*
;
It is to be hoped, now that the
“a
Commission on ‘transportation freight rates has been appointed, at there will be no undue delay in
i the investigation started.
‘he Federal Government has in- dicated that it expects the new in- guiry, to be finished in about a year. to Opposition members in Par- liament, seems an over-optimistic
forecast. They recall that the pre- - . ¥ious. inquiry ‘mder the Turgeon
Commission took two and one-half years to cover much the same ground. However long the investiga- tion may take, it is understood that ‘in the meantime no further freight- rate increases will be allowed.
. It is hoped, too, that the new Commission will make more specific recommendations with regard to equalization of freight rates than “the Turgeon Commission did. There “were a lot of loopholes in the report which that Commission made in 1951, and the result has been a continua-
tion of horizontal rate boosts with’
«little or no attention paid to the con- “sequence of these impositions. The
main purpose of the new inquiry, as
“we see it, is to remedy this situation. ‘It will be for the Government, when the report is in, to hold the Trans- “port Commissioners ‘strictly to ac- ‘count in carrying out its provisions.
Hospital Insurance <A free bonus period under the ‘fiospital insurance plan is something ~our people had not expected, and no doubt the offer, as announced in ‘the press yesterday by Premier
‘ Matheson, is intended to aid in popu-
Jarizing the plan and obtaining more subscribers. This is a desirable ob- jective, but it raises other questions which we trust will be kept in mind.
As we understand it, the pro- posal is that all persons who regis- ter before August 31, 1959, and who pay at least a three-month premium before the end of the year, will be ‘insured under the plan from Octo- ber 1, 1959, to June 30, 1960. The “plan itself, it has been stated, is the “most generous, so far as premium requirements are concerned, of any of the provincial plans. With our very limited revenue, it was a big undertaking for Prince Edward Is- land to embark on this program at all. How is the bonus plan to be financed, with the additional burden this will place upon the Treasury? _. Now that the Hospital Commis- sion has been appointed, it will be their responsibility to finance the scheme in a manner which will not involve big deficits from year to year. One purpose*of ‘the Commis- sion administration is to take the matter out of partisan politics, and this, we think, is-a very necessary precaution. Would it not have been _better for the Commission to have made this announcement about the bonus proposal, explaining at the same time how it was to be financed?
According to current rumor, we May expect a provincial general election in‘the near future. All the more reason, we suggest, why the hospital insurance plan should be divorced entirely from political im- Plications. :
Some Seaway Problems , Evidently it will be some time before the Western Provinces can hope to benefit fully from the new-
ly opened St. Lawrence Seaway. It |
_was hoped that, when the Seaway was in operation, large ocean ves- sels would be able to come to the Head of. the Lakes, discharge their cargo and load ‘with grain, which they could carry directly to overseas “@estinations without trans-ship- ments. But there have been some disappointing setbacks, as noted by the Winnipeg Free Press.
’ The first ship into Port Arthur
was a 16,000-ton freighter capable ‘ef carrying more than 15,000 tons
of grain, But because she draws 31»
feet of water when fully loaded, and , there is only 20 \feet of water at the elevator where she loaded, she was ‘Mmited to 8,500 tons. Another 7,000
tons was slated to be picked up/ in
-
“Montreal, where the water is deeper.
4 sire
- s i £ s
Montreal, are costly. They do not encourage ships to make use of the Lakehead port.
These are problems of loading.
ocean-going ships, will be overcome, at_Jeast to a de- gree, when the new harbor develop- ment between Port Arthur and Fort William is completed. But the first contracts have not yet been let and
it will be some years before the $7 |
million project is finished.
Until the Lakehead facilities are such that both inbound and out- bound cargoes can be handled speed- ily and efficiently, Port Arthur and Fort William are going to lag be- hind other Great Lakes ports in getting their share of Seaway traf- fic. There is now a strong drive to have the necessary developments pushed forward with all possible
speed. EDITORIAL NOTES
A note? American scientist has spent ten years counting the birds in Panama. An interesting occupa- tion, no doubt; but it must be a bit
| tedious at times.It’s always possible
to count the same bird twice. * + *
Defence Minister Pearkes is quot- ed'as saying that “the-West could knock the stuffing out of the Rus- sians if they started a war now.” Maybe so; but isn’t such talk a bit
out of place at a time when the diplo- °
mats are making‘a special effort to ease tension? -
* . . * David J. McDonald, President of the United Steelworkers of America, recently gave reporters a_ rather curious lesson in semantics. He stat- ed that unions never make “de- mands”; they- merely make “pro-. posals”; and they don’t go on “strike”; they merely participate in _ “suspensions of work”.
* . *
John Dos Passos, novelist, essay- ist, and poet, is not only a creative artist. He is also something of an in- ventor. Recently, in co-operation with a Kansas City manufacturer, Alex- ander G. Jianas, he invented a new type of pistol for blowing soap bubb- les. The idea occurred to him when his young daughter, Lucy, was hav- ing trouble with her bubble blowing
apparatus.
For three successive years, Bill Christie, Alberta, has won the Pro- vincial trophy for the herd with the highest average milk production. How does he do it? Certainly not by feeding his cattle highly priced feeds. In summer, he ‘says, the herd is given the best pasture. In winter they are fed the best alfalfa hay. That’s all there is to.it, according to Mr. Christie.
.
s
5 : aoe . + “nee ee ‘S d es 4 aM . e oe
Science Service reports increased -
production of grain but a deerease | | al parks and monuments.
in per capita supply of food. Pro- duction has been overtaken by the growth of population. This keeps per capita supplies. about where they . were before World War One. Esti- mates of production for 1960-61
|. Show an increase of 1 per cent in
relation to ‘the 1952-57 average. Population growth is expected to be 114 per cent. i
| +
* *
One thing that is unusual about ;
the current meeting of Foreign Ministers at Geneva is the presence of religious “observers”. Represent- ing the World Council of Churches is Dr. O. Frederick Nolde, director of the (Commission of the Churches on International Affairs. His task, according to Religious:News Service, will be to “symbolize the concern of the Churches that every effort be made, under the principles of the
United Nations Charter, to secure |
such agreements as will move to- ward a necessary solution in respect
| terior
HARD CLIMBS AHEAD .
Is He Flexible, Too?
Montreal
The meeting of foreign minis- ters at Geneva has begun amidst Khrushchevian blasts about his power to wipe out the West with his hydrogen bombs. -
It might not seem a very cor- dial or promising beginning. Yet it must be remembered that what- ever the Russian leader says, whether encouraging or other- wise, may not be quite what it seems to mean. That is the heart and core of the-difficulty of ne- gotiating with Russia. Anything can mean almost anything.
It might seem, for example, that the holding of this meeting of foreign ministers is futile; a later summit meeting might be more futile still. Russia appears
to be making such hard demands | about Berlin that they could not |
possibly be accepted by athe West. ¥ARIATION.
But Khushchev’s attitude on the Berlin question. seems inflexible, only if his statements are tak- en each by itself. When they are
some of his statements about
placed together, in a row, they
*
will be found to have consider- able variation.
He began by insisting that West and East Berlin must be made into a single city. That was a hopeless proposition from the standpoint of the Western nations.
But Khrushchev did not rest there. He next came out with the proposal that the troops of all nations should’ be withdrawn from West Berlin. Then it should be declared a “free city.” If this were done, East Germany would give guarantees that Berlin's communications with Western na- tions would not be disturbed.
This is quite a change, if the two statements are compared. | Since then Khrushchev has made | the concession that the troops of | the Western nations have a right to be in West Berlin, even though they ought to get out.
Nor has the extreme severity of
Berlin ever been carried into effect. Threats were made about cutting West Berlin off from all
outside contacts. But beyond some interference with Ameri- can planes flying at a certain height, not much else has follow- ed. DEMANDS REJECTED
Furthermore, when he made his demands about having Ber- lin made a) free city, they were rejected by the West. He had said that if the West were to reject these demands, “there is no topic left for talks on Berlin by the occupying powers."’ But he has still proved ready to send his foreign minister, Gromyko, to the foreign ministers—meeting; for just such talks.
This, to be sure, is a flexible policy. In. one sense, it does not
make the prospect for some sort+
of agreement as dark as it might otherwise seem. If Khrushchev were as impossible to deal with as he himself lias said, this meet- ing would not be taking place at all.
Whether this flexibility indi- |
cates a readiness to reach an agreement, or only an attempt to~get what he can, in any way he can, is what the Western for- eign ministers have to try to find out.
Alaska, New Style
National Geographic Seciety
Alaska-bound fifty-niners are heading toward an entirely new kind of frontier.
The 49th. State greets new- comers with expected scenes of raw wilderness and fast-grow- ing settlements, with hustling en- terprises, and a preponderantly male population. But behind the pioneer front, modern ways and means are being developed in industry, farming, and mining.
Alaska’s leaders have repeat- edly stated that they are interest- ed in solid planning for the future not boom-or-bust speculation or get-rich-quick ventures of the old Gold Rush variety.
HOMESTEAD LAND LIMITED
With only about 215,000 people in an area more than twice the size ° Texas, there would seem to be plenty of room in Alaska for homesteaders. Much of the State, however, is too mountain- ous, too inaccessible, or too ise- vere in climate for cultivation and grazing.
-2» famous depression - born project of Matanuska Valley, near the thriving city of Anchor- age, is an encouraging example of successful northern agricul- ture. But virtually all of the de- sirable public land there has been taken up. Other suitable re- gions lie beyond reach of the present limited road system.
Moreover, the Federal
ches of Alaska’s forest, glacial, and~ volcanic regions for natidn-
Of the 99 per cent of Alaska formerly held by the Federal Gov- ernment, a choice of some 103 million acres has now been offer- ed the new State. :
The State Government has 2 years to make its selection, and is expected to begin with the more developed: coastal and in- regions. Eventually, it hopes to dispose of most of ‘this and other territory it owns throught sale, lease, or home-
steading. PIONEERS’ PROBLEMS
Meantime, fifty-miners looking for Alaska homesteads, find them still under Federal control. And Washington officials quickly point out to inauirers that the Far North offers pioneers no royal road to fortune.
To qualify for a farm of up to 160 acres, a settler must first clear the land, build a home on it, and put at least one eighth of the area in cultivation by the end of three years. ;
Those who have tried it tell of privations and unremitting toil. Capital and experience in farm- ing, they say are essential to success. An mated $25,000 is required to establish a working dairy farm.
NEW INDUSTRIES More inviting are prospects for
| however,
| suasive experimental evidence in-
Gov-| tus of the national bureau of |
ernment has reserved vast stret- |
season, sun-drenched crops suit- ed to the northland. Development
—especially concerns to process | raw materials—the state extends | tax exemptions and other incen- | tives. But again enterprises are warned that capital is needed, and markets so far are limited. Other problems, such as season- al labor demands, face individual job seekers. ©
Such coeol-headed advice to, would-be fifty-niners does. not re- | flect Alaskan’s lack of confiden- ce in their State's future. Scien- | tists in experimental study ways to improve livestock
sensible use of enormous resour- ces in timber, fish, and wildlife, in oil, gas, and minerals of all kinds. ' For pioneers to whome the lure of opportunities outweighs rugged conditions and the high cost of living,” Alaska unrolls a 20th.- century frontier. There the dog- sled has made way for commer- cial and military jet planes, and the log cabin is overshadowed by 14-story apartment buiildings. * adio, TV, and the later womens
stations | fashions are commonplace, even
as in the 48 smaller States to the
and increase the yields of short- ' south.
Why Does A E
No sports fan doubts that a golf ball or a tennis ball can curve laterally in flight. Some, question whether the same is true of a thrown base- ball, or at least whether a thrown baseball curves as much ,as base- ball players and sports writers commonly claim. To such skep- tics a baseball seems too heavy, and its flight too slow, to account for such an effect. Now some per-
dicates that the skeptics are wrong.
After a series of experiments, Lyman J. Briggs, director emeri-
Qa
new industry. To attract business
om:
i |
A Baseball Curve? |
Americin
can throw a baseball at 100 feet per second.
To determine the spin of a pu- tatively curving baseball Briggs enlisted the aid of Pedro Ramos and Camilo Pascual of the Washington Senators.
He attached one end of a flat tape to the ball as the pitchers threw curves; by counting the number of twists in the tape he | determined that the ball spun 7 | to 16 times on its way to the phate. Assuming that the balls were traveling at 100 feet per sec- ond, this corresponds to a spin
lof between 700 and 1,600 r.p.m.
Briggs conducted other investi-
and conservation programs plan |
F
s
many of them do not. And even one avoidable death is too mang. IN THE DARKNESS :
A large percentage of these accidents occur when persons grab the wrong bottle in the dark- ness of night. ~¥-would tike all of you to pro- mise two things:
First, always turn on the light before you even reach for a bot- tle of medicine at night.
Second, if you are the least bit | drowsy, wash your ‘face in cold
cine cabinet. QUESTION AND ANSWER
he tried to relate speed, spi and curve by photographing above a baseball that on a rubber tee and then jected forward by a wooden pro- jectile fired from a gun. This at- tempt was abandoned because the spin of the ball could not be measured in flight.
He then turned to a wind tun- | nel, When he dropped a 'ning at known speed into a | zontal stream of air moving
| known speed, he wa
was spinning at 1,800 r.p.m.
Briggs’ \ experiments left un- answered one question that troubles the devotee of baseball phjysics. Can a baseball, be made to ‘‘break,’’ that is to curve more sharply, at the end, of its tra- jectory than at the beginning? If somecne can demonstrate that it does not, then at last those who are skeptical of curve ball folklore will have their innings.
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Charlottetown
water before opening the medi- |
and embark for the United States. All he lacks is an invita- tion—a requirement which, at his level, is more neessary than a
passport. For several reasons, we
tional relations—Toronto Globe and Mail :
OUR YESTERDAYS
(Frem the Guardian Files):
TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO (May 15, 1934)
A serious problem facing the
P.E.1. Potato Growers Associa-
| tion in the matter of financing its ) fertilizer requirements this seas-
on has been solved by the Pro- vincial Government. coming to the Association’s aid and guar- anteeing payment to the fertili- zer company of the amount in- volved, which is about $100,000.
At a recent meeting of the Dairymen’s Association at Ken- sington, which was presided over by the President, Mr. John Sim- pson, the directors took the op- portunity of presenting to the re- tiring secretary, Mr. James F. Profitt, an address and presen- tation of a gold-headed walking cane in appreciation of 23 years ‘wervice.
TEN YEARS AGO (May 15, 1949) The choir of Montague United Church held a farewell party for Mr.* and Mrs. Donald Samson on Wednesday night in the church ease prior to their depar- ure Portage La Prairie where Mr. Samson has been transfer- red as manager of the Bank of Nova Scotia. Mrs. Howard Vick- erson read an address and a
lovely gift was presented by Mrs. L.H. Poole.
The meeting of the School Im- provement League was held at the home of Mrs. T.B. Rogers on Thursday evening. The president, Mrs. Scantlebury, presided. Mr. Gordon MacDonald, reporting for the Public Safety Conimittee, said that the City Council had agreed to make a survey of all public meeting places to examine existing exits.
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GUARDIAN -
PATRIOT WANT AD
Phone 8506
Half a century ago,
try’s overseaS earnings from manufacturers. Today the contri- bution is 40 per cent. One out of
work in ‘engineering, while the gross output of the industry has reached an annual value of £6 binlion:
Tr s
Sir Ronald Fisher, has
that a few hundred years . man will have taught cats and dégs to talk and monkeys to be
houseold servants or perhaps even factory workers. One argue that there is far too much talk in:the world today without domestic animals adding to the clamor.—Peterboro Examiner
Canada’s newest town, least one of the newest towns, Thompson, Manitoba, which being planned or 8,000 It is rising, complete with homes and public utilities, in bush country 400 miles north
national Nickel’s Moak Lake mining development, it is served
Churchill, built by the CNR, as was the line to Lynn Lake in the same part of the country.—Ottawa Citizen
he ‘” MAXIMS
g the.vanity ef giv-
ing, which we like better than
BROWN LEAVES IN SPRING
Leaves should be brown im spring |
this year at last.
Oh, how my heart-has longed for ‘rusty leaves
When nature spreads her: finery and weaves
These patterns of eternal green,
amassed Each on each vast
yg the world ea last retrieves
leaves
only twelve per cent of the coum —
every seven employed persons —
An eminent British geneticist,
of Winnipeg. As the town for Inter-~
by a spur from the railway to ~
Fo
aye
“St
oa
e
¥ ¥
With life; to know that death at His own, to see the end upon these —
Before the first bright @ush of
spring is past.
And why rejoice? Could I thea stand ‘apart
And watch with) absent eye such sad decay?
Is not the foliage once within my heart
Become a withered mess, that death may say:
“Behold, now then, the fullness of my art—
A winter’s night within a sum- mer’s day”?
—in The N.Y. i ——oSs=—"
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