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THE TRIBUNE, WILLIAMS LARS, B.d.

Thursday, February 4, 1084,

Tribune

C.ive svangoe, Editor
Published every Thu ay ut Wiliams wake, &.C.

By The Trivune Pubiishing Co.
ADVERTISING RATES ON APPLIC ON

Authorized as Second Class Mail by tne Post Oftice Deparment, Out:

The Hospital Question

Williams Lake

Established 1931

awa

Next Monday evening the War Memorial Hospit
will hold its annual meeung.

In the past this announcement, of what is actually a stew-
ardship report deasing maimuiy in statistics, has hardly veen
calculated to pry interested citizens from tueir firesides, but
this year’s meeting has something different on the agenda.
With the old buiiding on the hill literaily bursting at the
seams, the directors nave come to the conclusion that the
district needs a new hospital. To the members of the society,
the directors will bring tneir reasons for the need of a hospital
and a recommendation that a move be made to form a
Hospital Improvement District to handle lccal financing of an
accommodation scheme that is eventually senttled on.

Distribution of the cost of hospital construction is roughly
worked out to one-third by the Federal government; one-third
by the Provincial government, atid one third contributed by
the community the institution serves. It is the method of
raising the community's share that is affected by the hospitai
improvement district scheme,

In the past this money was raised by public subscription,
a long and tedious job by volunteer canvassers that usually
resulted in years slipping by before the amount necessary was
finally realised. Now it is permissable to raise the amount by
taxation at the discretion of the minister of Finance and only
after a majority of the property owners in the area have agreed
to the principle of forming such a hospital improvement district.
If such approval is forthcoming, the district’s neeq for future
hospital capital expenditures is decided by a permanent board
of trustees, separate from the hospital board, whose members
are elected by the property owners.

That it seems a fair and equitable means of financing
hospital construction is borne out by the number of communi-
Ues and rural districts that have subscribed to the theory in
the past year. Closest similar district is Quesnel’s which
was formed last summer prior to a start being made on a new
hospital there.

Whatever method of financing is decided on, it is becoming
increasingly apparent that more hospital accommodation is
desperately needed. Caring for the sick and injured of the
district is a responsibility that none of us.would try to evade,
but this care cannot be properly given in cramped and inade-
quate hospital quarters.

Mr, sLaing’s ‘Rail’ Fence

Although Arthur Laing, leader of the Liberal group in
the Legislature, impressed everyone who heard him on his
brief stop here a year ago, even his party adnerents were not
too pleased with the manner in Which he verbally ducked
around the question or the PGE extension to North \ ancouver,
without actually cummitting himself one way or the other. In
a recent press 1e1ease head d ‘statement of Liberal members
of the Legisiature,’ 1t would appear that Mr. Laing is still
Sitting jon tne tence. { 2 FE ygeks

‘tne statement reads: We view with concern the
Premier's recent announcement that he proposes to introduce
legislation at thé next Session to increase the borrowing power
ot the PGE in order to extend the railroad from Squamish to
North Vancouver. Whatever connection is made between these
points, siow-moving, low-revenue treight, such as lumber,
could still be moved most economically by barge. Mixed freight,
which is not best moved by barge, might not ve best moved by
vail, for a terminus in North Vancouver would still require
freight to be moved by truck from down-town Vancouver. As
long as trucks are ireeded, we are presently of the opinion that
a first-class highway along the coast to Squamish would cost
less than half as much as the rail extension contemplated, open
up the magnificent Howe Sound country, give access by auto-
mobile to Garibaldi Park -- and give faster and less expensive
passenger and freight service to the Peace River Country.”

But just so that their bridges aren’t entirely burned be-
hind them, the Liberal embers added:

“We think, however, that no steps should be taken until
a full enquiry has been made by a committee of the Legislature,
when experts could be called and a decision made on all the
facts in the best interests of the province as a whole.”

We were not aware that the PGE extension problem was
of such recent origin that the Liberals have not had the oppor-
tunity in the past to make up their minds on the practicability
of a rail connection as opposed to a highway.

Rightly or wrongly, once the tacts of a problem are
known, we have a great deal more respect for the person who
will climb out on the limb of his own decision without first
tieing himself to the tree trunk of coast popular opinion.

Embarassing Origin

An old joke tells of a millionaire who spent $1,000 to have
his family tree traced, and then paid $10,000 to have it hushed
up. A similar unhappy result seems to have followed some
well-meaning reseach into the origins of America’s great
national game of baseball.

For many years it has been assumed in the United States
that baseball was invented by one Abner Doubleday at Coopers-
town, New York, in 182
ball Museum” has been established there to commemorate the

great event, with a collection of historic bats and balls,
memorials of famous players and the like. 7
Recently, however, a New York librarian, Robert W.

Henderson, decided to do a little miore investigating of the
early history of the game. According to the Christian Science
Monitor, he discovered that the Cooperstown story was mere
folklore. Baseball really originated, he claims, in England,
where it was played as early as 1700, with milking stools as
hases. One of the early players was -- of all people -- King
George JII in his younger days. Abner Doubleday introduced
some changes in the rules, but that was all,

ANNUAL MEETING

Cariboo Fair Association

Friday, February 12th

8:00 p.m.
MUNICIPAL HALL

al Society |

| The Cracker Barrel Forum

By ad.

Drinke

may have been the weather that

=

| ewrrent is

| Certainl

“Timber of Canada.”
the boys have burned up
se last

weeks. liaving heard. so.
lately ubout the loss of the United
| Kingdom market for Canadian lum-
| ber the magazine referred to proved
| pleasant. reading |

One item that particularly enzag-
ed our attention and which may prove
of interest to our readers who are in
any way connected with the lumber
industry, was a review of the U.K. |
lumber market with a forecast for
1954 by Mr. Gor,
don Rochester
Timber

Specialist

n
JK. softwood
lumber market
was around 560,-
000,000 feet of
which 420,000,000 feet, or
3.C. lumber.

Tracing the history of Canadian
sawn lumber shipments to Britain

75% was

nuch

alter the Ottawa Agreement in 193
Mr. Rochester found these shipments
had totalled 18 billion feet ur a year-
ly average of $00 million feet. This
was four times the yearly average
ii tne 1920's though the total Cana-
dian sawn lumber exports in those
billion feet.

yeurs were 2

During the early thirties the total
Canavian lumber production uropped
to 2 billion feet, of which 1,200,000
feet were exported. During this de-
pressed period, however, the ship-
ments to Briain were increased and
averaged 500 million feet. Following
the O.tawa Agreement timber trad-
ing between Canada and Britain. has
persisted with the usual fluctuations
peculiar to the lumber industry. In
the four years before the war our pro-
duction rose to 4 billion feet and in-
creased a further 600 million duri
the war rising steadily to 6 billion
feet in the post war period. Exports
had also risen, keeping fairly con-
stant at about one-half of total pro-
duction.

After discussing various signs and
trends Mr. Rochester thinks 1954
will prove an average year and says

From the Files

AR AGO
5, 1953

ONE YE.
February

At their annual budget approval
meeting, School District 27 area rep-
resentatives will be asked to approve
a special tax levy to raise money tor
a much-needed addition to the Wil-
liams Lake dormitory— On the
week-end the Stampeders dumped
the Prince George Lumbermen in
two Straight league games games by
scores of 6-4 and-4-3— Contract for
the Williams Lake Public Building
has been awarded to C. J. Oliver Ltd.
— Wright Lumber Company have
purchased the assets of the local op-
eration of Columbia Valley Lumber
Company— Stan Sloan has joined
the staff of Cariboo Truck & Equip-
ment Ltd.— Temperature at the air-
port reached 53° above—

FIVE YEARS AGO
February 3, 1949
Williams Lake Stampeders drop-
ped two games to Quesnel. Ka a
rpos on local ‘ice’ and ong” morefat
Quesnel— A petition protesting the

flooding of standing timber areas
circulated by Frank Goodrich was
signed by 306 Cariboo citizens—

Bigteen-year-old Michelle Bob, Su-
gar Cane Indian, dropped dead in
Williams Lake— The beginning of
a fund to replace the fire-destroyed
Elks Hall was made as unsolicited

donations were received by the
treasurer— Dr. Alexander Duncan

-Kinnon, who built the present
United Church here, passed away in
Nova Scotia— Mrs. H. P. Felker of
Chimney Creek, a pioneer of the

Cariboo, died in War Memorial Hos-
pital— A son was born to Mr. and
Mrs. Vern Ashley of Springhouse,
and a son also-to Mr. and Mrs. Clif-
ford Wilson of Williams Lake— Ap-
proximately $100,000 was reported
spent on Cedar Creek last year by
Cariboo Metals Lta.—
TEN YEARS AGO
February 3, 1944
The only hockey game of the sea-
son to date was witnessed at Wil-
liams Lake when the boys from
Sugar Cane came to town, and were
defeated by the school team 9-3—
/The annual Hospital Telephone Card
Party resulted in Mrs. Brandley and

A “Hall of Fame and National Base- |}

of the Tribune

Mr. Newcomen scoring highest in
bridge and Mrs. Joe Smith and Mr.
Frank Latin taking the cribbage
prizes— Mrs. Marie Pauline Niqui-
det, age 89, passed away at her home
in Williams Lake— Contributions
have started for the annual fund of
the Williams Lake Volunteer Fire
Brigade— P. J. ‘Nick’ Quesnel is
operating the barber shop three days
a week— Mrs. Harry Speed of the
CWAC and her brother Wilfred Low-
den of the RCAF were up at Keithley
on leave— Ivan Walters has been
granted a 5-passenger francnise on
the Likely-Keithley-Williams Lake
mail run—

TWENTY YEARS AGO
February 8, 1934
At Prince George the Lake seniors
lost a hockey game 5-2 and the fol-
lowing day were defeated at Quesnel
7-1— Alice Patricia House and Louis
James Carson, both of Ochiltree,
were united in marriage— The death
Qceugred of Charles Fox, an old-resi-
denfor the district It was wire
one years ago this week when Mr.
and Mrs. Norman Lee arrived in the
Cariboo— Mining property at Duck
Creek, a district at present in the
limelight, owned by a local syndicate
has been purchased by Mr. Whitelaw.

jit may well be nis estimate of 200!
million feet demand will prove too
Mr, uttended the
meetings of the Food and Agricul-
tion heid recently in
nd commented upon the sug-
stion in’ the oificial report of the
jut that in 1960 the North
American contribution to European
soltwood needs would be only about
400 million feet. In reaching this fi-
gure it was assumed that if economic
conditions remained good there
would be such a demand for lumber in
North America that exports could not
be higher than the estimate, but if |
conditions were had then Europea
countries, including Britain, could
not afford the dollars for bigger pur- |

om Rochester

should not continue. However, speak-
ing of prices “Timber and Plywood”
to say “While nobody sue-
to pre-war levels
there is noi the slightest doubt that
the six-fold increase in the price of”
softwood from those days cannot be
justified by the general increase in
wages, costs and prices compared
with 1938. If the present tre. i con-
tinues the lumber trade mig t well
find it difficult to maintain ; ales at
the high level of control days.”
ee

Sales of appliance and rad‘o stores
were 17.9 percent higher in the first
half of 1953.than in th> similar
period of 1952.

chases. In any case the Secretariat
said that to ship more than 400 mil-
lion feet in 1960 would mean opening
up tracts of timber now inaccessable
and this would mean raising the
prices beyond what European im-
porters would pay.

Tn the early days lumbering was
the pioneering industry but this po-
sition has been taken by mining ana
hydro-electric projects, with lumber-
ing in their wake as a follow-up in-
dustry. In the past the Canadian
lumber industry has maintained its
position in the U.K. trade, remaining
competitive in its prices, and Mr,
Rochester sees no reason why thi:

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Cariboo Home Furnishings

“Visit the Store with the Friendly Door”
Agents tor Cimnor, Mayfair, Norge,
Gas and Electric Washing Machines

FOR RITCHENS, BATHROOMS AND FINEST WOODWORK

ANNUAL
Parish Meeting
ST. gs CHURCH

February 9, 8 p.m.

ST. PETER’S HALL
EVERYBODY WELCOME

WwW
gorgeous colors
including “Stay-White” white

Gilson and Climax

eee eer eee

Phone
INTERIOR WHOLESALE
DISTRIBUTORS

Williams Lake, B.C.

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WORKING WITH

Williams Lake Branch:

CANADIANS

IN EVERY WALK

THOMAS LARSON, Manager

D-1935.
OF LIFE SINCE 1817