February 16, 2014.

In Canada, a Fishing Town Ponders Its End

"That will do for the moment. Later we will arrange something else for you. It is important to change one's hiding-place frequently. Meanwhile I shall send you a copy of the book" ----even O'Brien, Winston noticed, seemed to pronounce the words as though they were in italics---- "Goldstein's book, you understand, as soon as possible. It may be some days before I can get hold of one. There are not many in existence, as you can imagine. The Thought Police hunt them down and destroy them almost as fast as we can produce them. It makes very little difference. The book is indestructible. If the last copy were gone, we could reproduce it almost word for word. Do you carry a briefcase to work with you?" he added.

LITTLE BAY ISLANDS, Newfoundland----Alma Budgell is the last of 12 children born to a fishing family still living in this picturesque community. Now, she hopes to be among the very last people ever to live here.

"As a rule, yes."

The village has no retail shop and a school with just two children. Founded almost two hundred years ago, the town thrived with Newfoundland's once mighty fishing industry and declined along with it. Only some 90 people, most of them older than 60, still live here year-round.

"What is it like?"

Its tale of a dwindling and aging population is not uncommon among small towns in the Western world, but residents here have an unusual resettlement option.