PAGE rook” THE GUARDIAN

Authorised on second Uluu Muff hm Offlcu Department. Jnuwl. Tbo llflmf uuorvflnn ruulfobfng U0. l.'I8UUI.ATl0N

Total City Zonc

I202

....s-................................................. 13.0!

Editor an-I Bllcznging Director, J. IL durnelt Auoucfato I-Jrfltiur. Funk Wllker. "Tho-Strongest Memo 1 is Weaker Than

0 the Weakest ink"

CHABLOTTETOWN THURSDAY. I-'lEB. 22, 1951..

A Magnificent Record

The Younker Twins, who casually cel- ebrated their ninety-fifth birthday annivers- ary on February 10, are both hale and hearty and outstanding examples of the wonder-working virtues of our island cli- mate. They are a living embodiment of our pioneer tradition, and the communities of Brackley and North Winsloe, where they respectively reside, may well be proud of their achievement;

Our first historian), John Stewart, wrote of the Island in 1806 that "it would be very difficult to mention another spot on the face of the earth wvhere the inhabitants en- joy more uninterrupted health." He add- ed that "a large proportion of the people live to old age, and then die of no acute disease, but by the general decay of na- ture." Many of those pioneers lived to reach the century mark, despite hardships which today would be accounted unendur- able.

In a fair way now to eclipse all our longevity records are Messrs. George and Joseph Younker. Certainly the best wishes of all our citizens will go with them as they journey together sturdily past each successive milestone.

Financing Education

A private member's bill to provide Fed- cral funds for education was "talked out" this week and goes to the bottom of the list, which means at this stage that it has a chance of being again considered during the session.

Education is, of course, a Provincial matter anti for many Canadians it is of prime impol'tance that it remain Provincial. It is well known that, as the tag goes, "He who pays the piper calls the tune." There is only too sound reason for fearing that if Ottawa earmarks funds for education the Federal Government will necessarily have a say in how the money is to be spent.

The financial probicrn, however, is very real. The disparity between the per caplta spending on education in the various Prov- inces is a blot on Canadian citizenship. A possible answer -is to take educational costs into consideration in the general amount of Federal subsidies but without earmarkins. it for educational purposes.

A Prayer For Lawyers

The following invocation, quoted from an exchange, was delivered by the Rt. Rev. Angus Dunn at the opening session of the joint annual meeting of the American and Canadian Bar Associations at Washington last year. It might fittingly be framed and hung in every court of justice in the land:

"0 God, at Whose hand the weak take no wrong nor the mighty escape Just judg- ment, wc humbly beseech Thee to bless the courts of justice and the magistrates in all this land and in the Dominion of Can- ada, that by their true and faithful ex- ecution of justice and equity to all men equally, Thy righteousness may be set for- ward among us. Make the peoples of our lands reverent in the use of freedom, just in the exercise of power, generous in the protection of weakness. Enable us to guard for the least among us the freedoms we covet for ourselves.

"Grant us grace fearlessly to contend against evil and to make no peace with op- pr";-sion. Hold us in obedience to Thy holy will that in the day of Thy judgment we may be able to stand in the light of Thy countenance, and may our deepest trust be in Thee, the Lord of nations and the King of kings. Amen."

Man And Money

Our defence program. as it was out- lined 'to the House of Commons by De- fense Minister Ciaxton, calls for a Navy of some 100 ships and approximately 20.- 000 men. 40 regular and auxiliary air squadrons and the equivalent of a division of land troops account for the rest. That. it seems, is all the defence five billion dol- lars will buy today. If is not too much.

While it would be unwise to minimize the importance of the Navy and Air Force. it will strike thoughtful Canadians as curious that the Army should be kept to cuchgnnall. proportions. Even by the standards of World War II, a single divis- ion will Icrvc little more than to provide it

1 I

Canada itself. It will do nothing to build up the army so sorely needed by General Eisenhower in western Europe. . .

Lack of emphasis on the Army is even more curious in the light of events in Korea. In the rocky and inhospitable ter- rain of Korea it has been discovered that trained ground troops are more valuable than air units. The foot soldier still does most of the fighting. The possibilities of atomic warfare notwithstanding, it is prob- able that the foot soldier would also do most of the fighting in Europe, if war comes there.

Such considerations lend more than ordinary point to the Hon. C. G. Power's proposal that a defence committee of Par- liament be set up to supervise defence ex- penditure. As mentioned previously in these columns, the Leader of the Oppos- ition has made similar proposals on more

than one occasion, but they appear to have

fallen on deaf ears. There is something radically wrong with a defence program which, for the expenditure of five billion dollars, promises nothing more than a sin- gle division of ground troops and a total armed strength at sea, on land and in the air of 115,000 men.

EDIIURIAI. NOI ES

Washington's birthday 1732. O O 0

Employment wherever possible of ex- servicemen in taking the census next June is urged by the Summerside branch of the Canadian Legion. Veterans and others will say amen.

O O 0

American researchers have come up with the information that ”gripers" are usually better workers than ”whistlers". But did they look into the question of which are the best to work with?

O O O

Villages surrounded by the open country can be delightful places to live or visit..The same houses strung out in a ribbon along the highway are an eyesore, traffic hazard and decidedly inconvenient for the inhab- itants.

O 0.0

Civil defence is the subject of the Fed- eral-Provincial talks starting tomorrow at Ottawa. As the term implies it is not part of the Armed Forces' responsibility but the organization of the civil population to cope with any emergency.

0 I O

Amerigo Vespucci died this date 1512. Born in Italy in 1451 he became a nav- igator and fitted out Columbus's third ex- pedition. He himself explored the Ven- ezuelan coast (1499); discovered all Sainisl Bay in Brazil (1503), and was appointed pilot-major of Spain in 1508. He claimed to have discovered America (named after him) before Cabot or Columbus.

Nothing could more strikingly illustrate the flexibility of Canada's present constitu- tion than Nova Scotia's proposing a sales tax in the speech from the throne while in- direct taxes are still invalid. The assur- ance of Prime Minister St. Laurent must have seemed sufficient guarantee that the constitutional amendment will be forth- coming.

0 O O

The potato dealers unsuccessful attempt to make their potato levy payments "un- der protest" is quite understandable. The Provincial Government may not have been guilty of the practice but Ottawa has more than once insisted on payment of sums which subsequent court rulings have shown to be claimed in error and then taken the position that the payments were voluntary and not recoverable.

According to Dr. Cameron, Deputy Min- ister of Health for the Federal Govern- ment, the one thing certain about the 'flu is that it is unpredictable. There doesn't seem to be much people can do to avoid getting it; those who stay at home contract it just as quickly as those mixing in crowds. If this be true, the best course is to go about one's normal business without worry- ing, observing the old-fashioned, common sense rules of health as best one can. and cultivating a cheerful optimism.

I I 0

According to the Bureau of Statistics the spectacular increase in production and income in Canada for 1950 was shared by most industry with the exception of farm- ing, due to the drop in wheat. Lower in- itlal payments for wheat and increased op- erating costs pulled down net farm income six per cent to s1.42-1,000,000 from 51.- 513.000.000. For the first time total in- temational trade in goods and services cracked the s8,000,000,000-mark to touch 58.700.000,000. But imports jumped ..to s4.5oo.ooo,ooo from s3.83f.0oo.ooo while exports went up only to s4,200,000,000 from s:f,004.000,000. The result was a deficit of s300,000,000, against surpluses

of 8167,000,000 in 1949 and S4l8,000,000

N101; more vulnerable. areas of in 1048.

,..:;i'.. ..

THE GUARDIAN. CHARLOTTETOWN

PUBLIC FORUM

This column is open to Ibo discussion by correspondents of question: of Interest. Tho Guardian does not noouur I fly the opinion of correspondents.

WHERE CREDIT IS DUI!

Sir.-I notice that the contract of a new boat. harbsur at Souris has been let to a dredging firm in Torontp. and that your Ottawa reporter states that Mr. Kfckhnm gives some of the credit to Senator Grant for his wise counsel.

The fact. is that Senator urant did all the spade work in securing this boat harbour at Souric. and that he had an amount then con- sidered sufficient to do the work placed in the 1949 estimates. be- fore Mr. Klckllatll got the Federal nomination.

I am, Sir, etc.. LIBERAL V0'1lER.. Montague, P. E. I.

POTATO MARKETING

Sir,--Permit me space in your columns to express my views re Potato Marketing Board vs deal- ers' compact. I feel that it. is pretty thoroughly established that the big potato dealers all down through the years have been very firmly united, especially when it came to declaring a price to be paid to the producers. Those deal- ers met. some time in November and set the price; the following day the press would inform the farmers what they were to receive for their product.

I am not opposed to dealers meeting, nor do I question their honesty or business ability or their interest in the potato -industry cr their knowledge of marketing same. but I feel quite sure that they saw to it at all times that the profits and rewards for their cf- forts would he assured. whether the price was 10c or s2 per bushel to the producer.

"Fair Dealer" feels the whole situation needs a thorough airing. 'I agree with him there, providing of course that it; is enlightening and informative to the farmers. whose products have been gambled and speculated with for too long. I fail to see eye to eye with "Fair Dealer" in that an airing would reveal a trend towards bureauc- racy, or to use his words of "slop- py Socialism."

The farmers of this Province have none cf the above ideas or ambitions: they merely wish to have their just; voice in the mark- eting of their products.

"Fair Dealer" says he in nmused and amazed at the procecdings of the potato industry in the past. year or so. Well, the farmers no doubt are very much amused. but not. in the least amazed at the grumbltngs of the dealers. I feel the people of this Province in gen- eral will infer from their letters to the press, their speeches, etc., that their organization pes- sesses some great dictatorial pow- ers that will eventually be used to prevent the farmer from market- in: his product in his own interest. In conclusion may I advise the farmers. as did Mr. W. B. McLel- lan of Alma, to hold what we have gained and strive for more, for it is only by working bcgether and keeping our ear to the ground that we have any possible chance of obtaining our just share of the national wealth.

I am, Sir, cl.c.. FORT AUGUSTUS FARMER.

oragifor The C.N.R.

(From on address by Donald Gordon. C.M.G.. president of the Canadian National Railways, be- fore the Canadian Society of New York.)

Perhaps you will allow me to select from my own experience an illustration of the kind of mis- understanding that. can arise be- tween the best of friends. The railway system which I serve is owned by the people of Canada. as the name Canadian National Railways implies. To use another description-which has different over-tones-the Canadian Nation- al ls owned by the state. That sort. of description however might load a stranger to believe that the C. N. R. represents n deliberati- experiment in Socialism, and from that he might draw mistaken in- ferences about. our political be- liefs. The plnin fact is that public ownership of the largest railroad system in North America was completely unintentional.

It came nbont after the First World War with the financial col- lapse of two major railroad systems. owned in one case by two captains of industry. and in the other by it great number of priv- ate investors, of whom the maj- ority were English. In an cm of unbounded optimism those com- panics. drawing heavily on Gov- ernment guaranlces to support their financing. had seriously over-extended their lines.

0 O O

The one ovcr-riding considerin- ion which governed policy at the time of their financial collapse was the fact that t.hc.Clmadlan economy required these railromls to continue in operation. The Government. as the largest credit.- or. could see no alternative buLio undertake that responsibility thereby avoiding A default which would have seriously damaged the credit. of Canada in the money m-rrkcts of the world.

In the process of clrrying this out every outatandlnz ' llcbilitv was transcribed into the books of what came in be known' as th- Ccncdlan National Railways. Starting with a capital over-burdened with wclgbo of interest debt. it is scarcely surprising that the syn- lcm for molt of its life has been unable to clear it: fixed charges -although operntin-2 expense.- have always been met.

Income deficit! In a state-owned 1hItlt.utfon fit Io neatly into a ma-rotypc of political interfer- ence and ineptitude that an cm- ploycc of tho mncdmn National cannot holo but fool that ho ll on the defgcivc when calling to his friends among American l'Illroud-

structure in outer

r Notes By

Reports from northern Manitoba tell of the disquieting experience of members of a. motorcade from The Pas to the Carrot River dis- trict. Before setting out on the journey one member of the safari dropped i.nio tlhe government liquor store and bought it bottle. This precaution - was taken of course. as a protection against snake bile and other uncommon emergencies that arise on expedi- tions of this kind. With a bottle of insurance tucked safely away, the trip was undertaken. All went well and the motorcade arrived at. its destination. Before long it was voted by the assembled company that an emergency had arisen which called for speedy treatment from the bottle of emergency noutmalizer. When the bottle was taken from its resting place dis- may seized the usscmbly-the con- tents were frozen as hard as a trensurevfs heart. The Liquor Commission, like any other good merchondiser, should do all it can to prevent disasters such as this happening to its customers. One thing that could easily be done to eliminate repetitions would be to introduce a. little anti-freeze into the bottled goods. Now one of the best known antr- freezcs is alcohol. The Commis- sion's course is clear-all it has to do is mix a little more alcohol with the water it sells a-nd all will be well-Winnipeg Tribune.

Communism is, first of all, I state of mind which, in its purely economic aspects, may have a faintly discernible basis of kindli- ness toward "all God's chlllun". But. it is a state of mind, primar- fly, which makes it so easy to snare the foolish and the very clever. The foolish. the frustrated. the unbalanced; all these are the cbvlous fodder for Communism. They carry placards and sign pe- titions, and thump the table when they talk of the proletnrian who would be forced, como me revolu- tion. to like strawberries and cream. It is the clever we have to fear, the men nnd women who worm "themselves into every well meaning society; the men wno never carry a card, the men who.

crs. Yet the fact is that. the or- gonizrrfiorr of the Canadian Nat.- ional has been modelled on that of a private undertaking, its man- agement. operates comps-t.ltivcly with the same objective of max- imum officicncy and optimum service. and I think it is fair to claim that C. N. R. standards rank with the best in North American railroading experience. 0 U 0

But having selected an illu- strntlon of misunderstandings from the field of railroad activity. I feel entitled to go on and point out that the railroads also pro- Vide an outstanding example of thc' kind of prncticnl co-operation that can be achieved between Canada and the United States. I say with every confidence that there is no other aspect. of econ- omic activity in which the efforts of Americans and Canndlrms are better to-ordlnated. or the facil- ities better integrated. than in the railroads. This development. came about with no fanfare. and it required no prolonged negoti- atlons to bring it into effect. it is of such long standing that gener- ations have grown up taking its existence for granted.

It began in 1883 when American and Canadian railroads accepted the then-startling idea of stand- ard time. conceived in Canada by a Scots rsilronder. Sir snndford Fleming. Since then the railroads of both countries have kept close- ly in step. We long ago ndopted a xtnndard Pall gauge and tech. nlcnl standards for rolling stock. with the result that our freight and passenger equipment can be freely interchanged.

On any given day there will be many thousands of Canadian freight earn operating on Ameri- can lines. and some thousands of American cars being operated by Canadian railroads. Our freight and plunger schedules are tied together in order to facilitate the smooth flow of travel and com- merce between our two nations. our lyatems of signalling and dcnpaichlng and our Upernting rules nre no similar that our per- sonnel could be exchanged with rclntiv!l.V illitle difficulty.

Cnnadiln railroads own and operate thousands of miles of trnckngc in the United sum and

Arncrlcnn cunponies do tho some in Canada. The railroad systems

' of North America could combine

their resources into a common pool to-mcet any emergency Ruli-

ed the kind of economic intonat- ion cnvfsn-'25 by the war-time

Hyde Park Agreement between it made last. October.

I

readers, fhcmhnvclomz lntlcipuf.- .

our countrfu and the extension of g

The Way I

in apparent stupidity, work weaken our social structure by mistakes which even a child could recognize as such. Those who. un- der various scientific guises, smrg

our minds;

and they who hidden

away in countless

life." than fulsome resolution,

for defence.

to step up (Montreal Financial Times.)

Q Old Charlottetown 3 (And r. a. i.) ii

A FREE PORT

ence of His Excellency the tenant Fitzroy), who has thus obtained boon for the inhabitants of

ed in their behalf."

74. ?oe&r Qmaz

FROM ”TlN'l'ERN ABBEY”

Haunted me like tail rock.

gloomy wood. Thcir colours were then to me

That had no need charm

of

Unborrowed from the time is post,

no more.

other gifts Have followed: for would believe

such loss,

learned

ntlmes

ample power To chastcn nnd subdue.

The llge-(lid Story

lb!-

mountsinl Ind the hills

come up the iiiyrllo Tri'c;"'ind

not be cut off.

ILEW ONE MORE SAFE

cause his cafe-blowing

any lines. exemplary but today he drew

more safe."

- -NR SPRING SAMPLE! RAVI ABIIVID AT

1. P. rmrumnuu

Meir: Clothing Tim Filo

P to

"are seg- ments of community and national Against. these it takes more It. takes more even than allocation of funds It takes rmrc than pacts narrowly or widely concelv- ed. 11: takes a great and passion- ate refusal to be misled and for the broad mass of the people who must. look to others for leadership it takes men with enough insight and reassure them.-

.309'&G0sWaG9GGOWGO&

"Georgetown. P. E. I.. has been declared a Free Port. We under- stand the extension of this privil- ege is owing entirely to the influ- Lieu- Governor, tSlt Charles

that part of the Island which, it is not to be doubted, will materially in- fluence their prosperity, enabling them to exert their commercial en- terprise in a way which would scarcely have been afforded them had they not. enjoyed the powerful and efficient interest thus exert-

-Colonlal Herald, Jan, l9, 1339,

The sounding cataract a passion: the