hitby Fros Precs, Wednosday, Octobor 5, 1994, Page 7 WUW/ A small price Mfirst guri was a twenty-two -single shot rifle. I bougtit for'nineteen dollars at Graham's hardware store. That was thirty six years ago. 1 used that &,n mostly for target practice. And for hunting gonhogs, which is what we used for target practice. Mainly. Tin cans, too. I bought it on credit. "Charge it," I told the clerk, Wilson Glaves, who on Sundays was the superintendent of.- the United Church Sunday Sehool. He did. This is the days before plastie.Ipaid the money off in fives and twos, earned mostiy on pickups Jobs on nearby farms. 1 had gaid for it ail before starting Teachers' Coilege that The macho farmer-hunters in the village called a twenty-two a pop gun. Something perhaps a womnan, or whimp might use. A real mian would use something like, oh, a three oh three. Or two seventy. Those little babies would send, a slug clean throgh a good-sized sta,knock it off its feet. The kind of real friend a guy likes to have. You don't want to know what those things would do to a poor littie woodchuck. But even with the twenty-two, 1 showed uncommon respect. When not in use, 1 would store the boit action separate from the rifle itself. When crossing fences, I wouid unload, slide the gun through the fence, and then walk to the next fence post to ciimb over myself. That's what was advised in the safety manuals. Safe was doing everything right. At least, that's what I like to think I did. -When 1 finished school and started my first teaching job the next year, the good old twenty-two did not go with me. It remained at home with the NHL Hockey spring-action game, the U-control stunt plane "Crash King" with the .19 engine, and the 8xl0 glossy photos of the Toronto Mapie Leafs: Turk Broda, Bill Bariko, Teeder Kennedy, Howie Meeker et ai. It stayed at home with my brother Bob. Seven years later, after I had married and had started a second career in journalism, brother Bob was the only child of six left at home. He loved to hunt. He used my old twenty-two and was a pretty good shot. We will neyer know precisely what happened that*M'orning. Bobby arrived home (by this time a rented farm bouse) near dawn. It is quite likely he had been drinking. He may have made himself a cup of instant coffee. We do know he decided to go hunting. He apparentiy reached up to get ammunition from the cuphoard over the refrigerator. The gun barrel slipped from b is one hand, the butt dropping no more than a foot and a half to the floor. Just enough to jar the trigger. The gun went off. The bullet caught him in the chest; a bit to left of the sternum, right into the heart. He died in his father's arms. I know that gun control iaws would have done nothing to save Bobby. This was an issue of gun safety, not gun control. Yet every gun in any home increases the chance of accident or misuse. Registration of al ns and ammunition seeîns a small price to pay.faybe the resuit is increased respect and vigilance for a product which is, after ail, designed to kili. It seems strange to me that those who shouid be. pushing for laws to control the use of firearnis are parading against it. Iles ike Indy Drivers protesting traffic safety and speed limits. Go flgure. DELIVERINOG OODS ON BROCK STREET SOUTU, 1918 The stores in this picture are now occupied by Bayberry's, a vacant billiard hall and Harvey Mintz Real Estate. Teamnster Leslie Moore's wagon is, deliverin g cases of soda pop to*Bolton's Restaurant at the centre of the picture. At left is A. P. Wright's grocery store and at right is John Peel's shoe store. Whitby Archives photo 10 YEARS AGO From the Wednesday, October 3, 1984 edition of the WIHTBY FREE PRESS " Sixty-five Whitby residents, mainly members of the County Town Singers, visited our twin town, Feldkirch, Austria.1 "*iWhitby Arts Inc. is conducting its first public campaign for funds. " Former Whitby mayor Desmond Newman was elected to the board of the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada. The Town of Whitby isplanning odeinte the John Watson house on Dufferin Street, built in 1857, unr the 0aro eri ge Act. 35 YEARS AGO From the Thursdayr October 1 1959 edition of the WHITBIf WEEKL;ý NEWS " Wells have run dry, causing a shortage of water in the Garrard Road area. *A one-day strike was held at Bathurst Containers over a contract dispute. *A contract for $202,625 has been awarded for extension of the west breakwater at Whitby harbour. *Dredged material fromn the harbour is being used to reclaim land owned by the Ontario Hospital on the west side of the harbour basin. 125 YEARS AGO From the Thursday, September 30, 1869 edition of the WHITBY CHRONICLE *Whitby is preparing for the offliciai visit of Prince Arthur, third son of Queen Victoria, on Oct. 6. *Refreshments will be available at the town hall at Brock and Trent Streets during the County Agricultural Exhibition. *Robert Perry is sellin g his town property and farmis in Whitby. *Archbishop Varrell of Hamilton conducted confirmiation services on Sept. 28 at St. John's Roman Catholic Church.