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Guelph hospital doors still open for Acton residents Acton and district people need have no concern that the doors to hospitals could be closed to them since they come from another county A report presented to Regional council said con about admission were unfounded However no donation to Guelph General Hospital will be made by the county The matter arose when Guelph General Hospital request for a financial con was received by council and no action was taken Councillors fell no donation should be made to an county hospital At the time councillors asked or a full report from and held meetings with con Acton doctors The report follows in full At the meeting of Regional Council held on January 21st the following recommenda tion was presented in res to a letter from the Mayor of Guelph asking for financial assistance and the appointment of a rep resentallve to the Board of Governors of the Guelph General Hospital THAT the request to appoint a representative to the Board of Director of the Guelph General Hospital be rejected and THAT the request for financial assistance be refused Action on the resolution was deferred in order to pro vide time for the Chief Administrative Officer and Regional Councillors from the Acton area to investigate the matter further and report back to Committee Doctors meet A meeting was held on 16lh with Dr Moore and several doctors of the Clinics at Mill Street East Also in attendance were Regional Councillor Garnet Hills and area Councillor Les Duby of the Town of Hills Regional Treasurer Don Farmer and the Chief Administrative Officer Concern was expressed by the doctors related not so much to the representation and financial assistance re quest from the City of Guelph but more to the suggestion that patients from the Acton area might be denied access to the Genera Hos and that physicians In the Acton area might be denied hospital privileges In response to this suggestion was pointed out that as the Ontario Health Plan is a plan throughout Ontario it is hardly likely any such measures could be taken by any hospital in Ontario We agreed however that we would Investigate their ex pressed concerns to deter mine whether or not such a situation could occur In conversation with Mr Fred M Woods City Ad ministrator Guelph it was learned thai the request made by Mayor of Guelph was simply as out lined In the letter The Guelph General Hospital is owned by he municipality and con every effort is being made to obtain funds to assist in its operation The former County of had previously been requested such assistance but It had been refused Mr Woods ex plained that with new Regional Government the Mayor felt another approach should be made lo the Region of in Ihe hope that a different attitude might exist towards such a request Two hospital ad one in also contacted and both felt the concerns expressed by the Aeton doctors were entirely unfounded They were of the opinion that such a situation could never occur In Ontario where the Health Plan is universal On suggestion 1 also con acted Mr Milton Orris Area Planning Coordinator Com Health Services Ministry of Health relative to the advised that both of these ideas were without full know ledge of the facts It is quite definite that under existing hob pi la 1 arrangements the Ministry of Health would take drastic action against any hospital that would take such an approach relative to either patients or doctors He also indicated that rumours of this nature were of concern to the Ministry and he agreed that some reassurance would be given to the doctors in the Acton area Mr Orris is to make direct contact with a representative of the Acton doctors In the light of the fore going comments only the question of board rep and financial assistance to the Hos pital remains There is no doubt that based on studies that have been undertaken one d rationalize assistance to the hospital However as pointed out by Mr Orris If this practice were started in Ontario it would require a major book keeping complexity that Is totally unwarranted The relationship between Acton residents and the Guelph Hospital is no different than that which exists in varying degrees throughout many areas of the Province Mr also indicated there is no obligation on the Regional Municipality of to either provide assistance or appoint a representative to the Guelph Hospital Board In the light of the foregoing information there appears to be no valid reason why the Administration Committee should change its initial decision to refuse financial assistance or to make an appointment to the Guelph General Hospital Board Respectfully submitted E C Reid One Hundicd and First Year No ACTON ONTARIO WEDNESDAY APRIL Pleads not guilty on three charges Horst Baron who is on trial on three counts of attempted murder was characterised by police officers as being calm and quiet following the shooting of three residents of the Baron farm near Acton late last October Nine officers testified Tues day and most said they found Mr Baron operative behavior unusual under the circumstances Mr Baron is charged with the shooting of his wife Hilda 58 Gunter Mayer and Mr Mayers nineyear old son Wayne All three suffered gunshot wounds to the chest and have recovered Mr Baron pleaded not guilty on all three charges The trial which is expected to continue wee 1 being held before the Sup reme Court of Onlano at Milton with Mr Justice Sam Hughes presiding The shooting took place in the kitchen of the Baron farm house a two story red brick building on Highway bet ween and Georgetown on October I ivc shots 38cal Spe cial and Wesson Model 36 revolver with a two inch barrel The fire arm was reg to Mr Baron A Halton Regional Police breathalizer officer who tested Mr Baron twice later in the evening concluded that hi had no alcohol in his sys tern discovered two spent bullets in the Baron kitchen Hospital authorities gave police two bullets which were from Mrs Baron and another from Mr Mayer All three victims have- est before the seven man and five women jury The Barons son Manfred test ified briefly Tuesday Urge Wallace truck route Hills works commit tee will take another look at uncompleted Wallace Street on Thursday s works tour and Councillor Joe Hurst is urging the town get on with plans to use Wallace Street as a truck route Hurst warned that when the province gets around to reconstructing Main Street and Highway structural changes will have to be built into the railway crossing if there is any hope of Wallace Street ever becoming a truck route in the years ahead Engineer Robert Austin said no design work has been done yet and lhat must be completed before the town looks at any needs for Requiring property for the truck route Take action Hurst said the town must take some action on Wallace Street future before Queen Park settles its plans for Main Street North Austin said if Main Street North is designated a con necting link project by the province then the town will have a say in the road design for the track crossing and corner Hurst noted the truck route is probably five years away but the town must have plans to show Queen Park before Main Street is reconstructed us tin promised he would get works staff to look into the status of plans so far and move as quickly towards designs as possible On recounting the events of Monday evening October the three witnesses agreed on several points Mrs Baron said she arnv home around and that she started preparing steak dinners She had seen a lawyer during the day about making a settlement with her husband she said They had been married 24 years Mr Mayer said he had picked up his son from a neighbor place and that they arrived at the Baron farm at around 15 p m Mr Baron was said by both Mrs Baron and Mr Mayer to be in the yard helping load a truck with someone Mr Baron came into the house briefly for some dog food Mrs Baron told the jury Table By m supper had been served when Mr Baron came into the house The Mayers were sitting at the round kitchen table Mr Mayer said Mrs Baron said she was standing between the stove and he sink Mr Baron came into the kitchen and went over to his wife and said to her I told you eighty WO Mr Mayer testified He also told the jury that Mr Baron struck Mrs Baron on the head Mr Mayer said I stood up from the table Mr Baron put his hand into his pocket and pulled out a gun Mr Mayer said he recalled failing to the floor and hear three Mr Mayer also said that as he lay on the floor he was able to swing a straightback chair at Mr Baron and strike Him on one of his arms Aim The last time Mr Mayer said he saw Mr Baron was as he was taking aim at some thing behind a wood burning stove Because he could not see his son Mr Mayer said he assumed the boy was be hind the stove No no you bastard Mr Mayer recalled yelling He then heard one shot He told jury ihat he thought his son was dead All three victims managed to leave the house Mrs Bar on was picked up on Highway and taken to a medical cen tre In Acton from where she was taken to Guelph General Hospital Mr Mayer made it to a neighbor s home across the highway where Reg Police officers found him Wayne Mayer said lhat he walked to the driveway gate after getting his white coal from his father s car Police found him there and sent for ambulances Wayne before he left the kitchen recalled hearing Mr Baron whom he called uncle phoning for the police Mr Baron was arrested by the police on the farm later in Ihe evening Toronto complaint leaves council cold Hills works committee t get too excited about complaints about Acton from a Toronto resident Mon day night Brian Ruffles wrote to the town complaining about mud He said that Acton Is long overdue for a facelifting The councillors didn t take his complaints too seriously Councillor Dick Hewitt noted the committees have a tough enough timekeeping residents happy without worrying about visitors from Toronto Superintendent Floyd wnntz who arrived after other officers at the Baron farm said he found Mr Bar on demeanour very very calm coo The denlagreed with Mr Barons lawyer I Silver that he would have expected to find Mr Baron upset dent Schwann has been a pol ice officer or years Mrs said in her testimony that she listed the acre farm which was in her name for sale The couple son Manfred had taken a loan and the Bank of Montreal Mrs Baron said had called asking for repayment Mrs Baron said lhat she had the loan In her testimony Mrs Baron said she did not accept an offer on the farm because of some indication from her husband of a settlement In the morning Oct he Mr Baron said go see your lawyer and settle for whatever you want Mrs Baron said When asked by Mr Silver her husband lawyer What amount had you gone to your lawyer to discuss Mrs Baron said 5 Later Mrs Baron old the court she could not recall making answers to quesuons it a preliminary trial con seeing her lawyer about ISO iany Mr Baron and Mr Mayer had known each other for ap proximately years They met when they both came here from Germany Mr Mayer stayed with the Continued on Page Two Separate school seeks room here Members of the separate school board will be tomorrow Thursday I lo look il the schools here with the possibility if sharing or separate school education is the town in ton whieh does not have a separate school Shared would be new says separate school director of I- unds arc no longer readily avail able for building new schools He says the board is also negotiating for site in Aeton but this would not likely be able be used for three preliminary and doesn t mean anything the chairman of the separate school John chairman of education Mackan trustee Harry and Tom Brady They will meet with board are superintendent Don in and trustee Tom Watson he men will took over the stone as ell as the two nuin public schools Own staff If shared is irr the school would have their own staff and principal and be answer to the separate board R m would be avulable in when new high opens Senior public from grades six to will use the present high school building Mr Byrnes says shared accommodation would only be an interim measure as mm as development swells so a new primary is needed a separate school would be considered first he said He said board has re ceived an increasing hers of inquiries from Roman parents He said there would be about JGj stud involved including pre schoolers There will be fur Iher surveys lo see if par ire receptive to Ihe Idea Mr Byrne said I- ather Smye of St Joseph s feels shared is a good interim THERES YOUR CUE you re on Acton Figure Skating club pro Pat Cranker sends Laura McGraw and Brenda out on the ice in their Olympic track and field event number Story and more pictures inside today Free Press Increased hydro rates for Acton residents Hydro bills will be in creased when an application for a rale hike by the Acton Hydro Commission lo Hydro is approved The Increase was neccs the commission said during their Thursday evening meeting lo offset the rising cost of Ontario Hydro who had a rale increase on January 1 The increase if approved will be effective on bills issued on or after June 1 Homes For residential service the cost for first 50 kilowatt hours per month will be 5 cents an increase of cents An increase from 2 cents to three cents was stated for the next kilowatt hours per month The approved metered water heater block 500 kilowatt hours per month Want to bar press from committees GUNTER MAYER left his son Wayne and Mrs Baron right leave the court building at Milton following the first day in the trial of Horst Baron Mr Baron is charged with three counts of attempted murder following a shooting incident at the Baron farm last October The trial before the Supreme Court of Ontario is expected to continue into next week The public and press could be shut out of all Hills committee meetings if a majority of council accepts a recommendation made Mon day night by general ad ministration committee Only two of the three members present Council lore and Roy favored closed meetings Councillor George Maltby op posed the recommendation The fourth member of Ihe committee Councillor Morrow was absent Administration committee recommended all committee meetings including finance and works be closed lo public and press except for delega Ions listed on the agenda and Ihe meetings classified as working meetings Booth who made the motion claimed members should be free lo argue back and forth and say what they like We make statements at we dont want printed He claimed the misrepresented what said at the previous com mittee meeting Booth also said he could not go along with a suggestion made week at council to switch meetings to Wednesday to avoid pub lication before Ihe following council meeting There a nothing we can do but close the meetings or leave the situation as it Mallby contended many of the irresponsible remarks printed in the press were made by councillors and staff He claimed each com mittee should decide for themselves whether to close meetings Booth said the printing of committee news in day paper puts councillors at a disadvantage since callers ask them questions about committee recom mendations they have not yet received from the other com mlttces Maltby said items cussed in camera are fre quently known to other councillors and press away How could we stop this someone talks Duby argued it Is to the ad vantage of everyone to hold meetings without Ihe press In attendance We can discuss things man lo man When people call mean Thursday to ask about Items in the papers I haven t even seen the minutes of the other com millee meetings We receive our of minutes and correspondence until Friday Booth claimed there would be more meaningful cussion between delegations and committee without the press The recommendation to close the meetings will now go to council for a decision was raised from 1 cents to cents All additional monthly consumptions were raised from cents 1 cents The minimum monthly bill was raised cents from Co S3 For general service there was no increase for the first kilowatts of billing demand There was a balance at per kilowatt of billing demand The energy charge for the general service for the first Kilowatts hours per month is increasing from 3 cents to 5 cents The next kilo watt hours per month has been set at 0 cents up from 29 cents For the next hours per month a cent increase has been asked for making the new rate cents up from cents All the additional monthly con sumption will increase from cents lo 1 15 cents The minimum monthly bill for general services is up to from S3 Storage shed burns down A storage shed was com destroyed Friday evening when fire ripped through at about 11 p m according to fire chief Mick Holmes Acton volunteer fire fighters were on the scene for an hour and a half at Lot six Concession one Erin town ship The shed was owned by Walter Camberian of Brant ford