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Dedicated to the Progress of the North
W F A T H E R
Scattered rain and snow showers with variable cloudiness. Lit-fie change in temperature. Low tonight and high Tuesday, 25 and 3 8
Phone LO 4-2441
Vol. 3;  No. 41
PRINCE GEORGE, BRITISH COLUMBIA, MONDAY, MARCH 2, 1959
BY    CARRIER 35c   PER  WEEK
CONSTRUCTION headquarters for new RCMP living quarters being built on Irwin St. were hit by fire early Friday evening. The blaze, which broke out at 0:05 p.m., was caused by a faulty oil space heater, according to fire chief August Dornbierer. Damage was not extensive.                               �Vandervoort Photo
Cecil <�. Klphickc, mnna-cinn director of radio station CKPC;, filed jrstorday. Ho �w'HS-flfl.   �---���"-�*
Mr. Elpliifike, who founded the radio station here 14 years ago, died in his home at 1690 Larch St.
He is survived by his wife, Norah, and a son, Robert.
Mr. Klphicke had boon in radio broadcasting in B.C. for 25 years.
Before coming to Pr-in.c-e George in 1945 he was connected with radio stations at Grande Prairie and Kelowna.
His brother, Frank H. "Tiny", is managing director of radio station CKWX  in Vancouver.
The opening of radio station GKPG was considered to be one of the heftiest challenges in his life.  It was started in the now-
demolished Rils-Keefer building on George Street.
His. 2-">-yo;��,, Cj^fiiu.iJV.,-broadcast in� made him one of the most widely known and respected members of the profession in the province.
"Cecil Elphicke has been associated with the broadcasting industry in B.C. for many years and has been one of its most respected members," Vancouver radioman Jack Savers, president of the B.C. Association of Broadcasters told The Citizen by telephone this morning.
"He will be greatly missed because we always looked upon him as a personal friend," he said.
"Wo express our deepest sympathy to his wife, Xorah, and son Robert."
Robert is enrolled in a school at Victoria. Mr. Elphicke was highly roc-
Your Citizen Carrier
IXARI.E.YE RICHET
Citizen carrier Darlene lllchet saves the money which she doesn't, spend on clothing for a bicycle.
Darlene, who is 11 years old, is in grade six at Connaught elementary school. She is the daughter of Mr. ami Mrs. C. 1. Riche't, (VM) Third  Ave.
Darlene's favorite sports are skating ami swimming,', which .-lie- has many opportunities to do in Prince George.
She has been delivering the Citizen for three years and works closely with her brother who is also a Citizen carrier.
"She spends most of her money on bobby-sox and sweaters but Darlene is also insisting that she will buy a bicycle with her earnings," her mother said.
to have never dismissed an employee from CKlY;.
Funeral arrangements have not. yet been announced by the family.
A special memorial service will bo conducted at Sr. Michael and All Angels' Church he-re at noon tomorrow, Rev. Canon 'I'. I).   R.   Allen  officiating.
Th.e funeral will take place in Vancouver on Thursday.
Tin1 faniilv requests that, there no flowers as Mr. Klphicke had expressed tiie wish than any such gifts of remembrance may take the form of donations to the Canadian Arthritic and Rheumatism Society and be sent to OARS headquarters at 645 West Broadway, Vancouver,
UPSTAIRS quarters of a home owned by Mr. and Mrs. John A. Knox, 929 Johnson St., was damaged by fire at 3:50 p.m. yesterday. Damage was not extensive but the fire is believed to have started in the electrical wiring.
TEACHER SHORTAGE DISCUSSION TOPIC
The current shortage of teachers in British Columbia, and means to overcome it. will be the topic of the guest speaker on Parent-Teacher Time tomorrow night. � " Sp'effTferTrfrthefJ fTm". Tfrd'Scrcast will be" F. C. BoyesC director of student teaching, faculty of education at the University of B.C.
Teachers Attacked
The money Prince George ratepayers have to pa^y for teachers is "entirely out of proportion" in relation to the funds allotted for teaching supplies, the chairman of District 57 School Boards'  finance committee said   last
week.
"We are paying close to $1,-000,000 in teachers' salaries this year while all we can afford for paper and pencils and other teaching supplies is five cents per student per day."
This statement, was made by Robert Range during delivery of what he called a "barebone budget," to rural representatives and city council delegates.
.Mr. Range also attacked teachers for "playing one school board against thc other" during annual salary negotiations.
They are taking advantage of every district's ambition to obtain teachers and willingness to pay them high salaries before they are secured by another district"."   lie  said.
Mr. Range said this situation could be changed only by a provincial salary scale for teachers.
Main stumbling block in the B.C. School Trustees Association's efforts to institute such scale is a strange rivalry" between Vancouver and Toronto, Mr. Range said.
"Vancouver insists on paying at. least the same salaries as Toronto in order to attract   the
CONSTRUCTION CHEAPER
same calibre of teachers," he said.
.Main factors in boosting total teachers' salaries to $980,000 this year are the fact that teachers are getting two increases a year and that the district wilL have to hire 17 new teachers with an average salaiy of SH0 a  month,  he said.
Another item is 910,000 to cover cost of substitute teachers .
Original Comparison
District. T>7 School Board Thursday was compared to the Salvation Army.
The comparison was irmie by trustee Roiert Range in answer to a Citizen editorial advocating use of gymnasiums as  revenue-making  facilities.
He snhi:
"We are in the same position as the Salvation Army� we seldom have a paying guest."
Mr. Rar�ge pointed otit that most outside sports organizations requesting use of gymnasiums were not prepared to pay the rental.
K. F, Alexander, superintendent of schools, has appealed to rural communities to "make teachers feel at home" in order to make District 57 schools more desirable to teachers.
"The teacher shortage is so acute they (the teachers) can pretty well take their own pick where they want to ro, and giving this district a teacher-friendly reputation Is the only -way to succeed in the annual competition for good material," he said.
Mr. Alexander made these remarks at request of school board chairman   Ray   Atkinson   at   a
K.   V.   ALEXANDER
meeting of trustees, aldermen and rural representatives last night.
He also warned parents not to undermine teachers' authority:
"When speaking in front of children, give the teacher every possible support," he said.
been   released
ment,               i
 by   the   govern-
ment;
WANT  REPORT The .Government
 Employees
A B.C. civil servants organizer last night moved into Prince George to give 2G0 local government employees the background on the B.C. Government Employees Association's strike ballot currently being conducted among 11,000 members.
Galiots will be counted at the----------'�---------------------------------
>eginning of next week in Van- The secprcl resoiution revolves �ouver   heud'iuarters.   The  serv-            , ..            �      ,      .-,�,,   v.
iiita' executive wants authority! aiound thc lrtW by A. W. H. to strike if the government doesj.Carrother, of the University of apt agree to an 8 per cent wage! B.C., into arbitration involving ncrease asked by the assocla-j civil servants and the govern-tion.
John F. Murrell, director of organization, outlined to local members the reasons behind thc strike ballot and the issues at stake at a meeting Sunday night n the banquet room, of the Prince George Hotel.
Priuco George civil servants unanimously endorsed t w o resolutions) supporting t li e m'ovinciril executive's wage demands and asking that the government release the recent CaiTothci" Keport on arbitration.
The overall 8 per cent increase asked by the association was studied by the Civil Service Commission which, in turn, reported to the government on Its findings.
Mr. Murrell told The Citizen this morning the Commission had agreed to the demanded wage boost and recommended acceptance by the government. However, the report has not yet
Association claims the government had promised to present the Carrother Report to the legislature and the provincial executive of the I3CGEA. However, r.o step in this direction has teen taken by the government so far.
Mr. Murrell claimed the B.C. civil servants were an average of 10 per cent behind in wages as compared to similar positions in  business  and  industry.
He charged the government with trying to stall on paying increases.
"The government has nt'o-ridert in its budget only 50 per mil of the money neocn-savy to meet ouv demands," he said.
"They are trying to put. off any wage boosts until fall. Then it will he 27 months since our last  increase."
Civil servants negotiated their last  settlement in July, 1937.
Rotary-An nes' Attack Downs Male Bastion
Another male bastion fell Friday before a distaff onslaught and the invaders took over without meeting even token resistance.
Element of .surprise was thc tactic that best favored the insurgent force and the ladies were in full control before the males were even aware of what, was happening.
Scene of the bloodless battle between the sexes was the weekly Rotary luncheon. As president Chuck Ewart called for the members to take their places, women streamed into the meeting room through the kitchen entrance. They were the wives of the Uotari-ans who informed the gathering in an original song that they had come to join their husbands for lunch.
They did inure tli.-m just that. Several of the invaders escorted President Kwart und other officers from the head table and the Inures took over witli Mrs, Harold Hatch assuming the chairman's seat. From there on, the pi'ogWim was under the direction of (he ladies.
Flotarians who had nn complaints to offer were those whose birthdays were being recognized last week and they unanimously agreed that receiving birthday greetings from I he ladies is much more desirable than having Chuck  Ewart shake their hands.
The meeting was climaxed by a hilarious interpretation by the ladies of a Rotary directors' meeting.
Thc invasion by the wives was one of the best-kept secrets of the year and was engineered by Bob Harkins, the program chairman.
Participating in the directors' meeting skit were: Mrs. J. T. H. McConnell, Mrs. Lylc F. Knight, Mrs. Bruce Johnston, Mrs. Harvey Clark, Mrs. Tony Rarlford, Mrs. Hartley Fawcett, Mrs. Harry Lbcler and Mrs. dene Zarek. Mrs. Jan Evans and Mrs. C. O. Albtns took over club collection detail.
And to make the rout complete, the husbands were charged for their wives lunches.
Brand new houses without down payment aiid for low monthly installments arc now available to pros-perl: ivc home owners in Prince George, thanks to the invention of a local contractor.
Stewart Wood, head of Woodcraft Construction, Is planning to build 25 new homes this year with a new type of construction Mat enables him to save a substantial 'amount of money with-dill loss of quality. The saving will be passed on to buyers in the form of a no-down payment deal.
Mr. Wood says this is the first  time such  an  opportunity '
has ever been offered to home buyers in Prince George.
This is his secret:
In the conventional type of house, contractors have to sink walls at least six feet below the surface in order to go below the frost lino. In most cases, they ;;o down another two feet and put in a basement.
lit" anchors concrete pillars, at intervals of 1G feet, below the frost line, and connects them wit!; 20-inch reinforced concrete beams-at surface level. Thus he eliminates the cost of building six-foot deep walls all around.
The new construction type has another advantage that should prove attractive to buyers   with   a   limited   budget:   a
conf-iderable saving on the fuel bill.
The furnace, with normal power hut in a case so small that it can be placed in a wall closet, sucks the air from the rooms and blows it under the floor where it circulates and heats the house through small registers.
Mi-. Wood says this novel heating system will but the fuel   bill  almost,  in   half.
What all "this-.amounts to is that a Orfp-sguare foci house can be bought for �59 monthly payments, no down payment, and with below-average heating costs.
Furthermore, as an incentive to   home   buyers'   own   creative
thinking, Mr. Wo tI is leaving thr:Ti the choice where to place partitions, at  no extra cost.
The first model of this construction type is hearing completion at lfi'JO Quince Street. It has two bedrooms, one utility room containing the furnace, kitchen, bathroom and living room.
By different placing of the partitions. tne house can be converted to a tbvee-bedroom | dwelling, it IjIso features double windows, mahogany cabinets and a   15->'ear bonded, roof.
Besides choice of partitions, home buyers can also pick their own colors of flooV and walls.
There is a limit of 25 homes of this type for thi^ yeai\   '
ONE OF THE slowest-selling items in Prince George last weekend was the 1959 motor vehicle licence plates. Staff of the government agent's office worked overtime Saturday to give last-minute shoppers an op-
portunity to buy their plates. Above, Mrs. Loris V. Peters, H. W. Beckley and J. H. Guest are shown awaiting customers.
�Vandorvoort Phota