THE WILLIAMS LAKE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, June 3, 1959

EDITO

FROSTING ON THE CAKE

This is graduation week in Williams Lake, and
the planning that has been going on among the senior
students culminates Friday in a banquet, the gradua-
tion exercises proper, and the annual graduation dance.
It is the frosting on the educational cake after four
years of scholastic effort.

It’s a big moment for the grads and we hope they
enjoy the experience thoroughly—they have earned
it. Along with the frills, they’ll hear some sound ad-
vice on future outlook—and we hope they will listen,

1 because a wise man profits from another’s experience.

The world hasn’t changed much since these grads
of 59 entered senior, or even junior high. In several
parts of the world we’re taking rather successful pot-
shots at space, and speaking less and less in the
futuristic tense of “ space travel.” But right down
on the common earth there is little change in pros:
pects for those young men and women contemplating
acareer. For all the advances in medical fields, there
are still too many crippling*or Killing diseases among
the people. There is still money to be made in the
world of commerce. If you want to write, there is
still a future in that line, although the National
Library Council tells us we are reading less.

The future looks bright in practically every dir-
ection in this spring of 1959. And in any direction
the requirements are just about the same. If you have
imagination and enterprise and you are willing to
accept the petty responsibilities with the larger ones
you can have the frosting on the cake of life too.
It just takes a little longer to earn it.

HAPPY CHAIN-REACTION

A bit of frothy and very palatable entertainment
staged by the students of Williams Lake High last
week seems to have touched off a chain reaction that
could well result in music assuming its proper stature
in district educational circles.

Principal Tom Beames, commenting on the show,
said that through the efforts in producing and staging
“Annie Get Your Gown,” music. has started_in his
schoo] and he intends to keep it there and maintain
the interest shown in this first production.

At the same time, EB. L. Greenlee, chairman of
District 27 School Board has said that the trustees
are making every effort to acquire the services of a
qualified music teacher for the district.

These expressions of intent make good listening.

They are natural developments of such successful pro-

jee as the Central Cariboo Music Festival and
—<introductfon .of musical production in thes

high) school. They didn’t just happen, of course. 7

But for the appearance on the scene of such
people as Mrs. C. Boyce and Mrs. B. Grattan, we might
have waited some time yet for a sort of attitude of
“it can happen here.” Their efforts, in turn, would
have been wasted without the generous help of other
interested adults, the receptive enthusiasm of those
in authority—and the great acceptance of the general
public.

This is the blending that is bringing a full pro-
gram of musical education and appreciation closer to
realization.

AND THEN THERE WERE NONE

While the lumber industry in British Columbia
goes along in high gear, thanks mainly to the still-
strong demand for housing in North America, a warn-
ing has been sounded by the province’s new agent-
general in London ,Bert M. Hoffmeister. Back home
after a seven-month size-up of his post in the U.K. and
Western Europe, he told delegates to the recent pro-
vincial government conference on industrial develop-
ment that B.C. is pricing itself out of its United King-
dom market for all but specialty grades of lumber.

He also conveyed the information that British
and European workmen are teaming up with their em-
ployers in effectual, low-cost production under incen-
tive systems that get results, and that British
industrial investors and buyers of forest products are
looking with grave doubts at British Columbia, due
mainly to our rising costs of production and the inter-
rupted production time caused by strikes.

The warning is one that carries weight, coming
from a man who has been as closely associated with
the industry as the new agent-general. Spiralling
production costs avail industry and labor nothing if
no one will purchase the expensive end-product.

WEIRD AND WONDERFUL

—tLetter Review

Weird and wonderful are the economics of agri-
cultural policy! Consider, for example, the rev.
proposed for the Federal Government’s support prices
for hogs. Under the present system now in effect, the
government finds itself with an embarrassingly large
surplus of pork on hand. Sensible thing to do would
be to reduce sharply or even eliminate entirely sup-
port prices for hogs. Instead, it is proposed to limit
support price “‘ payments to any individual to a specific
number of hogs delivered.”

It would be hard to imagine a policy betted de-
signed to put a premium on inefficiency than this.
Such a policy would penalize the enterprising farmer
who uses his head and produces more hogs from the
same land and feed as before. It would discourage
large-scale hog production by discriminating against
the efficient producer who understands that increased
output means lower unit costs of production.

Monkeying with the market for agricultural prod-
ucts is bad enough at the best. Monkeying with the
market in a manner that discriminates against the most
efficient producers borders on the irresponsible.

RIAL

By Clive

It has taken 30 or

Statistics show that the s
the Centra] Interior.

According to esti-

mates of population

trends in British
Columbia,” in the
seven - year period

1951-58, the propor-
tion of B.C.’s popula-

tion living in the
Kootenays, the Oka-
nagan, on the Cen-
tral Coast and on “
Vancouver Island has dropped.
Fastest growing areas are
South Central Interior (in-
cluding Kamloops and the
south Cariboo), Central In-

terior (Williams Lake norih),
and the whole area north of
latitude 54.° Exception to the
general coast decline the
lower Fraser; Valley.

Nine years ago when I was
going through my first year
in the editorial desk, I hap-
pened to notice a renewal slip
come through’ from Sah Gru:a
way with a note attached. It
was a kind note from a long-
time subscriber, ard the words
of encouragement were appre-
ciated.

Well last week, atter nine
years, I formally met Mr. and
-Mrs. Ted McClellan, and this
couple with their fondness for
the Cariboo are indeed the
type of people who would take
time out to drop a line to a
newcomer.

The McClellan's no
have their lodge on
Lake that was their summer
home for over 30 years, but
they have never disposed of
their love for that part of the
country. Listening to their
stories of Likely in the early
20’s the years roll back easily,
as though the narrators were
still young and relating inci-
dents that happened last week.
Perhaps this is becaus2 these
same years have friied to dim
a very apparent zes: for living
that the McClellan's possess.

longer
Quesnel

Members of Williams Lake
Trail Riders Club were con-
cerned recently when a rash of
riding mishaps occurred just
prior to their playday. During
the two days prior to the show
some four youngsters became
unstuck from their respective
saddles with resultant broken
limbs. Following the serious
accident on the grounds suf-
fered by Nona Bareson, rumor
had it that the other tumbles

THE WILLIAMS LAKE
TRIBUNE

Established 1931

Editor, Clive Stangoe

Published every Wednesday at
Williams Lake, B.C., by the
Cariboo Press Limited. ,
Subscription per year _ $3.00
Outside Canada _____._ $4.00
4 ising rates on i

PAGE

Wil

AS IT USED TO LOOK
picture of an Indian dance in 1924,
The Indians have always added a
bit of color to the Stampede with
their encampments dotting the hill-

Stangoe

40 years to happen, but
wing is now definitely to

had also happened
during pre - playday
Practising. Rumor
was unfounded. The
more minor acci-
dents occurred in
widely - separated
parts of the district
and had nothing to
do with the Riding
Club’s activities.

Speaking of Miss Bareson’s
accident, the Elks Lodge and
Riding Club are combining in

“sponsorship of a cabaret June
16 for the popular rider.
Funds will go towards helping
defray the heavy medial ex;
Pang involved, f c

}

side, although in the shows of the
1920’s they took more of an active
part in the program.

<ignd each spring to feast their

Here is a

Other
Opinions . . .

Elgin (Illinois) " Courier-News
says—

In the circles where special-
ists in government move, it’s
been standard for years that

U.S. experts have fanned out
to help. But now comes a
switch.

Puerto Rico, once the bene-
ficiary of this sort of assist-
ance, has become so proficient
at handling some of its crucial
problems that it is now export-
ing experts itself.

Puerto Rico, with the high-
est Latin-American living
standard outside Venezeula, is
the shining example that it is
possible to help other lands to
help themselves—indeed, to
boost them to the point where
they in turn can help others.

Thousands of flower lovers
from all parts of the world
visit the Keukenhof in Hol-

on‘ millions of tulips. |

CARIBOO COMMENT

By William Speare, MLA

Branches of the Old Age
Pensioners’ Association formed
at Alexandria and Quesnel
may well extend throughout
the Cariboo.

Primarily designed to afford
companionship and promote
the welfare of our senior citi-

zens, activities are not neces-
sarily restricted to this age
group. For many attentive to

the needs of their parents or
older friends, help can be
ven in rounding out socials
and get-togethers, providing
transportation, assisting in
presenting problems or propos-
als to government, and the
work of organizing community
senior home projects. The
grants for financing such pro
sects, ds well as old age beve-
fits, do not seem to be gene-
rally known.

We all agree that a society
as progressive and prosperous
as ours should be able to pro-
vide for our older folk. Res-
Ponsibility for these people is
clearly a federal matter, but
as allowances have not been
increased by Ottowa to a live-
able level, it becomes neces
sary for the provincial gov-
ernment to supplement the in-
come of the old age pensioner.
In British Columbia, this sup-
plementary allowance stands
at ‘a maximum of $209 per
month. No other province ex-
ceeds this, and most people
who are eligible for this allow-
ance receive the full amount.

In the old age
category, that is the 65

to 69
group, there is a maximum of

$75 per person or 5150 per
month for two who qualify.
Of these amounts, British Col-
umbia pays almost two-thirds.
Out of the $75 we pay $47.50
while the federal government

pays $27.50. B.C. pays $95
out of the $159 for married

couples, .
We ed upon the
federal = governmen: ~~ many
these allow-

We believe they should
be shared on a 50-50 basis,
We would like to see the basic
increased to $60, with a sup-

Authorized as Second Class
Mail by the Post Office

assiscance, shared
50-50 by the province, of $40
This would make a ‘total of

$100 a month for our senior
citizens,

British Columbia has done
much to assist its older citi-
zens. In addition to the
highest average supplemental
allowance there is provided a
complete range of medi

drug benefits. Medi
vices are available from the
doctor of their choice plus all

prescriptions and related ser-

at

docts-s

through

individual
this province.

Benefits and sosial provis-
ions are good as far as they
go. No people are more ap-
preciative than our older citi-
zens receiving them. The
problem is that in today’s
changing economy they do not
go far enough. Factions of
our economic society constantly
pressuring for greater gains
must recognize the effect upon
this fixed income group and
be ready to support measures
for their benefit.

Remarkable advances in
medical science has succeéded
in adding years to life. I do
not believe this is enough. We
must help in adding life to the
The problems of our

years.
older citizens are of para-
mount interest to us all.

Greater recognition ‘must be
given to their contribution and
rightful place in our society.

Pause for a moment and re-
flect; fates willing, you will be
an old age pensioner, come one
day. :

Government...

It is a very easy thing to
devise good laws; the difficulty.
is to make them effective.

—Lord Bolingbroke

National, injustice is the
surest road to national down-
fall.

—William E. Gladstone

I believe the West will even-
tually win the world to its
side, because of its belief of
the freedom and the dignity
of the human personality.

Arnold J. Toynbee

THE MACDUFF OTTAWA REPORT

The agricultural “floor”

The federal government’s
farm price support program is
slowly but surely undergoing

Agriculture Minister Hark-
ness has told the House of
a

a major transformation.

As it was conceived soon
after the Conservatives came
into office, the program was
intended to provide assistance
to all farmers producing com-
modities under price support.
Gradually it is being trans-
formed into a piece of social
welfare legislation aimed at
helping only the small and
marginal farmer.

When the program went in-
to effect a year ago last month
the federal government stood
ready to buy the total volume
of nine basic ‘commodities
offered at the floor price and
a number of other products as
well.

The legislation requires the
government to pay a subsidy
of at least 80 percent of the
average price over the previous
10 years on these basic com-
modities—cattle, hogs, sheep,
butter, cheese, eggs and wheat,
oats and barley grown outside
of the prairie provinces.
READY TO BUY

For the past year the Agri-
cultural Stabilization Board
has been prepared to buy all
of these products offered at
the floor price, in some cases,
it being set at the minimum
and in others above it. Busi-
ness has been brisk. In many
commodities heavy surpluses
began accumulating which the
board tried to sell abroad at
substantial losses or even to
give away, sometimes without
success in both cases.

In an attempt to solve some
of its problems, the govern-
ment has now abandoned the
system of floor prices for two
of the basic, commodities—
hogs and eggs—in favor of a
system known as defiiciency
payments.

Under this new policy, the
government does not act as a
buyer. Instead, it reimburses
farmers for the difference be-
tween the market price and
the support price at the end
of the year.

The virtue of this system is
that it eliminates the problem
of surpluses so far as the gov-
ernment is concerned. Every-
thtug produce goes on the
market and ue\eaice is deter-
mined by the forces of supply
and demand.

REMOVES COMPANY
SUPPORT :
Another major advantage is
that Canadian consumers, who
are paying the subsidy, at least
gain the advantage of lower
food prices. Before they paid
the shot and foreign con-
sumers reaped the beneifit.

oe

4
oe
Se

ee

A Mayo Clinic doctor says
we should all keep a gun, an
axe and a week's food and
water in the house, in case of
war.

The axe is to build a new
house in the hills, and the gun
is to shoot our friends dead if
they come around trying to
steal a can of pork and beans.

After the canned goods run
out, we'll need the gun to
shoot our food.

By some estimates, about
one-third of a big city's people
will die in a nuclear bomb
About one-third will be
injured. That still
many thousand ama-
marksmen _ prowling
through those hills in search
of meat.

You may wonder, — inci-
dently, why everyone seems to
be obsessed with the “ hills”
as a place of refuge. Why not
or the

Thousands of trigger-happy
people hiking across country
would soon exterminate every
deer, moose, gohper and squir-
rel in sight.

What will they use for meat
then? There's only one
answer, and-I don’t like it.
Personally I won't eat people
unless they have been govern-
ment inspected and even then,
not on Fridays.

In addition to this, it is bad
form for a hostess to serve
meat that has been tainted by
radiation sickness.

A sounder plan for survival
would be to avoid having a
war.

at iency pay-
ments have been adopted in
the case of hogs and eggs as a
means of cutting off support
for what is called the “ver-
tically integrated * compan:
These are commercial con-
cerns such as feed and packing
companies which have either
gone into’ the producing busi-
ness themselves on a gigantic
scale or, in effect, hired ordin-
ary farmers to taise their
Products. « 2
Through the system of de-
ficiency payments the govern-
ment would be in a position to
cut off or restrict aid to these
concerns, which were not con-
sidered to be legitimate farm
Operations, Mr. Harkness said.
Little attention has been
paid to it so far, but the Min-
ister also made clear the gov-
ernment’s intention to limit
the amount of assistance made
available to-any one farmer.
This means that not only the
vertically integrated compan-
ies, but also the genuine far-
mer operating on a large (and

efficient) scale may also be
penalized. At the time the
government introduced its
farm support islation in

caves in

The legislation introduced in
the Commons by Trade Mini-
ster Churchill recently to
establish a National Energy
Board ignored almost every
major recommendation of the
Royal Commission on Energy
headed by Henry Borden. Most
surprising was the rejection
of the proposal that it be
made mandatory for the regu-
lating authority to review tolls
of oil and gas pipelines period-
ically to ensure they were “just
and reasonable.” The Conser-
vatives’ bark during the bitter
pipelines debate threé years
ago turned out to be a lot
worse than their bite. _

Prime Minister Diefen-
baker's announcement that
Finance Minister Fleming

represent Canada at the funeral
of former Secretary of State
John Foster Dulles revived
speculation that he is headed
for the external affairs port-
folio, Despite recurring
rumors, however, a number of
sceptics remained unconvinced.
Mr. Fleming has done well in
his present post, but appeared
to many an incongruous choice
for external affairs.

Parliament there was. never
any suggestion made that it
was intended to limit federal
assistance on the basic com-
modities only to the relatively
small and sometimes marginal
producer. But that appears to

be the direction in which it is LE:

heading. k:
The Stabilization Board is
convinced it has the legal

power to restrict the payment
of subsidies for these nine
commodities as a result of an
opinion from the Department
of Justice. The legislation is
sufficiently indefinite, however,
to pave the way for a damage
clam against it if and when it
refuses to pay the support
price on hogs or eggs to any
farmer.

CAPITAL HILL CAPSULES
As a result of the switch to
deficiency payments, and in the
case of hogs a reduction this
fall of the support price from
$25 to $23.65 a hundred-
eight, ‘Canadian consumers
ee expect a sharp break in
prices which will help to re-
strain the cost of living. And
speaking of the cost of living,
it’ may be expected to start
climbing again fairly soon. For
the past several months it has
been inching downwards as a
result of a seasonal drop in
food prices generally. [f the
well-established pattern is ful-
lowed, this trend will be
sharply reversed any time now.

ALLABOAR

With G. E. Mortimore

It might be wise to hoard
beans and canned water in the
basement as well, and do our
civil defence homework, by
way of insurance, like the man
who prayed alternately to God
and the devil, so as not to miss
a bet. :

But my favorite precaution
against death by nuclear
blast, fallout or starvation is
to refrain {rom dropping the
bomb. And I am convinced
that 95 percent of the people
of she world share this view.

Nevertheless, a war seems to
be thundering towards us at
express speed, and we are tied
to the tracks like the heroine
of a mlodrama.

I think we should try to
struggle loose. The peopie of
the world should shake off
their paralysis of fear, and
launch a mass movement for
peace—not a phony propagan-
da offensive meant to weaken,
the west and strengthen the
Communists, but a push for
survival led by distinguished
men and women of many
nations and many political
parties, and supported by or-
dinary citizens everywhere.

When such a force has been
organized, it could challenge
Russia to show good faith. It
could propose a peaceful in-
vasion of the Soviet Union,
and invite several thousand
Soviet citizens to come as un-
armed guests into our coun-
tries—not for a summit con-
fernce, but a conference of or-
dinary people who want to

stay alive.

ONE

YEAR AGO
June 4, 1958

Highlight of the Centennial
year in Williams Lake will be
the visit of Princess Margaret,
who will stop here on her tour
of the province this July.
Williams Lake, home of the
biggest Canadian stampede
west of Calgary, will have the
honor of providing the Prin-
cess with her longest stop-over
in the Cariboo . . . Dick Cor-
liss, who played the role of a
modern Simon Fraser, landed
at Soda Creek in a drenching

rain storm. Three freight
canoes re-enacted the trip the
explorer made in 1808... Th,

annual inspection of the air
Cadets under Flight Lieut. Jim
Duthie was held Sunday in
the main street of Williams
Lake before a sarge gathering
of townspeople . . . Williams
Lake athletes won the Carihoo
track meet. High School puint
standings were: Williams Lake
142%, Quesnel 1401, Burns
Lake 44, Cariboo 28,

FIVE YEARS AGO
June 3, 1954

Close to 180 people formed
an attentive audience Monday
night to hear the first panel
discussion on cancer to be held
in Williams Lake. The medi-
cal doctors making
panel were rewarded
ing audience interest

hours Long-time re:

of Williams Lake, Mr. and
Mrs. Joseph Thomas Norquay,
celebrated their golden wed-

ding anniversary last Tuesday

. Burning of mortgage was
highlight of annual beef co-op
meeting.

TEN YEARS AGo

government at
Ottawa will be a Liberal Gov-
ernment,” T. J. (Tip) O'Neil
told a campaign meeting in
the Oliver Theatre Tuesday
night . . . District 27 will let
contracts for four new schuols,
just as soon as approved by
the superintendent of educa-
tion . Dragline dredging
units throughout the Cariboo
have been getting into produc-
tion during the past couple of
weeks after the winter close-
down.
TWENTY YEARS acu

June 1, 1939
Matched for the heavy-
weight boxing . championship
of the Cariboo were “Tex”

and
eldrum

Hanson, Chilcotin Cowbo.
Baptiste Meldrum of M

on the last night of the Stam-
pede, June 17 Opening
game of the lacrosse season in
the Cariboo was played at
Quesnel on June 4... A total
of 215 children in the Cari-
boo adjacent to Williams Lake
participated in the children’s
day sports events put on by
the Elks Lodge at Williams
Lake last Monday . . The
large ranch house of H. Felker
at Chimney Lake burned last
Wednesday afternoon with a
complete loss of all contents
eve A miscellaneous shower
in honor of Miss Marjorie
Norquay, was held yesterday
at the home of Mrs. George
Renner . . . The Tribune: was
a four-page newspaper.