PAGE 2

For Jews

| War on
disease
started

MONTREAL (CP) — A
massive screening program
was started in Montreal
Monday to combat a fatal
children's disease which
occurs almost exclusively
among Jews of Eastern
European ancestry.

Known as Tay-Sachs
disease, the ailment is caused
by an inherited enzyme
deficiency and usually kills
children by the time they
reach age five.

Neither a cure nor a treat-
ment has been discovered, but
now it is possible to detect car-
riers of the mutant gene by
means of a blood test.

Five doctors at the Montreal
Children’s Hospital have
organized a mass educational
and screening program to
intorm the Jewish community
in Montreal about Tay-Sachs
and its possible prevention.

Dr, Charles Scriver, a
biochemical geneticist
heading the program, said
research in the field has been
under way for some time.
However, the program is an
effort to reach, and inform
people on a wider scale.

“Alitile over a year ago two
American doctors found it was
possible to detect carriers of
Tay-Sachs by a blood test,”
Dr. Scriver said. “‘A-year ago,
with the financial backing of
the Provincial Network of
Genetic Medicine, our group
began preparing a pilot
project here.

ONE IN 36 AFFLICTED

Dr. Scriver said that one in

every 30 Jews is a carrier and
both man and wife are likely
to be carriers in one out of
‘every 900 marriages. If both
parents have the trait, there is
one chance out of four of the
child being affected with Tay-
Sachs. .

The condition begins to
affect the infant at about six
months of age. It causes brain
deterioration and usually kills
the child before he reaches
school age.

Tay-Sachs is 10 times more
frequent.in Jews of. European
anceatry than”“in .Aaiiy other

ethnic-groiip. Abdit"110,000 of“

Montreal’s* 130,000-member
Jewish community are in this
category.

If both parents are found to
be carriers they will receive
specific genetic counselling
about risks invol-ed and about
prenatal diagnosis.

Two members of a rock group named Pax

per-

formed for about 100 persons at Islander Hall in
Prince Rupert Friday. The group is just recovering
from a bad experience with fire. Their A-frame

THE HERALD, TERRACE — KITIMAT, B.C.

home in the Thornhill area was levelled by flames

last week and left the boys homeless. As in the
purest show business traditions, however, the show

went on...

Mackasey pressures

Employers to curb union strike power

MONTREAL (CP) — Labor
Minister Bryce Mackasey today
urged employers to accept
changes in federal labor law
that would give unions a limited
right to strike in the event of
disagreement over adverse
technological changes.

In a speech to an industrial

relations ...seminar . here,...Mr....
Mackasey. reviewed. public. .dis-...

cussion of the proposed labor: ”

law changes which have been
under fire by management
spokesmen since they were in-
troduced in the. Commons in
June. ; .

‘Most enlightened employers
will accept the philosophy of
providing remedies for prob-

lems created by technological
change as they affect the
worker,” he said, “But if they
will not, it could be done by di-
rect intervention.”

Mr. Mackasey said it is short-
sighted for Canadian employers
to argue that Canadian labor
relations are different from
those in other Western countries

because-signed Canadian labor... the management that the only -.

contracts ‘prohibit’ “strikes
during the life of an
agreement.'‘This no-strike
provision does not prevent Can-
ada from having strikes and
wildeats,” Mr. Maekasey said.
UNREST EVIDENT

The federal iabor minister
said social unrest evident in the

Senior citizens aided

EDMONTON (CP) — Alber-
ta’s senior. cilizens will be re-
lieved of paying medical care
insurance premiums effective
Jan.1, Premier Peter Lougheed
announced today.

Under regulations of the Al-

Act, all residents aged 65 or
over and their dependents will
be included. In addition, the
cabinet has approved ‘a prem-
ium exemption from optional
services such as drugs and
other procedures.

“We estimate that the cost of

this change will involve bet-
ween $6 to $2 million annually

The present medical care
premium for an Albertan earn-
ing more than $2,000 a year is
$93 a year, including optional
services. ,

berta Health Care Insurance

EXPLOSION CASUALTY — An’
ambulance. attendant carries blanket.’ _
-. wrapped body ‘of. child through rescue . -
_ Workers. .to waiting ambulance »

_ following explosion of terrorist bomb in...”

5

.

were killed and 19 injured in the.
._ blast, je w re

. crowded..furniture store in, the Nor-
“thern ; Irish capital ‘Saturday, ‘Four.

te
pen

' of commutation, which was’

. to be recent... ~yo ne
.- Downey and Fecteau ware —

growing trade union movement
in Quebec is characteristic of
the upheavals caused by rapid
technological change.

“Weall agree that technologi-
cal change is here to stay; the
problem is finding the best and
most equitable method of
assimilating it into our system.

‘This is why I am/suggesting

of Canadian labor relations, the
closed contract, is to accept the
amendments to deal with tech-
nological change.”

Last week, Mr. Mackasey told
members of the Canadian
Labor Congress in Ottawa that
changes to be made in the labor
bill before it is reintroduced in
the next session of Parliament
will not strike out the principle

Americans
released |
from China

PHILADELPHIA (AP) —
Two Americans returned to
the U.S, mainland today after
their release from China,

“Tt was a fine trip and I'm
glad to be home,” Mary Ann
Harbert, 25, said in the first
words spoken to reporters
since she and Richard Fec-
teau of Lynn, Mass,, began
their 10,000-mile flight from
Hong Kong where they were
freed Monday. .

“T'm so happy to be back,"’
Fecteau said after he and Miss
Harbert arrived by helicopter
at Valley Forge Military
Hospital, 25 miles northwest of
here. so

The pair arrived after a
short flight from McGuire Air -
Force Base, NJ, their first
mainland U.S. landfall since

boarding a U.S. Air Force C-

141 at Hong Keng.

Reporters’ were mot per-

-Mmitted to talk to them,

although: one reporter
managed to get close enough
to exchange @ few words..
IMPRISONED 19 YEARS
Fecteau, a 48-year-old .

" eivilian employeeof the army,

served 19 years Of a 20-¥éar-
sentence on Chinese ‘charges

_ of spying.

Miss _Harbert, whose

., parents live in Palo Alto,

Calif,, had been-a captive of
the Chinese for three ‘years,
In announcing the release of

° the-two, Peking’ also said the” -

life sentence of John T, Dow .
ney, 41, of New Britain, Conn.;
had been commuted to-five ©.
years from. life from: the date.

not disclosed but was believed _

gers aboard: a” plane *-

- stiot down on. a flight from
~ Japan lo Korea in 1962,during "
sthe Korean War. The ‘Com. -
munists said the two were on a.
miei for! the U.8.° Central:
~ Intelligence Agency, dn

*-: Nationalist Chinese apie ire

Genied the accusations, -

fe

ological change.

A.

way to preserve the cornerstone

that unions must be consulted
about technological  in-
noyations,

In its new form, the bili. would
emphasize more strongly . the
desirability of including in
collective agreements a.clause
dealing with the effects of tech-

, es

Former _

‘addicts ~ O - :
hired

for bets.
(AP) — New York City’s Olf-
Track Betting Corp. has hired
23 former heroin addicts as
tellers in one of its midtown
betting offices. ;

OTB President Howard J.
Samuels, who initiated the ex-
perimental program, said Mon-

’ day he believes that hiring for-

mer addicts is one key to solv-
ing the drug problem.

Of the 23 former addicts, 20 -J

are in methadone maintenance
programs and three are affili-
ated with drug-free programs.
All passed the normal mental
aptitude tests ,

There are seven supervisors

in the office who are nat former ;

, addicts. a

JACK DeJONG |

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 15, 194

(ANK YOU

*

The residents of Port. Edward,
for your support and. con-
_ fidence in the recent election.

ee

“Commerce Growth

Certificates.

Besides a Christ

always try to give my
children something educational.
So, | give them Commerce
Growth Savings Certificates.
They help the children
understand savings. They only
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$10.00 in six years. You can give
as many as you want. And
they're cashable anytime, and

how money grows:’

Savings :

. mas present _
it can be a youngster’s first lesson in:

interest too. So, when the
children are‘old enough to
know what they want, they've

got a little money to get it
with. Give Commerce Growth
Savings Certificates this
Christmas. They're called the

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CANADIAN IMPERIAL

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