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Times-Advocate, 1982-08-25, Page 4• • #.0 'August 25,1962: Imes Times Established 1873 Advocaee Established 1881 Amalgamated 1924 dvocate Serving South Huron, North Middlesex & North Lambton Since 1873 Published by J.W. Eedy Publications Limited 1. IORNE EERY Publisher JIM BECKETT Advertising Manager BILL BATTEN ROSS HAUGH Editor Assistant Editor HARRY DEVRIES Composition Manager DICK JONGKIND Business Manager Published Each Wednesday Morning at Exeter, Ontario Second Class Mail Registration Number 0386. Phone 235-1331 SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Canada $20.00 Per year: U.S.A. $55.00 C.W.N.A., O.C.N.A. CLASS 'A' and `ABS' Too close for comfort. The federal government has been running a series of ads indicating that Canadians are very close to at- taining energy security. Using the age-old indicator of a space between a thumb and a forefinger, the ads say that is the size of the gap that remains. People will recognize the gap. It has been used to indicate how dose they've come to achieving success or luck in many endeavours. When pressed on the sub- ject, many often have to admit that the space indicated between that thumb and forefinger is under -estimated. - News out of Toronto this week indicates, however, that the small gap does indicate how close some peo- ple are to death in the rush to convert oilfired furnaces to natural gas. Seems that less than one in five of those converting are having their chimneys adapted for gas emissions with special liners which prevent clogs in chimney flues. That oversight has already cost eight people their lives through carbon monoxide -poisoning. Area residents who have converted to gas should be warned of the danger and immediately check with their furnace installer or the gas company to ensure they are not faced with the risks. You can shrug your shoulders at "being that close" to losing out on fame and fortune (or energy security) but it's' too close when lives are at stake. The game should change Want a good bet for the coming National Hockey League season? No, we don't have any inside informa- tion on which team will win the elongated battle for Stanley Cup supremacy. Just a deep -seeded opinion that the game will be played a little differently this season. It would be encouraging to report that the owners have finally come to their senses and won't turn a deaf ear on the cries to clean up the game, or that the few goons on each team will be cut by the coaches in pre- season training camps. 'That's not the basis for the opinion. It stems from Far•m wom a ruling that comes from outside the ranks of the NHL... a Detroit court which awarded an ex -hockey player $850,006 damages in his suit against another pro for injuries sustained in a physical clash between the two players. Through the years, hockey owners and players have excused their periodic brutality as being part of the game. The court thinks otherwise and it is bound to have an effect on all players, coaches, managers, and owners when they take to the ice in September. Here's another good bet: the game will be the bet- ter for it. an rare breed The farm woman is a rare breed. She juggles every ball thrown her way on a daily basis - bearing and rearing the children, resident bookkeeper of the farm records, working alongside her husband at the chores, cooking up good down home style meals and housekeeping, attending WI and other community grOup meetings, as well as being a supportive wife, companion and true love to her man, says the Mitchell Advocate. Naturally after years of this kind of giving, her dedication comes to be taken for granted, not necessarily for lack of sensitivity by her family, but due to that closeness that often hampers due apprecia- tion, except on Mother's Day each year. Well, farm women are finally taking up the flag, and marching for some rights. Not only have they been taken for granted by their loved ones, but the govern- ment has allowed the system to continue running Without ever, taking into consideration that it is the hours of hard work done by farm women that keep the cost of Canadian grown food down. The only way farm women have been able to claim a salary from farm income and pay info the Canada Pension Plan has been through a legal partnership with their husbands. And statistics show that most farm women are not partners in the farm ownership, so com- pensation only comes from a generous hubby, although this probably does occur often as the men knowbet- ter than anyone how much work their wives do on the farm each 4ay. The survey being conducted by the National Farmers' Union at the present time is going to be both contraversial and enlightening for government of- ficials. And it looks like the farm women are not go- ing to let the flag fall. They are ready for some rights, and anyone who has seen their capabilities will be rooting on the sidelines. Keeping abreast of chick hatching Don't look now, but summer is quickly winding down and it will soon be back to the books for area youngsters and a return to the more hectic pace of fall activities. Well, actually, only half that statement may be correct. Judging from the number of activities that have been held in the district this summer, the fall months may turn out to be less hectic than the,dog days of summer. Normally, the staff here at the T -A have to search for picture possibilities during the months of July and August, but this year has been.a noticeable exception and it seems every week is crammed with special events. Many of those are perennial celebra- tions, such as Burgerfest, fiddlers' con- test, Friedsburg Days, Gala Days, Bean Festival, Lucan Fair, turtle races, etc., etc. Exeter joined the list this season with Heritage Days and the resort added Sand- The summer heat and periodic full castle Day. moon result in some unusual stories, and The greatest hive of activity, however, certainly one that may top that category has been at area ball diamonds. Not one this year happened right on our doorsteps. weekend has passed without a tourna- A staff member reported that she gave ment in the area and it is expected that birth to a live chick last week! There's schedule will continue right through to the even a photo of the offspring to back up first snowfall as baseball enthusiasm ap- her story, although the. writer is still pears to be at a new high. checking out all aspects of trick It is also interesting to note that local photography in an effort to validate her librarian Elizabeth Schroeder reports claim. that reading is at an all-time high this Seems that this part-time hobby summer and the local facility is as busy farmerette discovered that her prize ban- es in the winter. That wouldn't be quite tam hen had hatched a couple of chicks so unusual, perhaps, if the summer had and then flown the coop, so to speak, leav- turned out to be wet and cold, but there ing behind several other eggs. One of have been few complaints about the those had a small crack and the rather ob- weather so far this summer. vious signs of a chick inside. The down -turn in the economy may pro- Our enterprising reporter picked up the vide an explanation for the increase in egg, and needing her hands to complete home-made activity as it indicates that some other barnyard chores, tucked the people are quite capable of being flexible .egg into her bra. On returning to the and can adjust their interests to keep house, she soon heard the familiar chirp - themselves busy at things that don't carry Ing of a small being from inside the egg such a high price tag such as extended and left it in its innovative incubator, and vacations. soon drew some questioning glances from the family cat. Nature eventually took its course, and our intrepid reporter's bosom was home for one small chick and numerous pieces of broken egg shell. The identity of the surrogate mother is -being withheld at this time due to the pro- blems being experienced with the law in Ontario, but we'll keep you abreast of future developments. * * * It also indicates that there's been a con- siderable amount of work performed by the people who have organized the special -•„*.;1.401MS1154,51 BATT'N AROUND with the editor events, and certainly their efforts should not be unheralded. They've made it a fun and busy summer! * * * '74 • It may not be quite as titilating, but there's a story about a local businessman that would be humorous if it wasn't so sad. Similar to other businessmen caught in the economic squeeze, he•decided to drive to Toronto last week to save money on freight by picking up his own order from a wholesaler. However, the savings were quickly eroded, when, on the way home through Tavistock, he was nabbed for speeding. There's every indication that a growing portion of the populace is moving to ac- cept the federal government's restraint program and approving the "six and five" formula being touted to get inflation under control and the economy rolling. There has already been an improve- ment in the economy if the recent stock market jump is any indication. However, there's one group not going along with the plan, at least in some aspects, and that's the federal govern- ment itself. It was recently announced that taxes on booze and cigarettes would be increased some 15 percent. Once again, big brother in Ottawa is following the "do as I say, not as I do" philosophy that has contributed so much to the current problems. It's the Summer is the time for family reunions. Other people - fighter pilots, newspapermen, Legion- naires, Women's In- stitutes, Librarians - have them any old time. But in almost every weekly newspaper across the land, every week of our two-month summer, you can read. that the Jojes family, or the McIntosh family, or whatever, had a reunion, followed by a list of who was there, who came the farthest, who was the oldest, who- was the youngest, who hosted the reunion, and everything down to what was on the menu. Not too exciting to the average reader, but im- portant to the family, so dutifully reported. After the reunion, on the way home, there's the usual obituary. "My God; wouldn't you think that Esther would stop, after having seven in 10 years." And, "Tina's got turrible fat. She's due for the big slab if she don't stop eating. Seven pieces of pie after a feed a shanty man couldn't handle." Or, "Too bad Wilbur's got so fonda the stuff. They found him out behind the barn at 11 a.m., and hadda use a block 'n' tackle to get him up to the table." And so on. Well, I avoid family reu- nions like the plague, but this summer I was guilty of attending- one. My reasons were three -fold: a sense of responsibility, love, and a chance to spend some time with my only and beloved daughter. The occasion was the 90th birthday of my uncle, Ivan Thompson, patriarch of the clan, last of a fami- ly of eight, and a time for reunions remarkable man. When you think -of a 90 -year-old, you think of an old man, huddled in a shawl, toothless, senile or almost, sitting in a rocking chair, eating gruel, You don't think of a bright-eyed, lively, keen - minded fellow who could my idea of what somebody with guts and initiative could, and still can do, in this great country. But, beside those vir- tues, he has charm, wit, and great vitatity. And these are why I've loved him since I was a kid, not because he "made good". • Sugar and Spice Dispensed By Smiley • walk people like me up a mountain and leave them, gasping, about halfway up, as he reached the summit. Born in 1892 on the island of Calumet, in the Ottawa River, in the lumbering days, he graduated from the school of hard knocks. His father was sluice -master at the Roche Fondue, a rapids in the river, where the logs were diverted down a wooden sluice so they would not be smashed to splinters in the rapids. Young Ivan had to work on the family farm abut- ting the river. In his youth he was an athlete, playing hockey for Shawville, which produc- ed NHL star Frank Finnigan. With little formal education, he went into business, did well during many years in Montreal, retired, and bought some land along his beloved Ot- tawa River, where he built, mostly by hand, a beautiful log cabin which he still visits every summer. In every respect, he is a self-made, self-educated and widely read man. He's On my way overseas, I visited him in Montreal, was treated like a son, and slipped a small cash dona- tions. When I got back from overseas, same thing. • His life has not been all roses. He lost a brilliant young son who was in his. 20s. His wife died in an automobile accident.But his spirit, though deeply hurt, bounded back. At 80, he seemed 60. At 90, he seems about a year older than I. And we look alike. When I was a kid, about half the time my mother called me Ivan before she remembered I was Billy. After serving in World War I, he worked hard in forming the Canadian Legion to make sure "you boys" of the second war got a better deal from government than his generation did. He was also active in politics, and is a great environmen- talist. He is beloved by his hugh collection of nieces and nephews, daughter and grandchildren, and hundreds of cousins. • Dear Uncle Ivan, I salute you as a great Canadian, and will be there for your 100th, even if I have to take an ambulance. I had two bonuses in go- ing to Ottawa for my un- cle's birthday. I got away from my grandchildren for a couple of days, just about the tune I was going to crack up, and I had a good visit with my daughter. We ate at an outdoor cafe. We went to a horror movie. We ate a gigantic .pizza in Ottawa's burgeon- ing city centre. We went to hear a rock group in which an old friend' of hers, and former student of mine was playing. My ears are still ringing, but I must ad- mit I enjoyed it. We ate and drank in a swanky cocktail lounge at the Chateau Laurier and heard some excellent jazz. And we talked and talked and talked, without her kids or her mother inter- rupting. That was a treat. She was itt great spirits, doing well in her universi- ty courses, and has found a place to live in a good section (but in a crumbly basement apartment). She told me Ottawa was a beautiful city, as she drove me around, but you Couldn't prove it by me. My eyes were shut tight and my fists clenched in my lap, She drives a beat - up old Datsun as though she were in the, Grand Prix. Most of us sldw down when we see an orange light. She speeds up to beat the red one. And everyone else in the city drives like that. Anyway, that was my big summer adventure. I'm still shaky from that driving, but have recivered enough to start making peanut butter and honey sandwiches again. PM Canadians have always prided themselves on their basic rights of free speech. They know that at any given time they have the right to go out on some street corner in the busiest part of town and run down the government, politi- cians and the world in general. Passersby might think that the speaker is a little odd but will not in- terfere. The police will not bother you other than ask you to be reasonable and not create a nuisance of yourself. Not so in many coun- displays true class tries of the world. If you Recently the Prime criticize the government Minister was travelling to too strongly in Russia you the West with his three Perspectives By Syd Fletcher will end up on the end of a shovel in some salt mine. It's unfortunate though that some people tend to abuse this right. sons. As he was travelling through a certain town some of the local in- habitants saw fit to yell obscenities at the P.M. and throw ripe tomatoes at him. Now in some countries, as I said before you would undoubtedly be embark- ing on a long trip to the north for such actions, but instead our honourable First Minister simply returned their rudeness with an equally rude obscene gesture. True class eh. It's a good thing we have such good examples of restraint to whom we can look at with admiration, trust and respect. 1