Duty \o Vote Doesn't Influence Canadian Election Turnout Established 1916 Published five days a week In Prince George, British, Columbia, by Citizen Publishers and Printers Ltd. A Member of The Canadian Press. Authorized os Second Class Mail by the Postmaster General. J. E. MILLER, General Manager D. C. THACKER, Managing Editor MONDAY, JUNE 5, 1961 LCB Forges Ahead The B.C. Liquor Control Board has just come out with the latest in a long list of stupidities it has foisted on the British Col urn Inn public, supposedly in tlu* name of (.'leaner Living, or what have you. There is a marked resemblance in the thinking of Fl u s s i a n Dictator Khrushchev and thai of B.C.'s dictatorial I.CH. Bp.^h enjoy a large measure of absolute power over people and business corporations within I heir domains. In lad, it appears that each is trying" to out-do the other in the I'ii'hl of coni'inins1;' regulations. In this battle for leadership.� bloodless though it may be and there-fare somewlnt humorous�LCB got in the first licks. Mr. K was a notably heavy drinker until, it is significant, he started sending emissaries of his fisheries and agriculture departments to B.C. to study our methods. These emissaries, already enthused by dictatorial powers in their own fields, apparently were able to impress Khrushchev with the possibilities in the field of liquor control. So Mr. K. at great personal sacrifice, quit, drinking. Next he ordered his subjects to quit djinkng too � for their own good, of course. Under Canadian democracy it is not possible for the LCB to gain such complete control over the people in direct fashion. Tint the LCB tries to do it in a round-about way. by making it as tough as possible to manufacture, buy and sell alcoholic beverages. Most recent of its edicts in this direction is advice from the I I'll that objections have been taken to the use of superlatives in liquor advertising in B.C. newspapers, This will mean that the use of such phrases as "B.esl in B.C.," "Fin-esl in the I louse." "The mosl popular," and otluM' claims are no longer acceptable. The board has given until June HO for replacing material if phrases' of this nature are being used in current advertisements. On or after that date the use of superlatives will not be permitted. It will be interesting to see how Mr. Khrishchev will react to this further evidence that the B.C. Liquor Control Board is able and willing to keep ahead of the Russians in this matter of curbing basic freedoms. Business Spotlight NEW YORK (/P)�Encouraging signs of improvement in U.S. business cropped up last week but persisting high unemployment dimmed some .of the lustre. Commerce Secretary Luther Hodges hailed an increase in new orders received by manufacturers in April and other factors as a continuation of "the good news about the improvement in the economy." The three per cent gain in new orders over March lifted the level to the highest point in 16 months. The April total was $30,700,000. New construction in May registered a better than season climb of 11 per cent from the previous month. The total of S4,R0(),00l),000 was three per cent above May, 19G0. An increase in employment and a decrease in unemployment occurred in May but if followed the usual seasonal pattern. Employment gained by 1,-044,000 to GG,778,000 but still was about 400,000 under a year ago. "There has not been the job recovery we have been looking for," commented Seymour Wolfbein, labor department manpower statistics chief. "The increase in steel output is solid and will continue well into next year," said the industry publication Iron Age. "The summer letdown will be less than many people think." Ford Motor Co. reporter! it ibuilt more cars � 179.589 � in May than any month since October. The time for contract negotiations 'between the United Auto Workers and the carmakers is nearing. Talks between the union and General Motors begin June 28 and with Ford and Chrysler in the following few days. Secretary of Labor Arthur J. Goldberg told a Detroit audience last week: "We cannot, from a standpoint of domestic policy or in the interest of world affairs, have a shutdown in the auto industry this year." He added that interruption of the business recovery by an auto strike would be "the height of economic fully." Getting Acquainted PARIS CAP) � President Kennedy's first effort at European summit diplomacy, his three days of meetings with President Charles de Gaulle, carries all the earmarks of a personal success. There had been some fear the American president might not get along with de Gaulle. The contrary was true. From the start there were none of the personality differences that sometimes have marked de Gaulle's high-level dealings. Although the French president is old enough to be Kennedy's father and often is as aloof as Mount Everest, the two got along famously. In the final analysis, this first confrontation was not as important in the things they talked about as in how they talked about them. Both discussed openly and frankly the problems that beset them and saw eye-to-eye on a number of items. Most immediate among these was Berlin, and Soviet efforts to oust the West from that-divided German city. Both agreed not to backtrack in Berlin under Soviet force or threat of force. They discussed the touchy problem of U.S. restrictions in giving nuclear information to its allies. And they talked broadly about Latin America, in which France Ltself has a stake. They mulled over the problems of the nuclear test ban and Laos conferences, aid to underdeveloped countries and emerging Africa, with no specifics reached. But it was made clear from the start that neither president expected their first meeting to be a question of dealing in specifics. It was to get acquainted, and Kennedy achieved a surprising success in the capital of a nation proud of its wisdom and skill in diplomacy. Modern Crystal Balls VANCOUVER (CP) � Some future finance minister when heckled by members of fhe opposition on the contents of his budget may simply refer them to his electronic computer and ti'll them to argue with that. This was one of the ideas In the long list of technical papers presented at the annual meeting ol the Engineering Institute of Canada. Whether tho future finance minister sicks the computer Borowing Trends OTTAWA �I1 � Money owed to finance companies at the end of March this year was $1,158,000,000, down from $1,1105,300,000 at the end of February, and up L.S per cent from $^141,000,000 at I he end of March last year. Balances outstanding on consumer goods at the end of March were $786,100,000, compared with $703,900,000 a month earlier and $71)0,400,-(100 a year earlier. Cash loans and instalment credit held by companies It-ci'liscd under the Small Loans Act were $.14(1.400,01)0 at the end of March, agitilisl $54H.-300,000 ll Ihp end of I'Vh-ni,i ry anil $408,400,000 at I lie oud of Morcli. HMio. onto the opposition, it will almost certainly supply much of the information on which his budget will be based. Speakers at a symposium on automatic controls suggested the computer may even hold the answer to avoiding the dips in the economic cycle which we call recessions. They predicted that through fast analysis of data fed to them the instruments will revolutionize our way of life and make economic forecasting something approaching a science. Government and business administrations will be made more efficient and much more flexible to meet changing situations. K. E, Boston, of the University or B.C.'.s department of mechanical engineering, illustrated the manner in which a computer might determine the correct economic objectives of an area. Almosl any area today, for instance, thinks it .should havo more secondary industry, However, this in sometimes open to ai'i'.umonl. As outlined by Prof, Boston, the computer could pretty well spell out the laic of such en-Ici'l'i'lses. Whether the computer Is the answer to our economic problems it is part of our daily life, as indicated by others of the r>!( technical jiiipcrs presented, It is, for instance, a key part of our defence and of our warning systems against attack. Lee J. Ilammerschmid of Bell Telephone Co. of Canada presented a paper on "rearward eommunicati o n s for the ballistic missile early warning system." expected to give a 15-minute warning of an ICBM attack and on whose performance will depend the decision for counter-attack. This is "machine talking to machine," and the communications responsibility i.s to see that information is trans-milted fast and accurately. However, the machines are hacked up in case of failure by voice and teletype circuits. Extremely sophistic a t c d electronics, too, are a large part of the Defence Research Board's "topaldor sounder satellite." This Canadian-built satellite, roughly 42 inches across and 34 inches high, will bo placed in a circular orbit Ii2f> miles above tho earth from the Pacific missile range In California sometime tioxi your. Its purpose Is to help .solve Canada's high frequency communications problems ur-i �hi!: from the ionosphere which is particularly disturb i'�l over Northern Canadian areas, The satellite is expect* od i<> supply Information fur a period ol aliiiul a year, Dy DON IIAXRIGHT Cl� Staff Writer It takes a big, clearcut election issue and one or more colorful personalities to produce anything above an average voting turnout in Canada. This is the opinion of electoral officers and political leaders who have watched and interpreted federal and provincial election results for years. � � � Those who diagnose record turnouts at the polls in the hope of discovering some sudden upsurge in the public's sense of duty are almost always disappointed. Observers feel that in every election a plateau is reached that represents the electors who yalue their franchise and vote at every apportiinity regardless of what is at stake. One well-qualified official places this level at about 70 per cent of registered voters in a federal general election, about (it) per cent in most provinces but slightly higher in others, and approximately 40 per cent in a municipal vote. What pushes tho figures higher? A Cross-Canada Survey by The Canadian Press produced a variety of answers. � * � In some constituencies party organizations virtually drag electors lo the polls, using such gimmicks as free rides and baby sitters. Per-' cenlages are also influenced .by pre-election "vote as you like but vote" campaigns conducted by newspapers, radio and TV stations, service clubs, advance-polling laws, season, weather, and absentee voting provisions. There has been no general upward trend in voting although increases have occurred in recent years in federal and some provincial elections. In modern election history the percentage of eligible voters, who vote has risen with the importance and clarity of the issue. It doesn't have to be a pocketbook appeal by one of the parlies. One example is the March. 1058, federal election which saw 6.t!80.(i90 of the 8,902,-125 registered voters cast ballots, a federal record of 79 HOW VOTERS TURNED OUT FEDERAL 50 PERCENT-V------- 25 1953 1957 1953 LAST PROVINCIAL ELECTION n 50 PERCENT 25 NFLD NB QUE ONT >ASK ALTA BC There have been increases in recent years in the turnout of voUms for federal and some provincial ekvtions. Uraphs show percentage of eligible voters who rast ha Hots in the last three federal elections (left) &,X\i\ in L'u' test ekvtions in nine provinces. �(T Newsmap. ence of a dynamic R. B. Bennett armed with tariff reforms and backed by a well-Iuvli1;! political c.rganzation; and 1945. an election that >:nv accent on post-war economic � issues and in which the Liberals accomplished the rare feat of slaying in office alter watt hue administration. � * � The 1957 ami 195� federal results were virtually copied in Manitoba. The record low turnout there was H(i per cent in 1941 during Hie wartime coalition government. Without the main parties competing, there were lfi acclamations in 1941 . Voting began to climb after the Conservatives pulled out of the coalition in 1950. The turnout reached 58 per cent in 1953 and til per cent in 1958 when the minority Conservative government was elected. The record of 66 per cent came a year later when the government sought a majority and got it. * * * Ontario's turnouts have been dropping snee its 71.49-percent vote in 1945, attributed to the public interest in charges by CCF leader E. B. Jultfie that Premier George Drew had set up a gestapp-like police force. In 1948 the Ontario vote dropped lo (J7.02 per cent. 11 was 64.59 n the 1951 election, 60.61 in 1955 and 58.89 in 1959. years in which there were few, if any, exciting issues. * � � Alberta's record was 81.72 .per cent in 1935. the year the late William Aberhart led Social Credit to power. The percentage fell steadily until 1952 when it was 59.17. It climbed to 68.03 in 1959 before dipping to 63.89 in 1959 when the opposition retailed only four seats. Quebec reached a post-war high.impossible to compare with earlier records which are uncertain, of 80.38 per cent last year when Liberal Jean Lesage ended 16 years of Union Nationule government It's hard to determine * whether Lesage's campagn provoked the extra vote. Quebec turnouts had been rising steadily since 1958, rea,ohuig 75.88 per cent in 1952 and 77 in 1956. Get-out-the-vote campaigns and lunger election campaigns are at least partly credited with the rise in Quebec. � � * Officials in New Brunswick said Premier Louis Robi-chaud's pledge of free hospital insurance premiums in tho June 27, 1960. election helped produce a big vote. Percentages aren't available for New Brunswick because of the multiple-seat ridings. However, tta popular vote in 1960 reached, a, record 783,399 compared with 756,-407 in 1952. In the same period the list of registered, voters grew by nearly 10,000 lo 295,232. Nova Scotia's turnout last year was 318.900, or 82.02 per cent of the 388.805 registered. This was an all-time high and compares with 80.51 per cent in 1956 and 77.9 in 1953. Reduction in the minimum voting age increases the total vote but it is doubtful whether it increases the percentage. Minimum age in Canada is 21 except in Alberta and Saskatchewan where it is 18 and B.C. where it is 19. * � � Saskatchewan in recent years has had the biggest turnouts in Canada. In the election last year there were . 527.144 registered and 434.349 voted. 84.1 per cent. It was 83.9 in 1956 and 82.9 in 1952. B.C. percentages have been around 70 per cent since 1937. Polling hours vary across Canada .but there is no indication they have a marked bearing on voting percentages. June appears to be the best month for a ibig vote. In 1960 Parliament gave all Indians the vote in federal elections. They may also vote in provincial elections in Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatche- . wan and B.C. In Prince Edward Island. New Brunswick, Quebec and Alberta Indians may not vote in provincial elections if they are living on federal reserves unless they are or have been in the armed forces. � CONSULTING � CRUISING � ENGINEERING � GENERAL FORESTRY INDUSTRIAL FORESTRY SERVICE LTD. 1591 Fourth Avenue P.. Geo., B.C. LO 4-4115 TO THE EDITOR per cent. � � � Ten months earlier on June 10, 1957, there was a Higher-than-average 74 per cent turnout lo elect the minority Diefenbaker government after a campaign that stressed 22 years of Liberal rule, the pipeline uproar and consequent charges of disrespect for Parliament, the personality contrast between John Diefenbaker and Lester Pearson and the question of old age pensions. Much of this was repeated the following March when the Conservatives went to the country armed with the celebrated "vision" and seeking �successfully, as it turned out, a mandate for a majority. The 79-precent record resulted. The previous federal record of 76 per cent was shared by three years: 1917, with it.s debate over I he famous Navy Bill and the Union government's stand for conscription; 1930, the start of (he depression and the emerg- Sir; On behalf of the Prince George Association for Handicapped Children I wish to thank all those who so generously donated, gave their time and help lo make the tea held last Wednesday a tremendous success. To the men who donned feminine hats, aprons and jewelry to .pour and serve al the tea; to Dr. Pontoni who donated the arts and ceramics of his students for sale, with proceeds lo the association; and to the Kincttes who sold the baking, we thank you all. Mrs. II. W. Steel, Vice-president. � � � Sir; Please be advised that a successful signing of a new work agreement between Local 494, United Rubber Workers and Dunlop Canada Ltd., has been completed. With the existing overtone of unrest in so many of Canada's industries, we are particularly proud of the cooperation and trust that has existed between union and company during the negotiation of contracts over the last six years. Such a relationship, we feel, if existing throughout the country could very well reduce production costs through increased efficiency, thereby returning Canada as a competitive factor in world trade. K. C. Wickett, Public Relations. UN BUTTiD-UP UNITED NATIONS (AP)� The UN reports It.s Conpro force has 'been built up to ]7,!Kil from a low of 15,554 on March 3 and Ethiopa is sending in 500 more soon. The peak was 19,750 in December. How do I save? SALVAGE ATTENTION TRUCKERS The Following Salvage is for Sale 1959 Mack Tandem, Cab and Chassis at- Prince George Motors Ltd. 1960 Ford F-800 Cab and Chassis at Dept. of Highways, Prince George. Interested parties please contact Mr. Barton at 4-7264 days or 4-4615 evenings, Service is Our When it comes to saving here's a trick wortli knowing. Avoid writing cheques against your Savings Account. Impossible? Not at all! Open a Personal Chequing Account at the "Royal". KEITH YORSTON President and General Manager of Q.M. Machine Works Ltd., is well-known in the North-Central Interior. Born south of Quesnol and raised in the Cariboo, Mr. Yorston was employed in the heavy construction field until ho bought the firm known as Qucsnel Machine Shop in 1951. When the need became apparent he formed a new company, Ouesnel Manufacturing Co,, in 1955, where machinery was serviced and where the pioneering work on remote control equipment for smaller mills was done. In 1960 Mr, Yorston took over tho premises of Prince George Machinery Depot and movod his offices to Princo Goorge to become known as Q.M. Machine Works Ltd. The firm Q.M. Machine Works Ltd. is rocognizod as a first class sorvlco conire for all types of sawmill, mining and construction equipment, as well as being a loader in tho manufacturing of specialized sawmill equipment. Now location of the O.M. Machino Works Ltd. shop has proved to bo a move In tho right direction and makos it possiblo for the company to proporly sorvo a larger area. Q.M. Machine Works Ltd. 975 Third Avonuo LOgan -1-2-1 SB Use this account for paying bills. Keep your Savings Account strictly for saving. The bank calls this the 2-Account Plan �a. sure-fire way to save. It makes sense. Give it a try. THE ROYAL BANK OP CANADA THE DANK WITH 1.0OO FRONT 00QH9 Prlncn Goorqr Branch: J, T. II McConntll, Manager Uranchoi olio (n Buim Loko and Quctnel