SUDETENS IN CANADA

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20065, 11 October 1939, Page 2

SUDETENS IN CANADA

SCHEME JINE PROGRESS MADE FARMERS s: r . 7 Sept. G. Across- the rolling Canadian Prairie it would be difficult to-day to find a happiqr community than the 500 settlers who fled from Sudetenland when Hgrr Hitler invaded . their country. They-are not Jews>they are Germans who did not subscribe to Nazi doctrines. They chose exile in England to life in concentration camps. in England they., were, drafted to Canada, to excellent ranch land in the Peace River country, which regularly wins the world' championship in'wheat at the Chicago Fair. The colony is financed from a loan that wds made to Czechoslovakia by the United Kingdom and France just prior crisis of September, 1938. Clearing the Land &he Canadian Colonisation Association has charge of the settlers for twfo years, after which each family will be given a quarter-section of land, with equipment and stock. For three months, since their arrival, they have been felling trees, clearing the land, and building their homes. There are now 152 homes, built of timber, and 1 23 barns: Wells have been dug, water being found at a lldepth of less-than 60ft. The men are doing the heavy work in ' the fields, the women working in the gafrden, which includes 55 acres of potatoes. The children carry wood and water and tend to the cattle. A surgeon who performed half a dozen operations a, day has built a stable, a pen for pigs, a bed, benches, and stables for his home. As the nearest doctor is some miles distant, he is rated by the authorities as first aid,man of the settlement. When he acquires a knowledge of English, he intends to study for the Canadian medical examinations and resume practice in the new land. The professor of political economy at the University of Prague, clad in shorts and stripped to the waist, is driving a tractor. , An Adopted Loyalty In each home there is a picture of the King and Queen, and the two Princesses. The storekeeper had one on 'his walls. When the settlers saw it, they asked if they could have one, A milling company in Winnipeg supplied enough to meet all demands. The Governor-General and Lady Tweedsmuir, on their western tour last month, rvisited the settlement. His Excellency, who marvelled at the progress he saw, was tendered an address in English by one of the leaders of the refugees. He said: — “The first word we are privileged to address is an expression of heartfelt thanks, on behalf of all Sudeten German settlers in Canada, for the new home we have found in a free country. We were forced to leave the Old Land because we loved freedom above everything else. We come from other circumstances in life; farming is a complete change, still we work with joy and are content. We are now beginning to harvest the first fruits of our first labour. wish to become good Canadians, to contribute actively to the devedopment of this country, and to reward Canada’s sympathy for our cause with diligence and labour.”