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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZurich Citizens News, 1970-02-26, Page 4PAGE FOUR ZURICH CITIZENS NEWS THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 1970 eciihwal Castment- — Town Daddies (From the New Hamburg Independent) Town Daddies aren't really. Ordinary daddies can spank you or give you heck and they lose nothing. In fact, ordinary daddies gain your respect. But if a town daddie tries that he loses your vote. They are called town daddies because they are fathers to all the people in town. They are also called councillors, councilmen, wheels, and many other names. Some of ths. names you wouldn't print in a weekly newspaper. Some town daddies go in the local beer parlors. Some don't. Those that do are called drunkards. Those that don't are called snobs. Everyone envies a town daddy. They wish they could be a town daddy because his job is so easy. All he has to do is sit in a big easy chair in a new town hall twice a month and look at an empty council chamber. A coun- cil chamber is where the people of the town sit and watch the town daddies run their meeting. Except usually the seats in the council chamber are empty. Not too many people are really that interested. Town daddies don't really have to be. There are lots of people qualified to do their jobs. All you have to do is go to the local pub to see that. Would-be town daddies are clever men who know how to do the job. As a matter of fact, they don't all go to the local pub. Some are merchants. Some are salesmen. Some are welders and some are even retired. But they are always there to criticize and recommend what they would have done had they been a town daddy. They are always around. Except at election time. If , a town daddy gets your broken sidewalk fixed for you he's a vote getter. If he doesn't he's not interested in the town. If he drives an old battered car he's a poor businessmen. If he drives a nice shiny new one, he's a grafter. You can usually tell a town daddy by his hair. Those that have been one for a while don't usually have too much. If a town daddy makes a mistake he's a symbol of stupidity. If you're having a party he's a status symbol. If he speaks to you on the street he's campaigning. If he doesn't he's stuck-up. Town daddies all have telephones. And most of them are constantly ringing. If a taxpayer has a complaint she can always call her town daddy. It doesn't matter what time of the day it is `cause her tax dollar covers her 24 hours a day. Mast councillors don't mind being called town daddies because their real-life roles as fathers are limited—they are too busy. Money is no object to a town daddy—he can always get more from the taxpayer. Come to think of it, town daddies are taxpayers too. Town daddies have no responsibilities—except for sidewalks, roads, sewers, buildings, snow removal, parking, construction, demolition, recreation, taxes, parks, welfare, arenas, lights and seemingly hundreds of other things. And through all his faults, faux pas, blunders, errors, fractures, etc., a town daddy can still smile. He ran for office when others wouldn't. And you voted him in. Sometimes people make fun of town daddies. Take last week for example. They had a trial here. It was called a hearing. Many people came to the hearing. Some of them laughed at the town daddies. Funny part was, the town daddies could have kept the people away from the hearing. They chose not to! ZURICH Citizens NEWS PRINTED BY SOUTH HURON PUBLISHERS LIMITED, ZURICH HERB TURKHEIM, Publisher Second Class Mail Registration Number 1385 A113841.„Ar Member: Qm Canadian Weekly Newspapers Association �OWIIII'�, Ontario Weekly Newspapers Association 'k,:w`dY So Subscription Rates: $4.00 per year in advance in Canada; $&00 in United States and Foreign; single copies 10 cents. Docs who keep us kicking It's an unpleasant but undis- puted fact that most of us in today's material society envy those who are making more money than we are. I'm as guilty as anyone else, simultaneously knowing that it's silly. But there's one breed — the doctors — that makes a whole lot more money than I do. And I have no envy; noth- ing but admiration. We've met some new ones in the past couple of weeks, and they have confirmed my long - held opinion that their's is a noble profession. I know, I know. There are some rotten apples in every barrel. There are some doctors who are interested only in the buck. There are others who wouldn't take a night call even if you were dying. There are the specialists who work office hours only, and knock off $45,000 a year. (Tried to get an appointment with an eye doctor lately? Takes months.) But the vast majority of to- day's doctors are just as dedi- cated as their predecessors, work just as hard and long, and are just as interested in healing body and mind. And proportionately, in terms of to- day's living costs, they're no better off than the doctor of 50 years ago. First doctor I ever met, I guess, was the one who deliv- ered me, and our acquaintance was casual. Just a whack on the hum from him, and a squall of protest from me. When I was a kid, our family doctor was Dr. Hagyard. He was a massive man with a mas- sive calm. When he arrived, at any hour, you felt as though God had just taken over and everything was O.K. In the Nvinter, he charged about the country with a device of his own creation, a sort of snow- mobile built from a Model T Ford. In summer, his favorite recreation was hitting fly balls to the outfielders in our pro - baseball tern. He could hit them half a mile. In prison camp, I met a cou- ple of dandies. One was coal - black, six -foot -six and reputed to be the son of an African chief. I went to him in some perturbation, and he said, "If you had that excrescence on your nose, you'd call it a pim- ple." The other was a ginger - haired British major, a sur- geon. He was going around the bend because there wasn't enough surgery to keep his hand in, When he had removed all possible appendices and tonsils, on the slightest provo- cation, he spent most of his time sidling up to people and asking if they'd been circum- cised. We used to hide when we saw him corning. When our kids came along, both were delivered by a won- derful doctor, Frank William- son. Four o'clock in the morn- ing meant nothing to him. He'd he there, quiet and calm and rational, in a flash. He grew roses. When we came here, we had Bill Neill. He had a theory that people needed only four hours sleep a night. He grooved on tropical fish and tape record- ers, didn't give a hoot about money, forgot to bill you, but was always compassionate and on the job when you needed him. Now our family doctor is a quiet Englishman with a com- plete lack of the affectation that the odd Little -tin -god type doctor assumes. He has a pro- pensity for Christmas carolling outside your house with his wife and children, and has learned to play a creditable trumpet. I've been curling with a doc- tor in his '70s lately. I enjoy his stories about the old days, when he used a dog team to cross the bay, hoping there wouldn't be a gap of open wa- ter when he got to the other side. He's a courtly gentleman. When we picked up our daughter at the hospital re- cently, we met another species of the breed. Youngish, tough, red -eyed from lack of sleep, he took two hours, including his lunch hour, to talk to us, with- out recompense. He cared. And one more. An eminent city specialist, who is married to an old friend of my wife, took time from his busy sched- ule to check on Kim and allevi- ate our fears. He didn't even - know us. A pretty fine bunch, the Docs, in my experience. 0 Harold Buckingham of Kitchener has epilepsy, but he has a full-time job operating a knitting machine, thanks to training by The Ability Fund (March of Dimes). A con- tribution to The Ability Fund will make it possible for other disabled adults to find a measure of inde- pendence and self -regard. Bob Honsberger of Sault Ste. Marie grew to manhood with the stature of a midget, but training provided by The Ability Fund (March of. Dimes) taught him dis- cipline and self-confidence and he now has a full-time job. A contri- bution to The Ability Fund makes possible the rehabilitation of more disabled adults. Zurich 4-H Girls Form Two Groups The 4-H Clubs of Zurich three and four held an organ- ization meeting at the Zurich Town Hall on Wednesday, February 18. This. forthcoming 4-H Club is entitled "Featuring Fruit" and the members will be learning about the important features of fruit in their diet and new and delicious recipes using fruit. The leaders of Zurich Three are Mrs. H. Finkbeiner and Mrs. Neeb. For Zurich Four they are Mrs. J. Hogg and Mrs. D. Oke. The m eeting opened with the 4-I-1 pledge. Mrs. Ilogg out- lined the course and discussed what the m embers would be doing for Achievement Day. The two clubs elected officers and decided on names for their individual clubs. Zurich Three are the Fruit Flavours and Zurich Four are the Fruit Cups. The Clubs will meet at the Township Hall every Wednesday. FOCUS: .0000111 One Moment of Time Our camera records a child's First Smile . . . makes an official report on the bride's radiance . . . Commemorates a trio posed for Dad's birthday surprise. Moments like these can never be recaptured unless they are per- fectly preserved by HADDEN'S STUDIO. Your family's pictorial history should be in qualified hands. Contact Hadden's Studio GODERICH 118 St. David St. 524.8787 Business and Professional Directory OPTOMETRISTS J. E. Longstaff OPTOMETRIST SEAFORTH MEDICAL CENTRE 527-1240 Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Sat- urday a.m., Thursday evening CLINTON OFFICE 10 Issac Street 482-7010 Monday and Wednesday Call either office for appointment. Norman Martin OPTOMETRIST Office Hours: 9- 12 A,M, — 1:30 -6 P.M. Closed all day Wednesday Phone 235.2433 Exeter ACCOUNTANTS Roy N. Bentley PUBLIC ACCOUNTANT GODERICH P.O. Box 478 Dial 524-9521 HURON and ERIE DEBENTURES CANADA TRUST CERTIFICATES J. W. HABERER Authorized Representative 8%% for 3, 4 and 5 Years 334% for 1 and 2 Years Minimum $100 DIAL 236-4346 — ZURICH FUNERAL DIRECTORS WESTLAKE Funeral Home AMBULANCE and PORTABLE OXYGEN SERVICE DIAL 236-4364 — ZURICH AUCTIONEERS ALVIN WALPER PROVINCIAL LICENSED AUCTIONEER For your sale, large or small, courteous and efficient service at all times. "Service That Satisfies" DIAL 237-3300 DASHWOOD INSURANCE For Safety . 0 Y EVERY FARMER NEEDS Liability Insurance For Information About All Insurance — CaII BERT KLOPP DIAL 236-4988 — ZURICH Representing CO.OPERATORS INSURANCE ASSOCIATION Robert F. Westlake Insurance "Specializing in General Insurance" Phone 236-4391 — Zurich