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The Seaforth News, 1959-03-05, Page 6RONICrES Ithe, Rel Well now, we had a real good start for the week , , on Sun- day morning Partner upset halt a pail of water all over the kitchen fioori And you • know what a fiood a little bit of water makes on a waxed tiled floor. It took the two of us about fifteen minutes to mop it up. I didn't mind helping to• clean up the mess but I was glad I didn't' snake it! As it was. Partner had Plenty to say—"These modern houses --in the old farm kitchen, you' could spill a pail, of water and hardly notice it," The floor, there was hardwood, but not polished, so it was used to the soap and water treatment, We are still skidding around an ice outside — except when we're paddling. Freeze and thaw, mild and bitter. And so it goes. The weather I mean — not the beverage. We make a bee -line . for stores and bank. every :time we get a decent day, otherwise. we are quite content to stay at home. Friday night Dee add family came in after shopping and brought me a few supplies, including rock salt whichwe had been trying to get for a week. Such a demand for it the stores had run out of supplies. It was our first experience with rock salt and ' Partner doesn't think it does as good a job as the ordinary bulk salt we used to get for the cattle. Next time we are near a feed store ' we shall bring home a 75 pound bag. Then I suppose we won't have any more ice. Salt will keep any- way and it's good for, putting out a fire— but heaven forbid that we should need it for that purpose, We have had a great time since Christmas catching up on little jobs that had been laid over until the new year. Partner made. a binder -twine mat for Bob and• a big wooden box, on casters, for Dee to keep the boys' small toys in. It has three partitions, one for David, Eddie and Jerry respectively and deep enough to make it difficult for Jerry to reach things by himself and thus scatter toys all over the floor. However, I wouldn't be surprised to .hear he had over-balnaced and was found standing on his head in the box. That little fel- low can get into more mischief than the other two put together. And of course he has the most innocent expression. I have been going through a lot of stuff stacked away in the basement — magazines, papers, notebooks ,and scrapbooks. One day we had a visitor here who does quite a bit of free-lance writing and she wanted to know if I had any information on a Favorite Handcraft row,.W L,iv& Use these gay Swedish designs for quick bazaar items . to ---els, potholders, bags, mats. So simple, even a ' child can • help with "this handcraft, •Pat- , tern 566: 'charts,' directions for weaving 4 different designs on huck, Decorate many varied al -- - titles, . ' Send THIRTY-FIVE CENTS (stamps cannot be accepted;' use 'postal note for safety) for this pattern to LAURA WHEELER, Cox 1, 123 Eighteenth St., New Toronto, Ont, Print plainly the r/PATTERN NUMBER, and your NAME and ADDRESS. Send for a copy of 1959 Laura Wheeler Needlecraft Book, It has lovely designs to order: embroid- ery, crochet, knitting, weaving, 1 quilting, toys. In the book, a sur- prise to make a little girl happy —a cut-out doll, clothes to color. Beni 25 cents for this book. 4 certain subject, I thought I had so off I went to the basement and brought up two big cartons of brown envelopes, marked as to contents, When she saw the boxes she laughed, "You too," site exclaimed, "Tial my hus, band does go on about all the paper clippings andsiesticles that I collect." I knew, exactly what she meant es the same situation exists' in our ,family. Partner is almost afraid to use a news.' paper to light the fire unless he ' asks me about it first, Or maybe he forgets and I almost yellat him — "Don't burn that --= it' has an article in it on bird- houses . or on training dogs or time saving recipes" -' or whatever I happened to be inter- ested an at the moment.. But I must admit the clippings do have a way of accumulating: so it becomes absolutely neces-, sary to go through theme o'cea- sionally. It is a job that can run into days or even weeks -- depending depending upon how absorbed one gets, And there is knitting — TV pick-up work I call it. Outgrown sweaters and socks are ripped out and re -knitted into mitts and small blankets, using two strands of contrasting wool for addi- tional' strength. Wool from baby sweaters, starts life again as baby socks, only one strand of wool being used. Incidentally, play mitts from used wool are far more satisfactory than anymade from new -wool, The used yarn, already washed and shrunken,. does not mat .when washed. My non -knitting neighbours have caught on to what I am do- ing and bring me their old hand - knitted garments instead of throwing 'them into' the garbage. And they feel well repaid when,,. in time, I present them with mittsfor the children. Quilt tops is something else: I have on the go. How do I get the time to do it all? Well,for, one thing I am a fast worker -- and 'I also have a dishwasher. No, no — not one of those elec- trical; things. This one. is human and goes by the name of Part- ner. So you see my husband is really a partner in the' true sense of the' word and lives up teethe name I gave him years ago. • There are times .when I would rather do the dishes myself but I let it ride — except when I've been baking. Then I 'dp get' them done myself it saves a lot of explaining. I know I would hear — "What- did you make all these dishes dirty for — can't you do a bit of baking without all this mess?'t So washing the dishes myself is the easiest in the long run. Your Mannerisms Can Be Important Science is watching our man- nerisms. Experts who have just concluded an extensive probe into the gestures of hundreds of men and women declare that they reveal a person's character and feelings more effectively than anything else. "Keep an eye on your manner- isms and gestures and you'll learn to know yourself and other people much better," they advise. Scientific study of gestures shows that they fall naturally into two classes. "Any downward movement of the head, hands, arms or eye- lids expresses dislike or con- tempt," states one scientist who checked up on 500 men and 500 women in different walks of life. "Any upward movement us- ually expresses admiration or pleasure." He says there are a few ex- ceptions to this, but they only serve to prove the rule. For in- stance,' n-stance,' there's a way of raising the eyebrows which expresses a sneer, but then a sneer is really a compliment which is meant to be understood as an insult, the scientist adds. A sneer, too, is deliberate whereas the gestures which real- ly tell tales are always made without deliberation. One of the experts tells of a pretty girl who, although still in her early twenties, has deep little furrows running down one side of her face because of her nervous mannerism of constant- ly screwing up her mouth, "Another attractive girl I know would be much more at- tactive if she shortened her laugh," he suggests. "She opens her mouth far too widely and. this mars her looks. It's a mis- take, too, for a girl and .try -to smile •continuously and -talk -at the same time. Smiles are not always ,.lovely. Constant smiling is practiced by some film and TV stars in the United States, often takes away character from a girl's 'face." One girl who was interviewed during the investigation confess- ed that her harsh, uncontrolled. laugh lost her a husband. She had become engaged but one evening her fiance told het frankly that he found her laugh intolerable.—and broke the en- gagement. "We believe that many a girl has missed a chance of ,marriage because of her synthetic and obviously insincere smile," re- port the scientists, is Your Child Safe On A School Bus? KIDS' DAY — School bus operator Harold J. Taylor, of Ira, Vt places new, .and quite appropriate, Iicehse plates on his bus. , He is •assisted ,by daughters Karen, left,' and • Pamela, Taylor requested 'and•received the special plates from the state's motor • vehicle' ,department. During this school year, an estimated 400,000. Canadian 'ele mentary•and secondary school pupils will bedriven an estimat- ed 70. million miles to and from their' classrooms. ' Their safety will mainly de- pend on three things: the skill and . judgment of the school bus driver; the mechanical condition' of his vehicle; ands the conduct of the children themselves get- ting on and off the bus -and dur- •' Ing the actual travel. Yet -it's 'a, shocking fact that, in the words of Fred Ellis; general manager, Ontario Safety League, "Many communities are apathetic to 'these elementary safety factors." Fortunately, to date there have been very few school bus tra- gedies . in Canada.' But as high- -way travel conditions become more hazardous our luckmay not 'told . out. The number of accidents in recent•years-emoiv-: ing school ;vehicles should serve as •a stern warring. '•During the last six months Of 19511„in'On- tario, for example, there'n`vere 31 • accidents. British •Columbia •had 27 accidents in 1957 —' or• an average of nearly three per month over. the 10 -month school year. No statisticsare available' for all Canada. The irony of the situation .is that safety experts know. What precautions must be taken to prevent large vehicles_ from' be- coming involved in accidents. The trucking industry follows their advice eagerly with the re- sult that commercial truck driv- ers have an 'impressive':safety record. On the other hand, many school administrators fail to fol- low the truckers' example. One can only conclude that many communities attachmore im- portance to delivering a .carload of furniture or a tankful of milk than they do to transporting their. children safely. Some recentaccidents empha- siza this 'poiut. Near Orono, Ont., a bus carrying 14 high school students stalled while going up a hill and started rolling . back- wards, The brakes failed 'and the bus rolled over an embank- ment. Four of the children were injured. There would likely have been many more injuries had the vehicle gone over a much deeper drop nearby. There's a good chance that the inefficient. engine and the defective brakes might have been detected before the accident, had the bus been undergoing routine mechaniea! checks. The school bus , inspec- tion system in Ontario has been improved, since then, but in some provinces many school buses still go several years without a thorough mechanical check. In the Mundare district in Alberta a seven-year-old girl alighted from a school bus and walked in front of it to cross to the other side of the highway. • As she was doing so, she stooped over to pick up a book she had dropped. At that instant the driver — who couldn't see her — pulled ahead' and crushed her to death. Safety officiiils have long advocated the necessity of . escoeting 'children on and oft buses and helping them across the road, On a school bus near London, -Ont., student passengers were shooting hard paper pellets at • One another with rubber bands. One of the pellets hit a 16 -year- old girl in the eye. She may permanently lose the sight of the eye. The difficulty of controlling Young' children at all .times is known to every parent. But on a moving Vehicle such control is essential. Every authoritative article Or booklet dealing with srfe school transportation' em= peesizes this point. One sei•tioe of the 58»page Safety Handbook i:ublished by the American Auto mobile Association shows how order and,discipline can be main- tained by school; bus patrols. In Saskatchewan; a•school bus driver was fired after a formal road test showed that he was incapable of handling the job His was not a rare case. Con- trary to the advice of safety ex- perts, a man can becoine a school bus driver in any one of several provinces without a stiff medical examination and without know- ing'much: about drivipg:a•bus. In investigating the safety of our school transportation ih,Can- ada, I questioned police, safety experts, and provincial education and highway officials. I posed these questions: Are we doing all ' we can do to protect; our children? Are we ignoring ha- zards that could be removed? What are the greatest danger ,points inourpresent school transportation systems? Their answers give cause for both• optimism and pessimism. The cheerful news is that many school - authorities are' fully aware al the 'school bus safety problem and -are meeting it with vigor and imagination, generous- ly back by dollars; others are becoming, aware' of the hazards and' are organizing to meet them. - On the gloomy side, I found that . in many parts of Canada the full nature of the problem is not yet realized, and that very little is being done. In some localities, considerations other than safety -such as local' politics or the de- sire to save a few dollars — are being given priority. The most important figure in safe school transportation is the man who drives the bus. The National Safety Council likens" him "to a ship's captain or an airline_ pilot because precious human lives depend on his ex- perience, skill and judgment" Yet the sad fact is thet too often the employment of the school bus driver is . made on a casual basis. It's often a part- time job taken on by a person who works -in a garage, in a store, on a farm or on shift work. The health of the driver is an. important factor, yet only a few provinces; such as Alberta and Nova ' Scotia, insist on annual medical certificates, A mature age is also iinportant, that's why the National Safety Council sets 2I as the minimum age for a bus driver - advice that's followed by at least 18 American states. In most Canadian provinces, a youth of 16 can get the job. A candidate's temperament and his attitude toward children are also important considerations, In the opinion of W. Arch Bryce, score- tare of the Canadian Highway Safety Conference, "Dangerous hooliganism on many buses Is the direct result of a careless hiring attitude by boerds'of edu- cation. When a wrong choice is Made, there's trouble ahead." In practically every ; part oI Canada, school bus drivers 'lack adequate training in the opere. lion of a heavy vehicle,. A typi- cal new driver holds only a chauffeur's license and has ex- perience only with passenger cars. But is this qualification enough? Most trucking coin- panies think not. They require all their new drivers — even if they'i=e: held, a chauffeur's license for 20 years — to take 'a long, intensive course in handling heavy vehicles before taking regular runs ori the highway. For the same reason, Wallace N. Hyde, director of motor vehicles, North Carolina, says, "The per - eon with a good record driving an ordinary car will not neces- sarily make a safe and efficient school bus driver." For one thing, there's quite a difference between carrying two or three young passengers ina family car and carrying several dozen lively — if not rowdy — youngsters who are temporarily free of any parental or teacher discipline. There is also a whale of a physi- cal difference between a 55 -pas- senger conveyance and the or- dinary family car. For example, et 25 mol a passenger car will stop in 25 feet; a bus needs 40 feet. You need more space to take a turn with a bus and you have. to take it more slowly A driver reeds many hours behind the. wheel of a big vehicle, to get the hang of the transmission. .Re- cently nne Canadian bus dealer received a complaint from a . driver that the clutch was al- ways wearing out. The dealer went for a ride with the driver and was amazed to find that he was thoroughly unfamiliar with the transmission. He knew little or nothing• about how to use the six -speed gear shift which was intended 'to give greater control going' up or down hints and in aTin*,ery weather, The -indifference of many school boards often adds un to the inefficiency of the bus -driv- ers. A Saskatchewan safety of- ficial told me "Manu school bus drivers feel that nobody it in• (nested in what they're doing, PO they become careless:" Fred FIlfs of the Ontario Safety Lea sale adds. "There's no incent- ive for the: good school bus driver." In contrast, in mans, parts of the country commercial truck drivers with good records are given cash bonuses, feted at hanauets and sent away 'op courses to improve their status, What can be done to ensure that our children are not entrust- ed to unqualified drivers? First and foremost, we should be much stricter in the qualifications re- ouired for school bus drivers. The state of Pennsyl'vania has laid down a list of criteria .now widely approved by safety au- thorities in Canada and the. Unit- ed States. Tt says that the driver should be at least 2/ years ne age and' in excellent health. Each - year, he shattid be 'tested for vision, hearing, muscular ,steadi- ness and strength, fast reaction time and freedom from physical conditionswhich might make ,him faint. such as heart disease, high blood pressure and epilepsy. Pseehnlogical tests should estab- lish that he's a stable, self-disci- plined 'and patient person, A number of highly regarded local citizens ';who know him should attest to the fact that he's a per- son of good habits. (Continued Next Week) Modern Etiquette by ttoberta Coe 9, What expenditures doori Ow hast Malt h avu lox the tvolldintft 4, Only the eatipouses'of a elft le 11, 'bridal 0011010 fund the alolhedi 1,i H'ear's or the wed- ding.. ItI4 ed-ding.''2fI4 principal duties are to stay 10,11 the groom Meet of the day and see that he gets to cherub on time, Ile also takes caro of the biide's ring and the ' clergyman's fee, which the groom givesto him in an envelope and which he gives to the clergyman imme'diate'ly following the cere- mony, - Q. When a hostess is serving cocktails and knows that ene' or two of her .guests do not care for them, what should she do? A. She should be prepared in advance for any such eventuali- ties, and serve these guests some soft drinks. • 9. When two men and, two girls are eating together in a pubiie place, at a small' table, how should they be seated? A. The girls should be seated opposite each other. Q,tlow may a woman know whether or not to offer her handl to a man when being introduced? A. .There is no rule for this. It' is altogether optional with the, woman. She can remember, how- ever, that the proffered hand is her way of showing sincere and genuine pleasure over the meet- ing. Week's Sew -Thrifty PRINTED PATTERN 4828 SIZES 2-1120 441.4444 ` See the diagram - even, a be- ginner can stitch up this pretty jumper in a day' Curved neck reveals blouse beneath,' back has inverted pleat, half -belt. Printed Pattern" 48211: Chil- dren's Sizes 2, -4, 6, 14. Tek; Size $' jumper takes 13/4 yards 39 -inch;. blouse takes I yard. Printed directiqns on each pat- tern part. Easier, aceturate., Send VORTy CENTS ttstax'mpe cannot be accepted; use postal note for safety) for this pattern. Please print plainly SIZE, NAME: and ADDRESS, MILE -NU'M- BER. Send order to ANNE ADAMS, Box 1, 123 Eighteenth St:, New Toronto, Ont. ISSUE 9 — 1959 RECOGNIZE THE BLONDS? — If' you don't know who the blonde is .at right, it's, because you're used to seeing heras a brunette,. Sophia Loren, known for her dark, sultry ll tlian look, left, Wears her hair blonde for part in "Heller With o •Gun", a western.