A8 CASTLEGAR NEWS, April 16, 1980 Reflections & Recollections e '@ a) a f At 90 his eyes are bright, his memory phenomenal ‘ iman, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of “He has shewed thee, O - thee, but to do justly, and to ‘ love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God.” Ona Living Symbol By J.A. CHARTERS His step is slow and his back is bent under the press of 90 years of honest toil, but his eyes are still bright, his handshake firm and strong, his memory phenomenal and his smile lights up a face which vigorously denies his age. He also drives his old half-ton from his farm on Horkoff's mountain down to the town, and not infre- quently leaves behind his cane {which is more a symbol of his years and dignity than an aid to walking) in the truck. cab. Like that cane he, too, is a symbol — a symbol of a people and an era, I am writing, of course, of my venerable and valued friend of many years, Mike F. Verigin of Castlegar, and a very senior member of the Doukhobor Spiritual Com- munities of Christ. He was born, he tells me, the only son of a peasant farmer in the village of Slavonika, in a part of the Caucauses which has been taken.from the Turks by the Russians. His grandfather was Peter (Lordly) Verigin, the leader who brought the Doukhobor people to Canada and established the many communal villages through- out the Kootenays; Peter (Chistiakov) Verigin, Lord- - ly's successor was his uncle and the present honorary chairman of the USCC, John J. Verigin, is a cousin. In the year 1895 (the year of the symbolic burning of all weapons. by the Douk- hobors), when he was five years old, he remembers being taken 50 miles by cart to visit his father Fred, and his grandfather, who had been thrown into prison to- gether with many other Doukhobor men for refusing service in the Tsarist army. They arrived only to find that his father had been beaten to death, possibly with the lethal Russian whip the knout, a Tartar invention which consisted of an eight- foot, sharp-edged, barbed strip of leather on a two-foot wooden handle. In the hands of an expert, it could kill a man with one blow, or flay him alive, Strangely enough, he was treated kindly by the guards, taken to the graves of his father and two other men, allowed to spend time with his grandfather (also named Fred — brother to Peter Lordly, and later to die in Siberia), given shelter for himself and his mother for the night, and allowed to return the next day to Slavonika. There followed five years of great suffering and priva- tion for many Doukhobors, after which time 800 of the people, including:the 10-year- old Mike, his mother and uncles Alex and Bill, aided by the Quakers and Count Leo Tolstoi, took passage on the cattle-boat the ‘Leghorn’ landing in Halifax after 31 days at sea. From here they then took a colonist train to Selkirk, Man., where they ‘spent the winter in a big arena, living on food supplied by the government. The following spring saw Mike and some 400 people move to a bald piece of prairie some 40 miles outside of Yorktown, Sask. where they laid out streets and lots big enough to raise a garden and keep a cow and some chickens, Shelters of logs, tents, or earth dugouts like Indian wikiups were built, gardens dug and carrots, cucumbers, cabbages and po- tatoes planted against the y coming of winter. The village of Kalmakow was born. Soon a communal bakehouse was built, and here the women took turns baking bread for the com- munity. Within three years they had a community meet- ing hall. For the next eight years, like any other farm boy, young Mike worked about the village and on the neighboring farms around Brandon helping with the ploughing, planting, harvest- ing and threshing. es At age 18 he married Dounia Plotnikoff, also 18, and went to work as a car- penter for two contractors, Jim Logan and Bill Black. In 1912 he came to. Castlegar, but found little work and, after one year, returned to Saskatchewan where he started building houses. He recalls one such house which he and two other men built in 1914 for “Old Man” Buchanan (for whom the town of Buchanan is named). It was a two-storey, family dwelling of five bed- rooms, with a large veranda and cellar. Cost of labor for the job? Four hundred dol- lars! Nonetheless, he was able to save enough money to buy two quarter-sections (320 acres) of land which he, his wife, two sons and two daughters farmed until 1936, raising wheat and cattle and plowing the land with three teams of horses. He then sold. out, moved back to Castle- gar, bought a small farm next. to the present Anderson ranch and went to work for: Sam and Bill Lazareff in Trail. The produce, such as apples, peaches, cherries and eggs, from his little farm, he sold in the market in Trail and in the district. i In 1965, at the age of 75, he laid down his carpenter's tools but continued to work his farm. A short time after his retirement, he lost his wife of 60 years, and is also pre-deceased by his two sons. However, he is fortunate in having his two daughters, Mrs. Mary Swetlikoff and Mrs. Ann Qdeau living in Castlegar, and has, as well, * five grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. , He continues to live as he has always lived — simply and quietly, on the land. Mr. Verigin is, as we stated earlier, a living sym- bol of a faith, a people and an ideal which is summed up in the Doukhobor slogan “Toil and Peaceful Life.” * od . My readers will, I hope, note, that what. self-restraint I have avoided asking Mr. Verigin that question so oftén favored of interviewers of elderly people: “To what do you ascribe your great age?” T feel that the answer is “best given in the above slogan, or perhaps in Micah 6:8 — Mike F, Verigin and grect-grandson Geoffery Fontes Eighty guests view Pythian Easter Parade £ social evening with “Fun Fasions” as its theme, was held by the local Pythian Sisters, Knights and friends on March 29 in the Masonic Hall. A spaghetti and meat- ball supper was served to approximately 80 guests, fol- lowed by an Easter Parade of hats which were decorated by several of the Pythian Sisters. A few brave gentle- men in the audience, plus some of the Knights, wore the hats and paraded on the stage. The judges chose the following hats: Carol Em- mons as the favorite Easter Bonnett; Dorothy Schwiertz as the most equisite with its bird chirping effect; and _Nora Miajesgy as the most original. Little Candice and Tara Goodery also were in the act with their own Easter bon- netts and each received a prize. 5X, Attention Men & Boys! For All Seasons Bonnett’s ,, 233 ‘Solumbia li’s Boys & ens Wear 365-6761 Remember 10% OFF for Cosh | $8.00 MAXIMUM VALUE of aNEW CANADIAN [IMPERIAL BANK OF COMMERCE Present this coupon at any branch of “OUR BANK” For a maximum discount of $8.10 on the rental Safety Deposit Box. Ssimply open one of the following: ¢ Personal Chequing; Account © Chequing Savings Account Key Account And you will pay no rent on your NEW* Safety Deposit Box for the balance of 1980. CLIP THIS COUPON TODAY $8.00 MAXIMUM VALUE é *$8.00 COUPON int applies to facility where necessary * COUPON A hilarious high was Rev. H. M. Harvey for his most welcome assistance. My sincere thanks to the & Bingo: Every Thursday at 7 p.m. La. Sunday Bingo - Royal Canadien Legion| eying PAOORE Early Bird 6:30 p.m. Regular 7:00 p.m. ne Your Carpet Headquarters... Carpets by Ivan Oglow 365-7771 PUBLIC NOTICE RESIDENTS OF THE CITY OF CASTLEGAR SPRING CLEAN-UP PROGRAM . The City's Spring Clean-Up Program will take place from Monday, April 14, 1980 through to Friday, May 2, 1980, . Garden shrubbery and household refuse will be picked up provided the householder complies with the following: 1. Branches MUST be tied and piled in neat bun- dles. 2. Leaves, garden refuse, and paper MUST be placed in plastic garbage bags or cardboard boxes. The following items WILL NOT be picked up: 1. Rocks 2. Concrete 3. Any other. objects that cannot be handled by one man. Refuse should be put out on your normal garbage pickup day and be placed at property line close to the grea where your weekly garbage pickup is made. Schedulé will be the same as the normal weekly gar- bage pickup. The Ootischenia Disposal Site is open every day, for anyone wishing to haul their own refuse. IN ADDITION TO THE ABOVE: . For pickup of old stoves, refrigerators, washing machines, dryers, hot water tanks, and chesterfields — please phone City Hall at 365-7227. This service will only be offered for the duration of the Spring Cleanup as advertised above. Your co-operation in helping us to have a clean city will be very much appreciated. Thank you. tothe CITY OF CASTLEGAR the fun fashions of women’s clothes and hats, modeled by several of the Knights of Pythias. ‘ Judges for the Hat Par- ade were Mr. and Mrs. Bud Piper of Salmo, Mr. and Mrs. Jack Woodward of Rossland and Mr. and Mrs. George Santano of Montrose. _ Winner of the hand- crocheted poodle and wine decanter was Van Eldstrom, while the crocheted pillow was won by Inez McAdam. Both prizes were made by Helen Peddle. Mrs. Donna Goddey (nee Dewis) and a member of Kootenay Temple No. 87 Pythian Sisters, was pre- sented with a gift prior to. leaving for her new home in Germany where her husband will be serving with the Army for approximately four years. Dancing followed with several novelty dances add- ing to the evening's enjoy- ment. QUESTION: Someone J know is facing a law suit because his small, 12-foot - outboard crashed into a canoe, Does Comprehensive Personal Liability insurance cover anyone in a situation like this? ANSWER: Yes, if the boat was small as you say and if the motor was less than 10- ANDERSON Insurance Agencies 61 Maple 865-3392 CASTLEGAR Bingo Hauser’s Robson & District Volunteer Fire Department Presents WEST COAST AMUSEMENTS Carnival & Midway 3 DAYS ONLY e Friday, April 18th © Saturday, April 19th © Sunday, April 20th _at the Castlegar Community Complex e RIDES © GAMES © FOOD KIDDIELAND FUN FOR AiL COME TO THE MID-DAY MADNESS SUNDAY, APRIL 20th FROM NOON TO 6 P.M. Ride 6 hours for only $7.00 WRIST TICKETS BY : ADVANCE SALE ONLY You Can Buy Your Advance Tickets at... © Johnny's Grocery ® Robson General Store © SuperValu or Safeway (a & Sat. only) ® Or from any Robson Volunteer Fireman Ly ire a! esi ore layoffs seen for Cominco’s top post object of rum Reports that Co- minco Ltd, will under- go a corporate re- shuifle this month are “entirely specula- tion," according ‘to a spokesman for the multinational mining empire. : Contacted in Vancouver last week, public relations of- ficer Herb Lett con- firmed Gerald H.D. Hobbs, 59, will not stand for re-election to the Cominco board of directors at the . company’s annual meeting Tuesday and . therefore will vacate his position as chair- man, . _ But suggestions that 49- year-old Norman N, Ander- son, currently Cominco's president and chief operating officer, as a likely replace- ment for Hobbs are “pre- mature,” the company spokesman said, The speculation arose from an April § Vancouver Sun story which identified Anderson as the apparent choice of Ian Sinclair, chair- man of Canadian Pacific Ltd. — the Montreal-based com- pany controlling Cominco — as a candidate for the posi- tion. Anderson has had a meteoric career at. Cominco since rejoining the company six years ago, according to the Sun. “Anyone who knows Ian and how he operates realizes the kind of clout that man has at Cominco,” a source was quoted by the Sun as saying. “I can assure you that An- derson would not have risen . as rapidly in the company if Sinclair thought he couldn't do the job.” Likely contenders for Anderson's job are Harold T. Fargey, executive vice-presi- dent based in Toronto and Bill Wilson, vice-president, finance and accounting, it said. Wilson is reportedly con- sidered by Sinclair and other senior management at Co- minco to be an executive with an exceptional future ahead of him. The Vancouver daily noted Cominco — which has committed $425 million to an Will await island o The city has little choice but to await expiry of a potential developer's purchase option on Zuckerberg Island before at- tempting to acquire the property for use as a public park, Mayor Audrey Moore said last week. The mayor was explain- ing the decision at city coun- /. ea = ~NEWS- April 16, 1980 HE REGIO aie RECENT REPORTS identify Norman An- = = derson, right, as the likely replacement for Gerald Hobbs, above, who will vacate his post as chairman of the Van- couver-based Cominco Ltd. multi- 4 4-national: mining empire. Pictured: in - background is a composite photo of Cominco’s Kootenay smelting and mining operations. eight-year upgrading pi gram for.its Trail lead and zine plants and Kimberley mining operations — “is now entering a decade which will see the company. undertake several major expansion pro- jects.” Its profits last year more than tripled to $203.7 million from $67.4 million in 1978, Last year Cominco's capital expenditures totalled $150 million and Anderson has Kootenay woodworkers ur The approximately 500 woodworkers loyed: in the Koot b ed crease, P of. forest industry production cutbacks will in- That is International Woodworkers of ‘America officials’ forecast of the impact the high cost of money in Canada and the U.S. will have on their members — of whom 6,000 out of 48,000 in B.C. are without work — if in- terest rates are not eased. Wayne Nowlin, presi- dent of the 3,100-member IWA Loca} 1-405, said Friday the jobless figure for the Kootenays represents recent and predicted layoffs caused by slumping lumber and ply- wood markets in the U.S., upon which the southern in- continue for several years, * Hobbs intends to remain on the boards of directors of several other major Canadian ies, but at the same dic heavy ding will Trail man convicted in $50,000 silver theft, two slated for disposition May 7 Lewis Brent Wehner last Wednesday became the second of the four men charged in connection with the theft of $50,000 worth of silver from Cominco to be convicted and sen- tenced. Wehner, a Trail resident who pleaded guilty Feb. 13 to theft of over $200, was sen- tenced in Nelson provincial court to nine months im- prisonment with the recom- mendation that the term be ‘served at a corrections forest cil's March 24 regular meet- ing to inform owners of the seven-acre island, situated at the junction of the Columbia and Kootenay rivers, the city is interested in the property and wished to be notified should Nakusp resident Ron -Adams'’ option lapse. Moore said city solicitor advised council to await the option's expiry, reportedly at the end of this month, before taking further steps to ac- quire the island. camp near Campbell River on Vancouver Island. In Grand Forks _pro- vincial court March 10 Terry William Duff, who had also pleaded guilty to theft of over $200, was fined $2,000 Although Adams told the Castlegar News last week he would be willing to consider an offer from the city for the property, Moore pointed out this week “he hasn't bought it yet.” She said she did not know whe- ther the ial devel or three months imprison- ment in default plus a 90-day jail term to be served inter. possession of the stolen sil- ver, are scheduled to appear in Rossland provircial court it during in Nelson. Duff, of Castlegar, was also placed on 18 months probation. Castlegar residents Pe- ter Bruce White, pleading not guilty of theft over $200, and Thomas Michael Math- ers, pleading not guilty to conspiracy to possess and to May 7 for di of their cases. Mathers was the only one of the four not employed by Cominco when the silver was stolen from the com- pany's Trail smelter. Arrests were made following at- tempts to sell the metal to a refinery in the lower main- land. ption expiry she said. “I think we would be® better off dealing with who- ever happens to be the prin- cipal.” The island is presently chapel. Counci! moved at its March 25 meeting to block Adams’ application to the lands, parks and housing ministry to legalize an exist- i ing the owned by the of pioneer Alexander Zucker- ing island with the shore, and would be able to renew his option on the island. “I suppose if he is hold- © ing the title then we will have to talk to him, but right now he is the holder of an option,” berg, who acquired it about 50 years ago. Standing on the island, viewed by the city as having historical and archae- ological value,is a house constructed in the shape of a small Russian Orthodox “to any access ap- proval to the island until the city’s community plan update is completed” and more in- formation is available on B.C. Hydro’s ‘proposed Murphy Creek dam on the Columbia. Council endorses bid for peace vote A proposed global referendum on disarmament won the endorsement of Castlegar city council last week. Council passed Ald. Charles Cohoe’s motion to support the organization Op- eration Dismantle's concept of the global plebiscite and letters to Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, External Affairs Minister Mark Mac- Guigan and lesders of the federal opposition parties re- questing Canada propose such a world vote to the United Nations general as- sembly next fall. The motion was in res- ponse to a letter last month from the Ottawa-based group's director James Stark, who said Operation Dismantle “prides itself in being the world’s most rea- sonable disarmament organi- zation.” “We do not support uni- lateral disarmament nor do we seek cancellation of Can- ada’s fighter-plane purchase or a pullout from NATO or NORAD,” the letter said. “What we propose is an ‘affirmative action’ program through which the people of all nations can express their views and participate dir. ectly in the historic choice fo a disarmed world.” : Estimating the cost of the world arms race at $450 billion annually, a draft res- Soviet invasion of Afghanis- tan “has created an at- mosphere in which world war is possible." Claiming broad national support and growing inter- national support for the proposed. referendum, the letter said that “from mid- April to May 30 we will have olution provided by Oper- ation , Dismantle said the on Parliament Hill.” terior forest industry is heav- ily dependent, as well as in Canada, ~ : “Right now we have Crows Nest Forest Products (at Elko) talking about laying off 240 on April 18, we have Galloway Lumber (about 56 kilometres east of Cran- ors. time is expected to focus on what he believes are some of the major problems and issues facing Canada. He is convinced that businessmen have a vital role to play in how Canada resolves various economic and political issues. By cutting all his ties with Cominco he will be able to speak out and not feel confined because he is the WA plans ‘to raise hell’ with Ottawa brook) that is down to one shift four days a week, and Revelstoke Sawmills in Radium has laid off about 85 to 100 people,” Nowlin said. “And we have rumors from all over the place." He noted the market slump caused by high mort- gage costs has also resulted in the unemployment of about 11,000 woodworkers in the Pacific northwest region. Contacted in Vancouver Friday, [WA researcher Clay Perry said spokesmen for the union's international office in Portland, Ore. have at- tempted “to sce if they can Persuade people in Washing- ton(D.C.) that something has got to be done” about the effect of the U.S. interest rates on lumber and plywood markets, Political action is also planned in Canada after the opening of the House of Commons this week, he said. “As regards to Ottawa I guess we'll wait until they have the Speech from the Throne to see whether they have any plans to deal with this thing,” he said. “We'll generally be raising hell with them if there aren't some substantial plans.” cratic Pary forests critic, said Thursday there are “some indications out of Ottawa" that the federal government will consider the effect of rising interest rates “a little more seriously” and intro- duce programs providing for reduced loan rates for con- struction of new houses, “That will be. of some assistance in terms of our plywood industry and our markets in western Canada,” Kristiansen, formerly finan- cial secretary of IWA Local 1-405, said. “But most of the south- ern interior is dependent on the American market and there’s not much we can do to influence it.” : “Actually we're failrly lucky right now,” he said. “One of the reasons we haven't been harder hit is that some of our plywood industry in the interior is still tied up in eastern Canadian market. And while that is deteriorating rapidly, it hasn't been quite so bad as it has been in the States.” “The other thing that's saving our necks is the fact that the inventories in the yards in the States are very low so they can’t start dump- Kootenay West MP Lyle - Kristiansen, New Demo- More on Page Co Watson: justa matter It's a question of when, not whether, Canadian Cellulose will expand _ its Castlegar kraft pulp operation, according to Don Watson, In an interview featured in a ublication.distri- uted last month to CanCel employees Watson, the com- pany's president and chief executive offi- cer, predicted expan- sion of the 515-tonne- per-day mill “within two or three years” but listed product lines and fibre supply among the factors which must be weighed before the decision can be made. The Castlegar sawmill head of a large corp le It will be the third time Hobbs will have started a new career. He joined Co- minco in 1968 after 22 years in the steel industry. At the time, the feeling was that since Hobbs wasn't a career mining executive he would have problems managing one of Canada’s largest mining companies, But those doubts dis- appeared, More on Page C5 “is a little diffe from some of the other ex- pansion opportunities that may occur in CanCel’s fu- ture,” Watson said in the interview. “We've already done a lot of sophisticated research on its long-term possibilities, so it’s obviously one of our highest priorities," he ex- plained. “It's been quite clear to us for some time that the Castlegar pulp mill has to be expanded. When that ex- Castlegar News. the second Good review Tor the new BI Favorable comments have been received from readers about the “second front page” which: Titled “The Region,” page B1 contains ‘news of interest throughout the West Kootenay area, as well as news of specific interest to the Castlegar district. News/Mirror editor Ryon Guedes said front “challenges” for the news department, but adds: “We believe the effort well wor- thwhile. It certainly strengthens our news coverage and helps reflect the ‘crossroads’ importance of Castlegar.” Managing editor Lois Hughes said the start of the “second front page” reflects the continuous efforts of the Castlegar- News to improve its product for readers. is now B1 of the Page presents of time pansion will come now is only a matter of time.” Watson added that a forestry consultant, current- ly preparing a report on the region’s long-range outlook and updating a report CanCel commissioned in 1975, is “looking at a lot of different Product lines besides kraft pulp.” “There are a number of Possibilities for expansion such as _thermo-mechanical mill... which, unfortunately, is rather energy intensive,” the CanCel president said. “Or we could be looking at other possibilities for expansion such as TMP con- verted lightweight coated paper, which would take our production a step further toward a finished product.” But he said the final decision on expansion will depend on the fibre available to CanCel in its Tree Farm Licence 23 — from which the company has been harvesting timber ‘at a rate far below its annual allowable cut, which means the forest service could rescind its cutting rights. “We've got enough now to support a new mill, but we have to move fairly quickly if we want to secure it for the future,” Watson said in the interview. ‘I would say there could very well be a major de- velopment taking place in Castlegar within two or three years,”