September 9, 1920
What was happening a century ago this week from the front page of the Cowichan Leader.
September 9, 1920
A full-width headline reminded readers they had until 6 p.m. Saturday to enter the Fall Fair.
But the major news story was about the Labour Day reunion of veterans of the ‘Great War’ which had been favoured with ideal weather. “Everything passed off most successfully and the large number of visitors from all parts of the district enjoyed one of the best sports entertainments ever held.”
Unfortunately, the baseball game scheduled between Duncan and Granby didn’t materialize; however, some quickly mustered teams of local players filled the breach and “some snappy play was witnessed”.
Spectators watched high jumping, tugs of war (the heavier Duncan team won handily), quarter-mile, 100-yard, sack, egg and spoon races, thread and needle races for women, and two- and three-legged races for boys. There was even a tennis match between veterans and civilians, the vets winning both doubles and singles.
Among the special guests was a contingent of orphan boys from St. Ann’s School and the GWVA band from Victoria provided the entertainment, followed by dinner and dancing in the Agricultural Hall. The latter were interrupted by a brief power outage but the band kept playing and the dancers caught out on the floor “did their best to grope their way around the room” until power was restored.
Members of the local Chinese community opened a branch of the Chinese Nationalist League, their homeland’s idealistic and ill-fated attempt at democracy.
“Keen discussions” were the order of the day at the meeting of the Farmers’ Union during consideration of a proposed merger between the United Farmers of B.C. and the Canadian Council of Agriculture. One sticking point was local “repugnance” of some of the Council’s political platform.
The continuing campaign to eradicate Canadian thistle prompted a resolution to ask the provincial government to “undertake experiments in [designated] plots in the district”.
“Sahtlam Doings” reported a new school teacher at Sahtlam school, Miss Lisney, a graduate from a Prince Edward Island teaching college had replaced Miss Muir who’d gone back to university.
The Gwilt family who’d lost their new home on Riverbottom Road to fire, were wasting no time in rebuilding. “Hammer and nail are making the echoes ring around the old site in which, in three weeks’ time, a five-roomed one-storey home is due to be ready...”
As had become a yearly custom, many Cowichan Tribes families were off to the Yakima Valley, Wash., to pick hops. According to The Leader, hop picking was “very lucrative,” and so vital were they to the harvest that Washington hop farmers dispatched a cavalcade of cars to the Island to provide them free transportation.
Because younger, experienced pickers could fill as many as eight boxes a day, for $1.50 a box, “there should be quite a transfer of cash from America to Canada...”
A list of judges was posted for the Fall Fair and a new feature, the publication of a small catalogue itemizing all entries, was expected to expected to help livestock owners in particular to identify each animal as well as advertise their own entries. In short, “prospects for a fine showing from some of the best herds in the district are considered excellent”.
Last but not least, the news from North Cowichan Council. G.S. Tweedie, Westholme, wanted the road leading to his house to be gazetted because, at present, he could only access his property by way of a neighbour’s land. Council replied they could do nothing until the Province re-surveyed the old Island Highway, likely next year.
Next up was the Swallowfield Farm road. The latest word from farm owner Gore Langton who’d threatened to fence off the right-of-way which crossed his property, thus denying access to the owner of Mainguy Island, was that he’d settle for $11,000: $10,000 for the road easement, $1000 for damages already caused to his land.
Council, which had countered with the threat of expropriation and compensation of $300, had also agreed to arbitration. This left the matter of mutually agreeable arbiters, Gore Langton wanting no less than three.
Council then agreed to the sale of its rights in the Fortuna mineral claim on Mount Sicker to E. Molander, one of the original principals in the copper mining rush of 25 years before. No further details were given. (I believe that the Fortuna Mine, which never entered production, serves as the water source for the large Compton farms at the foot of Little Sicker Mountain on Cranko Road.)
Chemainus Clr. Rivett-Carnac brought up the matter of gasoline being improperly stored by resident How King; Council graciously decided to grant him permission to legally install a tank and pump.
Bylaw No. 96 which allowed veterans or widows or orphans of deceased soldiers some tax relief passed third reading but no further action was taken on repairs to the Maple Bay wharf which the Municipality had offered to take over from the province.
Plimley’s, an auto dealership in Victoria, had offered to trade the Municipality’s road tractor for a Maxwell or Republic truck. Clr. Paitson said he was against buying any more second-hand machinery as it never proved satisfactory and was more costly in the long run.
No action was taken on questions concerning the services of an engineer for the municipality, the conveyance of high school students by buses, a request from the YMCA to buy a subscription or the matter of Municipal Clerk C.S. Crane joining a union for municipal clerks.
On it went, with Clr. Riveett-Carnac strongly urging that all non-resident hunters be licensed (i.e. taxed), and it was agreed to pay $60 to the chairman of the reception committee for the recent visit of the Imperial Press conference in Duncan. Other bills to be paid amounted to $1,666.77.
Logging contractor McGregor appeared personally to argue against a bond being imposed on him to keep Municipal roads he was using to haul his logs in good condition. He claimed hat the public roads couldn’t have been worse than when he started and they were now much improved thanks to his fixing them at his own expense. He already had to pay to license both his truck and his trailer with the province, he added; if Council wanted money to repair the roads themselves, let them bill the province for a share of the license fees.
After “heated argument,” Council agreed to compromise and to rent him the two dump carts owned by the Municipality.
Finally, it also was agreed to order 400 loads of gravel for the Maple Bay Road to be used where most needed. The re-planking of the Tansor bridge was held over.
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