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Zurich Citizens News, 1973-05-10, Page 4PAGE 4 err• '"—. ZURICH CITIZENS NEWS ro 145 T HURSDAY, MAY 10, 1973 The Tory trouble A funny thing has happened to the Tories on the way to the East Block. It is shown strikingly in the latest Financial Times Survey of Business Opinion. Neither the party nor the leader nor the potential Tory ministers are seen as being either likely or competent to form a government. The Conservgtive collapse in public favor since last October is dramatic. After the October 30 election the Conservatives seemed to be on the threshold of power. They had won more votes than the Liberals in every province except Quebec. They had elected more members than the Liberals in every province except New Brunswick, which was tied, and Quebec, which was a Conservative disaster. Quebec returned only two PC members against the 56 Liberals who now form more than half of the government caucus at Ottawa. But even so, the PC's total is only two seats behind the Liberals' The October vote, including Quebec, split 35 per cent Conservative and 39 per cent Liberal. It seemed last November that a little spurt in Quebec was all the Conservatives would need to gain power in a new election. The first sign of the shapr reversal in public sentiment came in a Gallup poll conducted in early March and published on April 11. It showed the Conservatives' popular following to have dropped to 30 per cent. The Liberals were up to 40 per cent and the NDP to 20 per cent. The new Financial Times' survey, which was conducted between April 12 and 16, is even more shocking for the Conserv- atives. It represents the views of Canadians who are mostly in senior or middle management (77 per cent of the sample), with another 15 per cent working as professionals. Forty-two per cern of them are in Ontario, with another 30 per cent in the West. These are the very people in the very provinces who gave the Conservatives their biggest gains last October. They are the people who might have been expected to lean even more heavily to the Tories after watching the Liberal government tailoring all its programs to the NDP. But only 29 per cent of them now think that the Conservatives can win the next election. Two thirds think the Liberals would win, though probably without gaining a majority. This depress- ing view of Conservative chances reflects an equally dismal view of Conservative competence. The Tory front bench, though reinforced by such newcomers as James Gillies and Claude Wagner, is regarded as far less competent cabinet mat- erial than the Liberal front bench, thin as it appears. The disillusion is even greater at the top. Mr. Trudeau is considered by a narrow margin --49 per cent against 41 per cent -- as an asset to his party. Mr. Stanfield is considered by a wide majority --63 per to 27 per cent --to be a negative influ- ence on his party's prospects. The causes can only be guessed. But we suspect that Mr. Stanfield and his colleagues are paying the price of their futile efforts to bring on a new election at any cost. This Parliament of minorities need not have put its life, as it almost has, into the hands of the small NDP group led by David Lewis. If the Conservatives had been ready to support sensible measures, instead of letting Mr. Lewis veto them, their desired election would not have been postponed any longer. But they could have gone into the campaign with a record of responsib- ility which would have made them far more credible than they seem to be now. As it is, they are evidently getting some of the blame for driving the government into dependence on the NDP. That, we believe, is a perfectly fair judgement on the Conservatives. But we are not in the least happy at the idea that the Liberals should therby escape their judgement, The worst thing about the new evidence of Tory decline is its prob- able effect on the Liberals. Those of them who were always inclined to believe that their proper place was alongside the NDP will be confirmed in the belief. "You see, " they will say, "it works. It is right that Liberals should be in a hurry." The other wing of the Lib- eral party, which is uncomfortable with the NDP and believes in restraining the powers of government, will be discouraged, It will be harder than ever for these people to keep the govern- ment from playing along with Mr. Lewis' demands. And that, we think, is bad. (Financial Times of Canada) ZURICH Citizens NEWS PRINTED BY SOUTH HURON PUBLISHERS LIMITED, ZURICH HERB TURKHEIM, Publisher Second Class Mail Registration Number 1385 ate 6 4111111ii 466 �� Member: Canadian Weekly. Newspapers Association Ontario Weekly Newspapers AssociationA•!;. Subscription Rates: $5.00 per year in advance in Canada; $6.00 in United States and Foreign; single copies 15¢ I TALK TO THE QUEEN by Bill Smiley We're planning to go to Eng- land this summer. Last summer we planned to go to the Maritimes. Last winter we planned to go to Bar- bados. Two summers ago it was a trip across Canada. The plans are great hut the performance is nil. I'm not sure whose fault it is that the Smileys never get off the ground. I blame my wife. She hates getting ready for a trip. I sometimes think she deliberately broke her ankle last summer so she wouldn't have to get ready. .She, naturally, blames me, because I don't get everything laid on in time. She may have a point. I don't like super organization. I like to just take off and wind up wherever the fates take me, with as little baggage as pos- sible. She likes to know where she's going to lay her head at night, and likes to have "something decent" to wear on every occasion that might present itself. That means three suitcases. It also poses a big problem for this summer. I just know that when the Queen and Phil hear we're going to be in the U.K. there'll be an invitation of some sort waiting for us at the Dorchester or the Savoy or the Dirty Duck. Trouble is, what sort of affair will she invite us to? If it's a lawn party, that means for my old lady a long summer dress, big hat, white gloves. And for me, a tough decision — whether to wear my white sport shirt or my blue one. But what if it's for dinner at the Palace, as it probably will be? That's another kettle of fish and chips. It would mean a dinner dress and dif- ferent shoes for the boss. I could manage ablack tie over my white sport shirt and if it was extra formal, I'd pin my Canadian Spam medal to my shirt. I can just hear the dinner ilk producers . f e r's! d o The Huron County Milk Com- mittee has decided to rejoin the Huron County Federation of Agriculture after an absence of several years. The decision of the commit- tee, announced at the regular meeting of the HFA Thursday night in Clinton by Martin Baun of Walton brings to eight the number of organizations who have affiliated with the HFA for 1973. The others are the Seaforth Farmers' Co-operative; the Huron County Development Committee; the 4-H Club lead- ers Association; the Ontario Egg Producers' Marketing Board; the Huron County Beef Improve- ment Association; the Huron County Soil and Crop Improve- ment Association and the Huron Holstein Club. Mr. Baan, commenting on ' the milk scene at present also noted that although the increase in the price of industrial milk has been announced as a 60 cent hike, in many cases it will not because the floor price exc- eeded the old price. In most cases, he said, the increase would be more in the line of 40 cents. conversation, a bit fluty and high -bred but sort of chummy. Rather like the Pope trying to draw out the parish priest. The Queen. "How delightful of you and your charming wife to do us the honour of corning to dinner. Have you been to England before, Mr. uh Wiley?" Me. "Yes, your Honour, uh, your Worship, uh, Queen. I fought for your old man in the last war. Guess you were just a kid." Queen. "A kid? Really? Ow. Ow, yes, I see. Your American sieng is sow refreshing. And you were one of those gallant lads from the dominions wtio fought for my father, King George the Sixth?" Me. "Just a minute, Queen. That's no American accent. It's Canadian. And they told me his name was Mackenzie King, not what- ever you said." Queen. "How quaint. And you were decorated, I see. That must be a medal for outstanding valour pinned to your, uh — I say, that is a striking, uh — shirt?" The Duke. "It's a ruddy sport shirt, Elizabeth. They all wear them." Me. "Oh, no, Queen. They gave these out with the rations. All you had to do was be conned into joining up „ The Queen. "Conned? Rations? Yes, of course. Now, we'd like you to have a wonderful time while you're here. It's lovely this time of year in Scotland, Right up at the top. As far as you can go," Me. `Matter of fact, Queen, we thought we'd stick around London a while and get better acquainted. Maybe me and Phil here could do a couple of pub- crawls, while you girls got together and talked about your rotten kids and stuff." The Queen. "Ow, Now, I mean ow, yes. That would have been lovely. But ectually, we must gow to Canadar this summer. Frightful bore, but there it is." Me. "Yep, you must get sick of having to be polite to ordinary people. And it's a brute for heat over there in the summer. Especially on the prairies." The Queen. "Quite. And now, if there's any little thing my husband and I could do, please don't hesitate." Me. "Well, let's see. You're the Queen of Canada. Right? Right. Well, look. There's this school board, see? I'm a teacher, y'know. If you'd just write them a nasty letter. Why, I've got one Grade 9 class with 38 in it. Just tell them to lay off persecuting me. Oh, yeah. And would you call our neighbours, the Dalrymples, and make sure they're water- ing our lawn.?" My wife. (Silently and under the table. Kick. Kick. Kick.) Anyway, Buckingham Palace won't be any problem, But what are we going to wear when we duck over to Northern Ireland to see Uncle Frank, who has asked us out in his fishing boat? I think I'll have my wife dress in green, and I'll wear something in orange. At least one of us might survive. Business and Professional Direct OPTOMETRISTS J. E. Longstaff OPTOMETRIST SEAFORTH MEDICAL CENTRE 527.1240 Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Sat- urday a,m„ Thursday evening CLINTON OFFICE 10 lssac Street 482.7010 Monday and Wednesday Call either office for appointment. Norman Martin OPTOMETRIST Office Hours: 9-12 A,M, — 1:30-6 P. Closed all day Saturday Phone x"35.3433 Exeter INSURANCES Robert F. 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