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4 ^ * -4 It * J * ^ 4 A $ f * â- >. * « * * it 'A 4 4. * r f f ; * L I * i «. » « * * CANADA'S OWN BARBARA ANN SHOWS THE BIG- CITY FOLKS â€" Displaying the form that charmed judg^es and spectators at the Olympic games, world's figure skating cham- pion Barbara Ann Scott is "packing them in" at Radio City Music Hall in New York, making her'debut as a professional. HRONICLES ^ingerFarm A HAPPY NEW YEAR lo â- vcrybody â€" and l«t me t?U you, 1 tynk you are the nicest people 1 Yw, you must be, because the readers of this column were so kind te me this Christinas. I do appre- ciate your cards and letters and Impc to acknowledge each one of «k«m personally â€" but it takes time, yon know, so. until you hear from ate further, you will please accept â- qr thanks this way. I alio want to tell you how much it helps me to know that this column circs you a little pleasure; to get • letter now and then makes me raaHxc I am writing to real people â€" lome of you on farms like cur- ates; some in towns and cities; aad some, indeed, not in Canada â- t all, but "across the line." And hare Is rather a curious fact â€" more •I my reader-letters - come from dM U.S.A. than from^ Canada- folks who have moved away and â- dn have the home-town paper Mat to them. Perhapi this column Mpt to keep green in their mem- ory the Canadian way of living, •specially on a farm. Perhaps you •00^ raised chickens, fed calves, • «fc»..'.d eggs â€" or knew the joy of kavuig electricity after living with coal-oil lamps year after year. Per- kapa you re-Uve with me the* busy •nmmer days; the unexpected tkrcihings; the difficulties of enter- lalniiig with the season's work at V ila peak â€" and yet loving it all and \ aot wanting to trade one week of It for a salaried job in the city. B«t time moves on and it sometimes happens that force of circumstances aMke it impossible for us to lire asactly where we wish or do just aaactly as we like. So, perhaps, having made your choice, you find yonrself living a different life from what you were used to. Y'ou are happy but yet you have memories â€" memories that you cherish and Ike to keep ... of an old home in aotne part of Ontario â€" of which â- laybe Ginger Farm reminds you . . . «f helping Dad down at the ham; or bringing home the Christ- â- HM tree and trimming it for the Tonnger folk. Or perhaps, with a N«w Year dawning, you remember how you trudged off to school again, through snow-filled roads to the Ittlc red school-house up the line; aad you remember the day of "the Mg storm" when Dad came after you in the cutter, and coming home the cutter upset when you struck a^ fence-post which you couldn't see because a huge drift had com- pletely covered the fence. .\nd you remember how you knew Mum would be trying to watch for you coming through the blinding snow â€" and how good it seemed to come into the big, warmf kitchen where she was waiting with piping, hot cocoa, made with half milk â€" such cocoa as you never tasted before or since. And it probably isn't a stream-lined kitchen that you remember but one where there was room for the whole family; where Dad would sit in his chair by the stove, reading the weekly paper, while Mum dished up a wonderful meal of savoury soup and dump- lings. Likely as not there wasn't any hydro to ease the work for Mum â€" but there were several pairs of willing hands I Of course you don't want to go back to days with no conveniences but yet some- how it seems kind of nice to re- member the soft glow of the big coa-oil lamp in the centre of the kitchen table. And then after supper, because there wasn't a car in the family, and no show or dance to go to, the boys amused themselves with some carpenter work they were doing down in the basement; and Mum got out her mending, or set her sponge for the bread next day, while tne girls did the dishes. Today things are a little different In many homes there are conveni- ences such as mother and grand- mother never dreamed of . . . but sometimes I get a-wonderingâ€"- in which era is. or was. the true Golden .\ge: And what breed of men and women will modern life produce? Sometimes we seem to have our sense of values mi.xed. Time of course marches on. There is 'no .turning back â€" and we are carried along in its forward march. But sometii.ies 1 wonder if we couldn't satisfy ourselves with more of the simpler joys of country life â€" good books, magazines, papers and neighbourly visits. Perhaps we don't make too good a job of dis- tinguishing the gold from the dross. That is just an idea â€" perhaps It might do as our New Year's thought for todav. What do vou think, folks? IT TAKES A MAN TO BAKE REAL PIES. GIRLS, Leland lIcMillen of Oak Park feeds his priie winning apple pie to runners-up in the X;uional Farm and Garden shows contest. «Mrs. C. A. Himz (li "il won second prize while Mrs. H. Williams tinished third. McMill«« was onlv male contestant. Three Bears and a Long Tail Monkey A Chimney Farm Story Once upon a time, three little bears lived in a wood all alone with- out a father or mother. But they had a very good time. They were full of fun and curiosity, and one day the smallest, who had most fun and curiosity in him, fell into an old well near the edge of the woods. There wasn't much water left at the bot- tom of the well, but what there was felt cold and wet, and the little bear yelled loudly for help. In vain his brothers hung sticks over the edge. He couldn't rea^h any of them. A friend of theirs, a monkey, happened to be passing by when ne heard the excitement and came up to see what it was all about. "Oh, that's easy," he said. "Each of you cubs hold me by a paw down the well as far as you can reach, and the littlest bear can catch me by the tail. You may have noticed tiiat it's exceptionally long." Xo sooner said than done. The two little bears leaned nay over; the monkey stretched out his tail with all his might, and the littlest bear caught hold of its end with all his mig'nt. But what a time they had pulling jp so much weight so far However, it was done at last, and the monkey was thanked and the littlest bear rubbed dry. ".\nd now we'll have a party -n celebration," said one of the bears. They wanted the party formal, so they rolled five stones iron; the farmer's wall, four to make chairs and the biggest one for a table. The table had a hollow place in it. This they filled with spring water and mashed roots and wintergreen ber- ries and raspberries, and that was their drink- As for their cups they used their own paws, which worked pretty well. They didn't have any food, as there wasn't any. "This drink is delicious, ' said the monkey who w^as guest. "Thank you," said the little bears. "If we only had some cake to sen-e with it!" "Xo matter," said the monkey politely, thoug'n he did not like cake. Just as the party was going finely, they heard a loud angry shout. It was the farmer who was run- ning towards them, waving his pitckfork. He had seen the gap in his wall where the five big stones had been rolled away. The three little bears and the monkey gave one look and ran aa fast as their legs would carry them, deep into the woods. The farmer went back to the farm, where his wife -stood watching at the kitchen door. "Yes, John," she said. "I saw you chasing them, but what for I can't imagine. They were all as nice and quiet as any party I ever saw. I wish our children beha^-ed haif aa well." "They'd been breaking down my wall." the farmer began still cross- ly, but his wife interrupted him. "Now, John, you know that wall ihn'tisn't any good for anything these days. You don't pasture the cows either, side of it The poor little creatures were just having a good time and you've run them off. ' "I guess I just forgott about not mending that wall," said the farmer, "Well, no use crying over split milk." He was reaiiy a very kindly man, but he did have a quick temper. His wife had an idea. "John, I've been making dough- nuts. Why don't you take a bag of them down to where they were sit- ting and leave it there? The smell ought to bring them back." So the farmer very willingly took the doughnuts and left the bag on the boulder table, and no sooner was his back turned than the three little bears and the monkey stole back, and sat down again, each on Ids boulder chair. They snielled the doughnuts and understood that the farmer had brought them a present. So they dipped up their home- made sarsaparilla with one paw and ate the doughtnuts with the other, and when the farmer looked back, they waved warmly, and the monkey picked up a handkerchief and waved k at the end of his exceptionally long tail. Zacharius Jansen invented the first compound microscope about 15O0. * Taxes When an old South Afric9n native was told he had to be taxed because the govtrnmcnt, like a father, pro- tected him from enemies, cared for him when he was sick, fed him when he was hungry, gave him an education and, for these reasons, Bstded money, the old native said: "Yes, I understand. It is like this: I have a dog, and the dog is hungry. He ccmes to me and begs food. "I say to him. "My dear faithful dog, I see you are very hungry. I am sorry for you. I shall give you meat." "I then take a knife, cut off the dog's tail, give it to him and say: 'Here, my fait^iful dog, be nourish- " 1 by r'lw â- â- : â-  •â- â-  - (*>' :>ie It.' ' TABLE TALKS clarve Aridt^ws. Some of thes« recipes I honestly intended to include in this column before the festive season â€" but, somehow or other, there just didn't happen to be room. Still, I don't believe that there should be any excuse for publishing them now, as they're all guaranteed to have been tried â€" tested â€" and found very good indeed. Here is one for some easy- to-make cookies that I know your folks will enjoy. Sour Cream Cookies 1 cup sugar !4 cup shortening 1 egg 2^ cups flour 1 teaspoon baking soda Yt teaspoon salt ]i cup cocoa 1 cup sour cream Method Cream the sugar with the shorten- ing (melted) and add the whole egg. beaten until light and fluffy. Sift together the flour, soda, salt and cocoa. Add these dry ingredi^ ents alternately with one cup sour cream to your first mixture. Roll out, cut. and bake in a moderate oven. • • • .A.!though these spicy raisin squares are delicious when cold, they're even more so when served warm. What's more, they can be reheated â€" that is, providing they all don't disappear the first time yoa serve them. Recipe makes from IS to 24 squares. Spicy Raisin Squares *« cup seedless raisins U cup shortening 1 cup sugar 2 eggs '•: cup crushed pineapple, drained 21-4 cups sifted flour 1 teaspoon soda 114 t»a8poons cinnamon \\i teaspoons autmcg a teaspoon salt H cup sugar H cup heavy cream Method Cover raisins with boiling water and let stand 5 minutes. Drain and stand on dry cloth or paper toweL Cream shortening and one cup augar till light and fluffy. Add beaten eggs, raisins and pineapple. Sift together the dry ingredients and blend thoroughly with the first mix- ture. Spread thinly in greased bak- ing pans and pour a mixture of y^ cup sugar and % cup cream over the top. Bake in ho: oven â€" 400 degreesâ€" for 20-25 minutes. Cut into square? arid ^fâ€" .e wann. Many oi ;i-. . . =. i know, butcher their j.. :» -^.y: . and a few hints regarding that particular deli- cacy may not be amiss 'rotJnd about r The big thing about pork, of is thorough cooking â€" and A\y mean THOROUGH. Fiii.v pork is what you SHOULD NEVER serve â€" it must be well done, right through to the bone. But that doesn't mean over-cook- ing. The rules for roasting call for pork placed â€" fat side up â€" in an open pan. then a moderate oven (350 degrees! and 35 minutes bak- ing per pound. Trying to brown roast pork at â€" say â€" 500 degrees means a lot of waste because, more than any other meat, pork shrinks under hieh heat. Hera's how to cook spare-ribs la that good old way known as "swcef •our." gweet-Sour Sparcribs lbs. spareribs tablespoon shortening teaspoons salt sup hot water tablespoons corn starch tablespoon vinegar tablespoon sugar tablespoons ketchup cup pineapple juice eup cubed pineapple }i cup chopped green pepper or celery Method Cut meat in strips between ths bones. Brown in hot shortening, cover and simmer for an hour and a half. Drain off any excess fat, add salt and water. Combine cora starch with sugar,, stir in vinegar, ketchup and pineapple juice. Pour over ribs. Bring to steaming, then add pineapple and green pepper or selery. Heat thoroughly and serve. Extra gooa with steamed rice. Will To Win A horse called Forrester present- ad a remarkable illustration of how thoroughly racers enter into the spirit of the course. Forrester had won many a hardly contested race, but in an evil hour was matched against an extraordinary horse called Elephant. Around the course they raced neck and neck, but just before the finish Elephant pulled slightly ahead. Forrester, finding all his efforts to recover the ground ineffectual, made one desperate plunge, seized his antagonist by the Jaw. and could scarcely be forced to quit his hold. S. similar incident . occurred when a fine horse was rendered so frantic at finding his antagonist gradually passing him that he seized him by the leg, and both riJeri were obliged to dir mount and combine their efforts te sei>arate the animaK THE ROYAL BANK OF CAKADA General Statement 30th November, 194S ASSETS Notes of and deposits wiU] Bank, of Canada .... $ 177,157,400.06 Other cash aad bank balances 15«,5W,879.14 Notes of and cheques on other banks 89,509,786.47 Goveroment and other public securities, not exceeding market Yalue 918,-420,522,36 Other bonds and stocks, not exceeding market â-¼aiue 156,626,72 5.57 Call and short loans, fullv secured 56,5M,207,*4 Total quick assets ; . . $1,5§6,785,521.44 Other loans and discounts, after full provision forbad and doubtful debcs 600,925,527.65 Bank premises 11,729.957.»» Liabilities of customers under acceptances and letters of credit 65,104,477.12 Other assets 7,944,302.47 $2,222,487,786.31 LIABILITIES Notes in circulation '. I -1,320,934.27 De-osits 2,067,488,996.81 Atxcptances and letters of credit outjandiag. . . . 65,104,477,12 Other liabilities 4,087,930.88 Total liabilities to the public . . . $2, 141. 002, 539.08 Capital 35,000.000.00 Reserve Fund 44,000,000.00 Dividends payable 952,655.37 Balance of Profit and Loss Account 1,532,-92.06 12,222,487,786.51 PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT Plrodia iot the year eiuled iOth November, 19-t8, before Domioioa mod provincial govcnuneat taxes, bat after cootrjbutioa to Staff Pcnsioa Fund, tai after tpproprlatioos to CoatingvocT Rescrrca, oat oi which Reaerres proritSoa foe all bad uuTdoaWul debts has been ma<lc Lms pcovision for Domiaioa and pnyviocial govern- nam taxes ::::ii:iiii>t::tc $5.1)0,000.00 I peovisioo for deprectatloa of baoli pecmlscs : •OS,St7.56 ♦ '),51-,4>i.aT riaiMJaiisil m \ Of t^VM ♦ »,?58.?45.51 S.)00.0OOUM> M.0)8.545.5t M74.246.55 |».5}2.791.06 4,ooo,ooaM I torn Acoooat. MMk Norwibar. 1948 1 1 1 t •l.)S2^92U>6 Divklaods •( tb* rata of #1.00 p«i siiat* :iiiiiilii|^: I caccM iorwafd :::t:iiiiiiiiiiiiiii I of n<o4t and LoM Accoaat, S9A Novambat. t9<7 1 1 1 1 tYSNnr e. dobson. MMBS liUlS.. Oauai ii Maaager