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Ian Oliver Publisher Robert Glasbey Advertising Director Norman Alexander Editor Geoff Hill Circulation Director Teri Casas Office Manager Tim Coles Production Manager Tan Oliver Publisher Robert Glasbey Advertising Director Norman Alexander Editor Geoff Hill Circulation Director Teri Casas Office Manager Tim Coles Production Manager The Oakville Beaver, published every Sunday, We and Friday, at 467 smmm..mdsmdmmm mhiing Publls ma’%‘“mw hi Lid. group of suburban newspapers which i : Ajaxâ€"Pickering News iser, Barrie Advance, Brampton Guardian, Burlington Post, Col'ngflood Connection, Etobicoke Guardian, lown I n Acton Free Press, Kingston This Week, Lindsay This Week, Markham Economist and Sun, il Tribune, Milton Canadian Champion, Mississauga News,, Newmarketâ€"Aurora Eraâ€"Banner, North York Mirror, Oakville Beaver, Orillia® Today, Oshawa/Whitby This Week, Peterborough This Week, Richmond HiV Thomhil/Vaughan Liberal, Scarborough Mirror. t All material published in the Oakville Beaver is protected by %My luction in whole or in part of this material is strictly forbidden wi the . consent of the publisher. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of the advertising space occurbd by the : erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for ; at the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize and reject advertising. In the event of typographical error, advertising t or services at the wrong price, goods or set mayno(beM‘Mvafismisnmewmoflermsdlmdmyhswimdmwnalanyfim. â€"Editorial f‘R Ontario NDP Cabinet Minister. For those of you who missed it, F A Gigantes is the Ontario Housing Minister who resigned last week following an allâ€"party inquiry into conflictâ€"ofâ€"interest allegations surrounding her involvement in a board of directors dispute at an Ottawa government housing coâ€"op. In short, Gigantes asked one of the board members to drop charges she had filed against the other board members. Gigantes said she was merely trying to mediate between the two feuding factions. in e ) uie ol d L ies i L M aybe Evelyn Gigantes will have better luck on her third try as an M ic Om 2. ... P At the end of the hearing, the committee‘s independent lawyer, Eleanore Cronk, concluded Gigantes did not try to intimidate or pressure the board member into withdrawing the charges, but by suggesting that action the Housing Minister had violated the "fundamental principles" of Rae‘s conflict of interest guidelines. s w 310 808. t oc d dfi t t M CA es In what appears to be a puBlic relations move on the part of the Ontario NDP government, Gigantes resigned, but refused to admit any wrongdoâ€" ing, or even admit she made a mistake. se ag 1. dn 0 oi es ie ND To m on old ue e Instead, she j;l‘(écri,r”l am a recycled resignee." Three years ago Gigantes resigned as Health Minister after she inadvertently blurted out the name of a drug addict receiving treatment in the United States. e on n en sA id aninl c uie * 20 She was later reinstated to the cabinet, and still could be reinstated once again prior to the next provincial election. In accepting Gigantes resâ€" ignation, Ontario Premier Bob Rae did not close the door on her possible reinstatement. DCm This possibility is what we really disturbing about the whole affair. Are the NDP that lacking in competent MPs among their vast majority at Queen‘s Park that they would need to welcome back a member who has embarrassed the government on two occasions? us And if Glaantes is later reâ€"instated than her resignation will have proven to be nothmg more than a hollow polmcal gesture oi t s ie ds rWl'f't_he NDP ééver‘;nment really is serious about showing integrity in govâ€" ernment, then Gigantes should not be given a third chance to drop the ball. Two strikes you‘re out 467 Speers Road, Oakville, Ont. L6K 3S4 845â€"3824 Fax: 845â€"3085 Classified Advertising: 845â€"2809 Circulation: 845â€"9742 or 845â€"9743 Ed the Beardmore barber is one heck of an artist The artist brings something into the world that didn‘t exist before, and he does it without destroying something else. A kind of refutation of the conâ€" servation of matter. You know what‘s particularly wonderful about this country of ours? Treasures, treasures everyâ€" where. No matter how humble or unlikely the surroundings. Take Beardmore, Ontario. Towns don‘t come much more humble than Beardmore, with its population of a few hundred souls nestled in the bossom of northwestern Ontario wilderâ€" ness, about 90 miles due north of Lake Superior‘s arched eyeâ€" brow. It‘s a small town, boasting a couple of gas stations, a general store, a motel or two â€" hard to differentiate from any of several other small Canadian towns. You could drive right down the main street, past the grocery store and the barber shop, and be back out on the highway before you knew it. Thousands do, every year. Ah, but they miss the treasure that way. It‘s that barber shop on main street. That‘s where Ewald Rentz lives. Who‘s Ewald Rentz? Well, first off, it‘s "Ed" to his friends. He was born in North Dakota, drifted around a bit through Manitoba, but made his way eventually to Beardmore, where he fell in love with the land and stayed. ‘And since all that happened back in 1939, folks take it for granted that Ed‘s there for keeps. John Updike In his 86 years, Ed‘s done most of the things a northerner does. He‘s been miner, lumberâ€" jack, prospector, cook, and as the candyâ€"striped poll outside his place attests â€" a barber. Oh yes, and one other thing. Artist. Ed‘s an artist. Worldâ€" renowned, as a matter of fact. There are collectors in England who salivate for his work. Curators from the U.S., Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver, make periodic pilâ€" grimages to the barber shop in Beardmore to see if he‘s got anyâ€" thing new they can buy. His work is on display in museums across the country including the National Museum of Man in Ottawa. Ed is a national treasure. And the barber in Beardmore. Ed‘s what you call a folk artist. He doesn‘t do abstract impressionist canvasses or mobiles a la Henry Moore. Balsam, birch, and poplar are his media. His inspiration comes * from the bush he‘s wandered through for most of his life. Ed can pick up a chunk of knotted forest debris that you and I would reject as firewood, turn it over in his own gnarled hands, take it back to his workâ€" shop, and with the help of a knife and chisels and judiciously applied dollops of, house paint, transform it into the most exquisite and unexpected bit of art â€" a ballerina, perhaps. Or a bear cub. Or a mountie. Or a great spotted fantasy pterodactyl in full flight, with a man on its back, hanging on for dear life. *â€"Ed‘s tiny barber shop on the main street of Beardmore is crammed full of his works of wonder â€" elves, moose, merâ€" maids, wolves, prime ministers... If you‘re good and he‘s not too busy, Ed might fetch his stepâ€"dance dolls â€" all meticuâ€" lously handâ€"carved â€" out of their special cloth bags, set them on the floor, haul out his mandolin, and make them dance for you. But have a care. Just because he‘s a worldâ€"renowned artist and an unusually fine chap of 86 winters doesn‘t mean that Ed‘s not a working man, too. My no. If it‘s a Saturday, you may have to talk to him between haircuts. Ed still knows how to give a haircut. He still knows how to handle knotty customers, too â€" be they balsam or bushworker. "One time," says Ed, looking at your correspondent thoughtâ€" fully, "a bald guy comes in here. I cut his hair. He gets out of the chair and says "Wait a minute. You charge me a buck, the same as these other guys. How come you charge me a buck, when I only got a little bit of hair‘?" "I told that guy," continues Ed, "I didn‘t charge you a buck, I charged you twenty cents to cut your hair." "And 80 cents to look for them."