January 2004 - Vol Four, No.2

History Helps, Volume Four, Number 2, January 2004
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HAPPY NEW YEAR!

In the past New Year’s Eve was celebrated in a more public way than in modern times, as evidenced by this excerpt from The Ladner Optimist, 04 January 1945:

"New Year Welcomed at Many Events

The new year of 1945 was successfully ushered in at private parties and public dances in various parts of the districts. Some were boisterous and noisy while others were quiet and restrained.

Largest of the functions was the annual New Year Ball of Delta Chapter, I.O.D.E., held in the Community Hall, where 618 paid admission for the frolic which started at 12:01 and continued until 5 a.m. Supper was served here from 11:30 until nearly 1 a.m..."

Religion in Daily Life in the 19th Century

"SECRET SOCIETIES

Catholics May Allow Their Names to Remain on the Rolls, But Must Not Participate in the Ritual

St. Paul, March 2 -- Archbishop Ireland’s attention having been called to information taken from the Review of Chicago, regarding secret society decrees, admitted that the decree alluded to was authentic. He had himself received an official copy, and communicated the contents to the priests under his jurisdiction. While the Catholic church clearly desires, the Archbishop further said, to hold members aloof from these societies, she allowed all possible consideration in difficult circumstances, and is as indulgent in the application of her principles as those principles will allow.

The previous decree condemnatory of the societies of Odd-fellows, Knights of Pythias and Sons of Temperance are modified in two important points. First, Catholics who joined these societies before condemnation, and who, by total severance from them would suffer serious detriment, are now allowed to leave their names on the rolls of the societies, and pay into them dues and assessments, all other participation, however, being still prohibited. Secondly, in particular cases, where extraordinary difficulties arise from compliance with the letter of condemnation they will now be adjudged finally by the tribunal of the Delegate in Washington, instead of having to be referred to the congregations at Rome, which, being remote, are far less able to understand our local circumstances and complications arising from them.

What in the Archbishop’s opinion forms the only gravamen of the church against the societies of Odd-fellows and Knights of Pythias, is the religious features in them with [sic] which apparently transfer [sic] them into religious sects or churches. Those societies should leave out of the constitutions and rituals the mention of altars, chaplains, Bibles, etc., and adhere exclusively to the prime purposes of benevolence and brotherly counsel. In so doing societies strengthen genuine work, remove needless and offensive barriers and invite to membership men of all classes and all creeds.

‘It may be,’ said the Archbishop, a hopeful smile lighting up his countenance, ‘that all people concerned in the matter will work in a conciliatory spirit, and that all contentions and recrimination will cease.’"

Source: Vancouver Daily World, 02 March 1896, page two.

The Ephemera Society of America

Are you interested in ephemera? Probably the answer is "yes," as I suspect that no one who does research, of whatever kind, escapes having some of this stuff fall into his or her possession. But you need to know what ephemera is (as well as to know that the plural is ephermeras or ephemerae). My trusty Concise Oxford Dictionary defines ephemera as "short-lived thing; thing of short-lived usefulness." Not a very complete explanation.

The Ephemera Society of America at its website has this definition, namely, "a term used to embrace a wide range of minor, everyday documents, most intended for one-time or short-term use, including postcards, broadsides and posters, baseball cards, tickets, bookmarks, photographs -- and the list goes on." Collecting these and pasting them into albums was a popular pastime of Victorians.

Interesting website to check out at http://www.ephemerasociety.org/.

Rationing Winds Down After End of World War Two

"Unrationed Butter

Sugar Not Included

Buyers’ spree was the only way to describe the ascent of Delta housewives on local shops with the announcement of no more rationing, except for sugar.

Disappearing like snow in the sunshine were the piles of butter and shelves of jam in Delta shops. Housewives were choosy, too. Honey was in short supply. Women were asking for brand names and showing discrimination in their choice of long rationed jams and marmalade.

It would be difficult to say which proved the more popular, butter or jams and marmalades. Some shops were short on butter so there was shopping around but everyone who wanted to buy the extra pound or two, just for the sake of splurging, was able to do so.

Removal of butter rationing, expected though it was found the shopkeepers unprepared for the announcement on June 9, the King’s birthday. Ceilings were removed from restaurant meals in the same order.

One Ladner store had no butter until afternoon. Some stores continued to take ration coupons in view of lack of direct official world on the question. Other stores accepted the press and radio announcements and took no coupons.

At the same time dairy products of all kinds, including butter were removed from controls, Finance Minister Douglas Abbot told parliament.

He said the list was shorter and less important than at previous stages of the decontrol program.

‘The main groups, are, first, certain products which it is is desirable to remove from control now because of seasonal factors; secondly, a number of metals which show signs of having settled at price levels on world markets substantially above those prevailing in pre-war years, and thirdly, restaurant meals.’

Food stuff released from price control included all dairy products, including butter, cheese, evaporated milk and ice cream.
Honey was removed from both price control and rationing, while jams, jellies and marmalades while derationed still remained under price control as did raspberry jam or any jam containing strawberries or raspberries.

Removed from price ceiling were canned soups and salt.

Sugar was not de-rationed.

Local merchants faced the future under lack of control calmly. It is unknown just what the situation will be with butter removed from ration and price controls. Merchants took the wait and see attitude. One store manager declared that he just didn’t know. Another said it would be up to the public. If people rush to buy more than their needs there is danger of panicking and acute shortness of supply. Otherwise if people continue to buy wisely, what they need only, the supply will go around.

Expectations were for a price rise in butter. Retail price when rationing ended was 53 to 55 cents a pound."

Source: The Ladner Optimist, 12 June 1947, page eight.

Prisoner of War Camps on Vancouver Island

It’s not uncommon to find treasures in unexpected places, research in that regard being no different from any other kind of treasure hunting.

While on a browse through the web site of the Glenbow Museum, Calgary, I came across an entry in the archival holdings that was revealing about B.C. history. I had not known that during World War Two, there had been prisoner-of-war camps at Bamfield and Ucluelet on Vancouver Island.

The Glenbow Museum’s web address is http://www.glenbow.org, but don’t expect to find anything on this subject beyond a mention in the Herbert Sawley and Myrle Mugleston Fonds, as I did when I visited the Archives at Glenbow recently. But perhaps this could be a jumping off place for someone’s research interest.

One file, however, M7713, contains two cartoon drawings of the prisoners’ "blitz-fencing crew," artistically and entertainingly depicted. What a surprise that these have survived! I learned from a staff member that the Glenbow Museum has one of the prisoner-of-war shirts with the huge red bull’s-eye on the back.

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Gwen Szychter, M.A.

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