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i I Section Two The Canadian Statesman, Bowmanville, December 12,1984 A Tough Act to Follow As we approach the end of Ontario's Bicentennial year, many local citizens will be sorry to say farewell, because it has been a year filled with exciting events that stirred many citizens into realizing that this is a great province ... and we are most fortunate to be living in it. When the bicentennial program was launched, there was some confusion and even some scepticism concerning how the provincial promoters arrived at the 200th anniversary theme. But, as it turned out, nobody really complained too vehemently about it and as programs were developed at local levels and ways were found to make use of funds provided by the province, it became a challenge to dream up historic events that would have meaning for a majority of citizens. In this area, there's no doubt that Port Hope and Toronto had an added incentive to be major participants because they were celebrating their sesquicentennial anniversary. We can, recall a comment made by one woman in Port Hope at an early organizational meeting when she proudly declared that if nothing else were accomplished during 1984, she had at least learned how to spell sesquicentennial, no mean feat. Well, we are now in the final stages of the celebrations and take off our hats to those at Queen's Park who came up with the idea and sold it to the public. Mind you, it wasn't too tough to do when they also dangled a $10,000 carrot in front of municipal participants. This past weekend was the climax of the festivities and a reward, if you like, to nearly 2,000 Ontario citizens whose contribution to the bicentennial celebrations at the local level were being acknowledged at medal presentations in many centres. These were being awarded to special people who took up the bicentennial theme and made it work, without any thought of pay for their involvement, only the satisfaction of doing a meaningful job for the community. At area ceremonies in Oshawa and Peterborough, Government Services Minister Hon. George Ashe summed it up thusly, "We owe a great deal to those people who give unselfishly of their time to contribute positively to the standard of living which we often take for granted in Ontario. The Bicentennial Bicentennial Medal is a token of the appreciation which all of us feel for the efforts of these very special Ontarians." The names of those from this area who were honored with a medal appear in this edition, and we can only add our personal appreciation to them and congratulate them on receiving an unexpected tribute that deservedly has come their way. There probably were many others who also were involved in dozens of ways, but weren't recognized with a medal, but a line had to be drawn somewhere. They too will have the satisfaction of knowing that this province is a better place because of their participation. Now, what's bothering us is 1985 and just how we are going to top what has happened this year. It certainly is going to be a tough act to follow the bicentennial and sesquicentennial year. Maybe it all began as a pre-election gimmick for the provincial PC government. If that was the original idea, it was the orily bicentennial project that didn't come up to expectations when Premier Bill Davis decided to retire and the election had to be postponed. We're Pikers by Comparison What ever happened to the social security safety net? Canadians seem to believe a certain certain conventional wisdom which says that we're up to our ears in social social security. And that's hardly surprising surprising because both the political left and right wish to foster such an impression. The liberal side (note the small. 1) can claim that our social security network is extensive and therefore past governments have done an excellent excellent job in giving Canadians the social security they need. Meanwhile, the small "c" conservatives conservatives can argue that the social security system is indeed extensive -- so extensive, in fact, that it could be trimmed quite easily in order to improve our financial outlook. But now we hear of a survey which reveals that Canada is only a modest spender on social service programs. Compared to some western western industrial countries, our so- called safety net looks more like a sieve. Or, at least, that's the conclusion which can be drawn from a survey of the Big Seven countries in the Organization for Economic Co-operation Co-operation and Development. The statistics reveal that in the most recent year for which data are available, Canada spent 11.8 per cent of its gross domestic product on social services. By comparison, the countries of France, Italy, Germany, Britain, and the United States all spent a larger share of their national wealth on widows, pensioners, unemployed, unemployed, veterans, handicapped, and other recipients of government social security benefits. If we add the amount of money spent by government on all social benefits, including health care, we find Canada still lagging behind many western countries. For example, example, Canada and the U.S. devote one-third of their output to providing providing security to the public. On the other hand, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands spend one-fifth of their nation's output on social services services including health. The solution is not to quickly match our government spending with nations such as Belgium, Austria, Austria, Sweden, or the Netherlands. It would appear that Canada has been comparatively frugal all along and should remain so. It may be even possible for Canada Canada to become more cost-conscious. After all, the government waste and inefficiency in a number of countries countries cited in the report is almost legendary. Possibly they spend more than Canada without getting as much value in return. The statistics, in themselves, don't say all that much about what should or should not be done by Ottawa Ottawa in future decisions on social services. But they ought to at least point out one simple fact: In the field of social services Canada has apparently apparently provided much while spending spending less than many of its counterparts counterparts in the' western world. That may go against the grain of popular thought, but the statistics seem to prove the point. We are not a nation of welfare bums or freeloaders living off government government handouts. We are better off than we think we are. No doubt the Mulroney government government will keep the survey in mind as it considers the thorny issue of government spending on social needs. QUje (Eanabian Statesman 623-3303 (J£na Durham Counly'i Great Family Journal Established 130 years ego In 1854. Alio Incorporating The Bowmanville News The Newcastle Independent The OronoNewa Second clan mall registration number 1561 Produced every Wedneaday by THE JAMES PUBLISHING COMPANY LIMITED 62 66 King St. W., Bowmanville, Ontario L1C 3K9 V L* JOHN M. JAMES Editor -- Publisher GEO. P. MORRIS Business Mgr. RICHARD A. JAMES Assistant Publisher BRIAN PURDY Advertising Mgr. PETER PARROTT Associate Editor DONALD BISHOP Plant Mgr. All layouts and composition of advertlsemenla produced by the employees ol The Canadian Slateiman, The Newcastle Independent end The James Publishing Company Limited are protected by copyright and must not be reproduced without written permission of the publishers. $15.00 a year -- 6 months $6.00 strictly In advance foreign -- $45,00 a year Although uvory pmcnutlon will be taken to avoid error. Thu Canadian Slatusman nccupls advertising In Ils columns on the understanding that II will not bo liable lor any error in the advertisement published hereunder unless a proof ol such adverlisomnnl Is lenuesled in writing by the ndvorllcor and relumed to The Canadian Statesman business uMico duly signed by lire advertiser and with such error or corrections plainly nolod in writing Ihorcon. and in lhat case it any error so noted is not corrected by The Canadian Statesman its liability shall not exceed such a poihon ol tho onluo cost ol such 'idveihslmenl an the space occupied by the noted error boars to the whole space occupied by such advertisement m* » - - '...Ci; i - •s The Late Fred Depew's Shed at East Beach SUGAR and SPICE '\C Turkeys For All With your kind permission, I'll tell you a little Christmas story this week. We'll call it: "Turkey for Easter". In my own home town, when I was a boy, a Turkey Fair was held every winter, shortly before Christmas. There was a district north of the town that was poor farming land. It was rough and rocky, like some parts of the Bruce Peninsula, and its inhabitants had a difficult time scraping a living out of the inhospitable land. So most of them grew turkeys. They'd let them run practically wild through the year, then bring them to town for the Turkey Fair. The main street would be lined with sleighs, cutters and old cars, all piled high with turkey for sale. Buyers would come from the cities, and the townspeople would all be out to pick up their Christmas fowl. As a result, the town street would be crowded. Jingling sleighbells, scurrying people, filled with the Christmas spirit, and crowds of turkey farmers and their families, with the sharp-faced buyers from Montreal and Ottawa scuttling to get the best birds for the least money, made it an exciting day for the town's youngsters, and quite a few of us didn't show up at school that day. I'll never forget one Turkey Fair, when I was about twelve years old. It was right in the middle of the depression. As usual, the street was lined with turkey farmers, selling their wares, by nine o'clock in the morning. This was the big day of the year for them. The rest of the year, they barely managed to make ends meet. But when they had sold their turkeys they were rich for a day. Some of them would have as much as thirty or forty dollars, a lot of money in those days. This was for them. It meant that children would have something for Christmas, that Mother might get a new dress, or pair of shoes, that Father could have a few beers and maybe buy some shells for his gun, and that their credit at the store could be sustained. They were terribly poor. Well, this one year, something happened. At the time, I had no idea what it was, but it was probably a glut of fowl on the market, and too many people without money to buy turkey for Christmas. At any rate, the Turkey Fair was an utter failure. Only a few buyers showed up, a lot of the townspeople simply did not have any money, and were living on credit, and the farmers could not get rid of their turkeys. At first they were selling a few for outrageously low prices, twelve or thirteen cents a pound, instead of the usual eighteen to twenty-five. But by noôn the turkey farmers were nearing panic. They were running around with a turkey in each hand, canvassing houses, trying to sell them for seven and eight cents a pound. By four o'clock in the afternoon, the full extent of the tragedy had been revealed. Women stood by their sleigh-loads of turkeys, with the tears streaming down their faces, and three or four of their children, cold and hungry wailing in sympathy. The men's faces showed anger, fright and bewilderment. It was a bitter day for them. It meant that instead of a Christmas full of warmth and happiness they were faced with a Christmas bleak with despair, lacking everything that usually made it good, as well as a cheerless winter ahead, existing by the barest of margins. It was a shambles. Turkeys were hurled into the street and trampled on by bitter, frustrated men. Others spent their last fifty cents for a bottle of cheap wine and got drunk. The people of the town looked grave, sympathetic, worried 1 . Even the heavens wept, and a downpour of freezing rain fouled the white snow and increased the general misery. I don't think I have ever felt more sad and depressed than I did that day, child though I was. When I got home, I wanted to spill all my feelings to my mother, but one look at her face told me she knew. She went about her work with that intense fury that always possessed her when she was trying to hide her feelings, and I knew better than to start babbling. A while later my Dad came in with a long face, and he and my mother held one of those low-voiced conclaves that drive curious children crazy. Then he went back outside. My mother looked a little less harassed. Then the rest of the family began coming in, my young brother starting horsing around, and with the tough indifference of a youngster, I almost forgot about the turkey farmers and their despair, in the babble of the family. When my dad got home, we all sat down to supper. In those days, you ate supper at suppertime, in our circle. Mother and Dad still looked pretty grave, but not so bad as before, and we kids were all talking at once, as usual. We had Hamburg for supper. I was feeling a bit disgruntled with my parents for being so serious and uncommunicative, so, probably to attract attention, I said: "Hamburg, hamburg, hamburg. We're always eating hamburg. Aren't we ever going to eat anything else around here?" You know how a kid will say things like that. We did have a lot of hamburg, but I liked it. My mother gave me one look, got up, took me by the ear, marched me to the woodshed door, off the kitchen, opened it, and said: "Yes, you're going to get something besides hamburg. You're going to eat turkey from now until Easter." There, hanging from the rafters in the woodshed, were about twelve or thirteen big turkeys. Next day I found out that other families in town, among those who were able, had done the same thing, out of sympathy for the turkey farmers. By the time they had given turkeys to all their friends, neighbors and relatives, in an attempt to get rid of them, there were few people who went without turkey THAT Christmas, in the town. Letters to the Editor December 3,1984 To the editor, Canadian Statesman. Professor John Squair's book is reprinted, there's the new St. Paul's church history due next year - these arc wonderful initiatives by local citizens, Equally as encouraging is your newspaper's recent attention to history, and I'm referring especially to the articles on the Burk and Van Camp families, as well as the "Cream of Barley" mill, now home of the Visual Arts Centre. Your readers may be interested In the following comments based upon Rhonda Malomet's fine feature (November 28) about the mill. The memories of several Bowmanville "old-timers" and a newspaper notice of the day support the information that the illustrious latter-day barley king, James Lake Mordcn, was not married to a Gertrude in 1929, Rallier, lie was wed to Marjorie Mac Kay in Bowmanville during January of 1910. Marjorie was a (laughter of the original mill owner, John MacKay. Also, the chronological approach of the article indicates indicates that Garnet Mutton and Arthur Iicnvl were sont across the country to plug Cream of Barley sometime after 1929. Product promotion by means of "The Real MacKay Travelling Travelling Palace" began in 1921. This fact was noted in the Statesman, in May of that year. Some details for those who may enjoy. Keep history of Bowmanville Bowmanville and area in your paper. It will always have a place. Garfield Shaw, Mississauga. 1 Prince Street Bowmanville December 4, 1984 Dear Mr. James: I take exception lo the article re "Mills in Town History" in the November 28th issue of The Statesman. You should insure that your reporters, Rhonda Malomet in this instance, have their facts correct. The Mill in question was in good running order when Mr. Shrubb sold it to Mr. Borman, when it then went into decline, which is contrary to the statement made in said article. Another correction, the barley was always shipped in from Winnipeg, not just when Mr. Berman bought the mill. Remarks such as this arc unacceptable. Sincerely, Norah Allin (Mrs. II.L.) CHRISTMAS MESSAGE Ironically, there is an increase in home fires and related deaths during the traditionally joyous Christmas Season, due to the age old problem of carelessness carelessness and to the built-in fire hazards associated with Christmas decorations. Make sure Christmas lights and electrically lit decorations arc carefully chucked for worn insulators, broken plugs or loose bulb sockets, Replace any damaged or worn equipment with new Canadian Standard Association certified and lusted electrical equipment. Switch off the tree lights at bedtime or when leaving the house. Do not allow the tree to block access to doors or windows in the event of a fire and be sure to have a fire extinguisher at hand. While a smoke alarm won't prevent or extinguish fires in your home, it can save lives and prevent injury. It makes a great, long lasting, useful gift. Please exercise special care in all your Christmas preparations and activities, Remember, "Your Fire Department Says" the best gift at Christmas is a Fire Safe Home. J. Aldridge, Fire Chief.