Prickly plant 17. Boisterous 19. Relief 20. Thailand 21. Move sidewise 58. Deviate 26. Not busy 27; Audible long breaths 28,.Myself 29. 13y birth 80. Religions sons 81,`Sunburn 82. Southern State (all.) 98. Seed coverings 84. Stronghold 85. Advertlsina phrases 17. Assigned share 8DR Illon. ny 40, The theater 12. Trending to wear away 45 rinse ft•tend 46. metal fastener 48. Nnthintr 40, Scotch lake 51. Muffin DOWN 1. Soittlhlu PUZZLE 2 4 5 6 7 6 9 10 II 12 13 14 15 )6 17 18 ' 19 } 20 21 22 23 24 26 26 27 28 z9 30 31 32 3S 35 36 37 78 39 40, 41 42 43 44 46• 46 47 4s 49 4-• X Answer elsewhree on this page EASY, TORO - Ever been the target for a 1,500 -pound Angus bull? Photographer took this shot and then took to his heels. The big bull escaped from a truck and shook up a few people before a cowpoke roped him. TIIEFARM FRONT Jok1LL The Canadian fruit and vege- table industry has a new tariff deal. * * 4 Announcement to this effect was made in ,the House of Com- mons by the Hon. Donald M. Fleming, Minister of Finance, when he introduced the Budget in the House. of Commons on April 9. The changes, which became effective on April 10, contain ad- justments of rates and in periods of duty on some 40 items of which 11 pertain to processed products. * 4r * The announcement of-: the changes was the culmination of a long, persistent struggle on the part of the Canadian Horticul- tural Council. The demand for change was predicted upon the damage to markets by the ever increasing quantities of imported produce finding their way into Canada and the fact that inter- national trade was being con- ducted under rules established thirty years ago and without re- gard for changing conditions in production and distribution. A study of the revisions estab- lishes the fact that the industry has gained most of what it asked in the Tariff Board hearings of 1957 and contained in the Board's recommendations to the govern- ment. This implies tha't the Ca- nadian negotiators did a bang-up job in their many conferences with the U.S. representatives. True, a few concessions were made but they were of a minor nature such as elimination of the 10% ad valorem rate on some items out -of -season. The expectation was that the Americans ' would use potatoes and apples as the 'lever in an attempt to hold the line but lit- tle evidence of this is apparent in the results. - 4; 4 * The results achieved are the result not only of continued de- mands for change but also be- cause the industry saw to it that the overall problem was inter- jected into the last two Federal election campaigns when definite promises of consideration were given. To the credit of the gov- ernment the election promises have been fulfilled. 9, * 4 For years no subject has cre- ated more difficulty for the Ca- nadian Horticultural Council and the provincial bodies, such as the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers' Association, than the manner in which imported pro- duce was disrupting domestic markets when home-grown pro- duce was available. The Cana- dian industry was not too much concerned with the importation of fruits and vegetables of a like and kind not produced in Can. •ada. It was aroused, however • by the competition created by low- priced produce of a kind pro duped hi Canada, This competi- tion was mounting year by year creating ever-increasing pressure for action. * 4< 4< One great gain was .recognition of the plea for special rates on pre-packaged produce. The in- dustry's contention that if the Canadian prepackaging 'ndustry was to be encouraged it had to have sotne protection From now on green beans, beets, Brussel sprouts, carrots, cauliflower, corn -on -cob, lettuce, parsnips and • green peas in packages whigh- ing five pounds or less will have to pay a special additional rate of 5% during the period of the application of- the specific duty on the particular product. * One concession that was made may meet with objection. It is found in the reduction from 2.0% to 7riti% in the rate on de- hydrated citrus fruit juices. Oth- erwise the Impression is that a pretty solid job was done. Birds Are Friends Of Crocodiles Nearly 2,500 years ago the Greek historian Herodotus first - put forward the idea that cer- tain animals went into partner- ship with others for their mutual benefit.' To prove his point he described how an Egyptian bird called the courser, a member of the plover family, went to the assistance of the formidable Nile crocodiles. "Living in the river, the croc- odile gets its mouth full of leeches," he wrote, "and when it comes out and opens its mouth to the westerly breezes, the cour- ser .goes in and gobbles up the leeches, which so pleases the crocodile that it does the cour- ser no harm." This seemed such an incred- ibly tall story that it is not sur- prising no one believed it. After all, no living creature was safe within reach of a crocodile's jaws. Nevertheless, Herodotus was right, and it was eventually es- tablished that the little courser does walk fearlessly up to the crocodiles as they bask in the sunshine on the banks of the Nile, picking out and eating the leeches that have collected be- tween their teeth. Coursers, in fact, share these duties with another bird, the spur -winged lapwing. This bird walks right inside the crocodile's mouth, which has been seen to close for a minute or so while the bird goes on gobbling up the leeches. When it is opened again the lapwing calmly walks out in- to the daylight. • In both of these examples there is a genuine partnership from which all the animals con- cerned derive some benefit. The crocodile is rid of the irritating leeches which it cannot deal with itself, and the birds get a very satisfying meal. Clearly the crocodile must re- cognize the benefit that it derives from the partnership, because it makes no attempt to harm these two birds, but would kill and eat any other specie that came close enough to be caught Since Herodotus's lime a good many other examples of partner. ship in the animal kingdom have been discovered. Birds seem to be particular) y good as partners, for in quite a number of.. exam- '` ples one of the partners is a bird, One of the best known of these is the cattle egret, a small kind of heron that spends its life wan- • dering about the African plains with herds of wild cattle and other grazing animals, As these animals walk through the grass they disturb innumer- able grasshoppers and other in- sects, which the egrets pounce on and eat before they can sable again. It is not, however, a one-sided partnership. While Some of the birds are chasing the grasshop- pers, others ere perched on the hacks of the cattle, busily pick- ing out and eating the ticks that bury themselves in their coats and cause them intense irritation. Although they gain much ben- efit from their association with the cattle, the egrets could live independent lives if they wanted. But another bird, the oxpecker or tiekbird, which also comes from South Africa, has become so dependent upon its partners that it could not live without them. Like the cattle egret, the tick- bird is found in association with many different kinds of grazing animals, but its favourite partner is the rhino. Originally the. tickbird prob- ably fed on insects disturbed by its partners' movements through the grass. To -day, however, it relies entirely upon the ticks from their skins, and the flies which also settle on them, It seldom descends to the ground and will generally fly up into the trees only when disturbed by man's approach, Otherwise it spends the whole of its time on its partners' backs, even con- ducting its courtship displays and mating there, The tiekbird not only renders a valuable service to its hosts by ridding them of ticks, also it acts as a sentinel to warn them of •the approach of danger - and ' danger generally means man, The bird usually sees an intruder when he is still a long way off, and begins to utter warning cries which become louder and more insistent as he approaches. Tickbirds were not popular with big game hunters because too often they would utter their warning cries just as he was get- ting within gun range, Warning cries are given only at the ap- proach of man. One of the most remarkable of all bird partners is the African honey -guide, a distant relative of the cuckoo, It is very fond of the grubs of wild bees, which build their enormous nests in the trees, but it is not able to open these•nests for itself. It does not, however, sit around and wait on the off -chance that some other animal may come along and do so, but enters into partnership with the ratel, a kind of badger which is very fond of honey, There are usually plenty of bees' nests in the forests where the honey -guide lives, and it us- ually knows where several of them are to be found, Whenever it sees a ratel an interesting ser- ies of events follows. The bird flies about just above and in front of the badger, call- ing all the time. The badger knows what it is all about, and willingly follows along the di- rection indicated until the tree containing the bees' nest is reached. Up climbs the badger, breaks open the nest and eats the honey- comb, while the honey -guide picks out the fattest grubs from the brood comb: For the two animals concerned It is an ideal arrangement. With its short legs the badger could not travel the enormous distances that would be necessary if it had to search for its own nests. Upsidedown to Prevent Peeking ©®O 12119vOLETEI MOM BUMMO4 GM LIMUUUDVAUM BE OBDIELTMUODOM WOOLOOMMWMUM © ,iU©OMEr O liim BOOOMBO 1M70© fAMOINICVMOM mOpQ©, II®©MMM ©oo •,70©00© ;: A00 JINDAY SCIJQQI .SON Qy itev R. tsurelay Warien B,A., H,D, Solomon's Reign I Icings 9:1-9 Memory Selection; Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. En all thy waye acknowledge Him, and He shall direct they paths. Proverbs 3:5e6. Solomon's reign at forty years was the golden age of Hebrew history, the one period when a Hebrew kingdom became the greatest and wealthiest nation of the known world, Solomon began the building of the tem- ple in his fourth year and com- pleted it seven years later. His father, David, had prepared much of the material. It was modelled after the Mosaic ta- bernacle with the measurements usually double those of the tabernacle. For nearly four cen- turies this temple was to be the center of the religious life of the Hebrew people. The grandeur of the Hebrew kingdom during this period of unprecedented prosperity brought many visitors. Their amazement was well expressed by the Queen of Sheba. Sire said, "It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of they acts and of thy wisdom. Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me: thy wisdom and prosperity exceed- eth the fame which I heard." Much of Solomon's wisdnln has been prsearved for us 10 the Book of Proverbs. We should read it once a year. It will save us from many pit- falls. Was Solomon's reign success- ful? uccessful? Next week we shall see that after his death his king- dom divided. His son and his son's young friends who had known only luxury lacked sym- pathy and understanding for the common people whose taxes had gr e a t l y increased. Solomon, himself, expressed his disillu- sionment in the Book al Eccle- siastes. Knowledge, gaiety and wealth do not insure soul satis- faction. His conclusion concern- ing each is, "This is vanity and vexation of spirit:" He exhorts, "Remember now thy Creator in the days sof thy y o u t h." His conclusion of the whole matter is, "Fear God, and keep His commandments," Solomon's great weakness was his desire for women He had 700 wives, princesses, and 300 concubines. "And his wives turned away his heart. For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the Lord his God as was the heart of David his father." "Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food con- venient for me: lest I be full, and deny Thee, and say, Who is the Lord? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain," Proverbs 30:8, 9. ROUGH FINISH -Alva Ragan, a builder, worked for five months on the construc- tion of a new surgical wing to a hospital in Oklahoma. Tidying up at the conclusion of the construction work Ragan slipped off a ladder, broke lits ankle and was the first patient to be admitted to the wing. Hudson Hop* BRITISH COLUMBIA Axel Wenner-Gren WILDERNESS RICHES - Axel Wenner-Gren, wealthy Swett' h industrialist, is charting an economic empire in Canada's northern woods. Wenner-Gren has become so identified wA the area that a huge tract of British Columbia (shaded area on Newsmap) has been named "Wenner -Gree -land," He has plans for a 150 m.p,h, monorail railroad, pulp mills and mines. Bigger{ project would be a monster hydro -electric power pro- ject -on the Peace River, 13 miles east of Hudson Hope (pop« 200), seat of Wenner-Grenldnd. A storage dam on the river would create the largest artificial lake in North Amarico, 260 miles long.