Joan Camier was pleasantly disconcerted on Saturday evening to see local people whom she normally associates with shopping trolleys and a careful gait, twirling their partners with youthful abandon at the Women's British Legion D-Day Dance at Thomas Peacocke School. "I bet some of them were stiff on Sunday" she told us, adding ruefully "I know I was!" (And she and her helpers had to put all the desks back in the school hall ready for Monday's GCE exams...) But it was very well worth it. Ted Crouch and his band played all the old tunes, some 275 people danced all the old dances - Paul Jones, the palais glide, the veleta, ladies' excuse-me, quickstep, foxtrot and of course the waltz; the British Legion club dealt with the bar, and the canteen-type meal, prepared by the TPS school meals catering team, was queued up for in traditional Forces style.
Contingents came from the Burma Star organisation in Hastings, and from the Dunkirk Veterans for whom this was a pleasant finish to a week which had included a visit to France. When they all went home, the question which invariably came along with the thank yous was "When are you going to do it again?"
Despite all the tizzy in the national press and television, this dance was the only D-Day celebration in Rye, and none the worse for that - though there were, we hear, tears in a few eyes. They are thinking about doing it again - perhaps for the 50th anniversary, we asked, but Mrs. Camier doubted whether even the very best embrocation would really help by 1994!
Raffle tickets still unclaimed (BIT 5892, blue) - nos. 173 and 167; holders should call at Camiers Cycles in Wish Ward as soon as possible.
Ralph Olesen of ESCC tells us that he confidently expects all work on Monkbretton Bridge and the immediate vicinity to be completed for the present by the end of June; the painting is to be deferred until next year. This means, of course, that the traffic lights which have been causing difficulties at school times, with cars delivering and collecting at Freda Gardham, will be gone before term ends.
The final work will be the resurfacing of the bridge and of the stretch of road from the mini roundabout to the river; across the bridge, the team will be using a new technique to try and eliminate the ridges in the road which are the cause of a lot of traffic noise.
While this is going on, the contractor's men responsible for the earlier work on the bridge will be moving to the Watchbell Street lookout, where they will be dealing with the paved area, erecting rails on the outer edge (to keep people in) and bollards on the inner edge (to keep cars out). They will also, while they are up there, complete the work on The Green outside the Hope Anchor to prevent cars mounting the grass to park.
Mr. Olesen goes on to say that he can appreciate the point made by those who regret the square handrails on Conduit Hill. Telham Forge staff are expected to start work again on the job this week, and they will chamfer off the square edges of the rail to make it more comfortable to hold, before making good generally and painting the whole structure.
As for the Strand Quay anchor, there are still one or two legal procedures to complete, but he hopes that with the co-operation of the Southern Water Authority it will be put in place during July; some conservation work may be necessary, but after all they don't want it to look new!
2.
Local voters will by now have received election addresses from three of the four candidates for East Sussex in the Euro-election; the Ecology Party seems to be running late with theirs. So, it is really just for the record, and for away readers, that we report that the sitting (Conservative) member, Sir Jack Stewart-Clark, is a Scot, educated at Eton and Balliol. He was commissioned in the Coldstream Guards in 1948/9 (presumably in the course of his military service, since he is now in his mid-fifties) and is a member of the Royal Company of Archers. His industrial career in textiles and electronics (latterly he was managing director of Pye, Cambridge) came to an end when he was elected to the European Parliament at its first election in 1979, and he has held various appointments within the organisation since. His wife is Dutch, and they have five children. He devotes his spare time to vintage cars, photography, golf, tennis, squash, ski-ing and shooting: could things get so bad in the EEC that this final skill might come in handy? Sir Jack is speaking at the George Hotel at 7 on Wednesday (13th).
Some time ago we wrote about the complicated Community Health Council elections and hoped that someone from our area would be among the new members. The British Legion candidate was among those elected, and we are very glad to say that he is Bruce Palmer from Camber; another new member is Mrs. Sally Barnett from Pett. CHC Secretary Tony Wade adds that Roy Pulford of Northiam will also be joining the Council as a Rother nominee when their present representative gives up in September. So this end of the area is now much more adequately covered.
The CHC has just been asked to bring together local views on an application from one of the Rye doctors to do his own dispensing; his practice, naturally, covers our usual circle of villages as well as the town itself, and Mr. Wade says that there is a national trend for doctors in rural areas to make such applications in view of the difficulties people in villages have in picking up prescriptions. The opposing viewpoint comes from village chemists who do offer dispensing services; if they lose them, it may well mean that they close entirely. The GAZETTE is not, of course, primarily concerned with the villages, and we do not know how many of them have their own chemists anyway; and Mr. Wade is arranging a meeting shortly for representatives of the Parish Councils to discuss the matter. The position of Rye itself is rather different, however, and he would be very glad to hear (in writing, please) from those who feel strongly on the subject one way or the other. The final decision on the application is not made locally, but by Them in London; the CHC's job is simply to pass on local opinion, which they can't discover unless local people will tell them. The person to write to is the Secretary, Community Health Council, St. Helen's Hospital, Frederick Road, Hastings, TN34 5AH - who will be grateful if readers will pass on his request. But medical ethics connected with advertising being what they are, we doubt if we shall ever be allowed to report what the final decision is; if the doctor gets his permission, presumably his patients will find out in due course.
When we get around to making an index for the GAZETTE - if ever - there will be a good many entries under Varley: Noel of Rotary, Kathy of the Community Centre, Judd who designs lifeboats for Lochin Marine and Rowena, currently Thomas Peacocke School PTA chairman. So it is very pleasant to report that another branch of the family has just returned to Rye.
Rae, now Mrs. Festing, and her husband Conrad are the new owners of 11 High Street, the former home of the Meryons, the Procters, and more recently of Mrs. Duncan Wylson (who is established just down the road, we are glad to say, and not intending to leave Rye). Mr. Festing is expected to return from Indonesia at the end of June, and then hopes to be working in this country. The family has moved from Hamstead, but for Mrs. Festing Rye is very much home: she was at the Collegiate School and joined the Grammar School after the return from Bedford. Virginia (23), David (19) and Claire (17) are all still home-based, and we very much hope that they will all like what they find here. Mrs. Varley senior, of course, is extremely pleased; she now has eight grandchildren handy.
- 3 - THE RYE GAZETTE, 6.6.1984
The top of Lion Street witnessed a great success on Saturday, whichever side of the road visitors' loyalties lay. Both Rye and Playden Institutes report profits of well over £200 - Mrs. Holmes of Playden tells us that this was about the same as last year, so it sounds as if the coinciding events did not in fact conflict. Playden offered refreshments as well as sale goods which went very fast; Rye also sold out early and had expanded from the Town Hall forecourt to the foyer upstairs, where there was a small exhibition showing current WI handwork - with some eye-catching dolls made and dressed by Mrs. F. Jones of Mill Road. The show included the delightful collage made by WI members in 1971, showing different aspects of the town and its industries, and also a piece of colonial crewelwork made by the ladies of the Rye, N.Y., Historical Society and presented to Rye WI in the Bicentennial Year, 1976.
All the Rye members responsible for making the beautiful quilt were particularly pleased that it was won locally - by Mrs. Alice Boreham, of Badger Gate. The jolly lion (made by the Secretary, Mrs. Teresa Hodgson) went to Mrs. Eileen Bennett of Military Road, whose grandchildren will be much envied. Mrs. Freeman tells us that there were a surprisingly large number of visitors from away - not only British but people from abroad as well. The members are, however, specially grateful for the support they were given locally, particularly from the Mayor for the use of the Town Hall and from the manager and staff of the Anglia Building Society who so kindly lent their High Street window.
Peter Hall of London Weekend Television tells us that the team will be returning to Rye this week, filming in Winchelsea on Thursday and Friday, in the churchyard on Monday, and around the town for the rest of the week - look out for the boards with the day's details. Last week they were at Chilham, near Canterbury, which is standing in for Riseholm, the village graced by Lucia's residence before she discovered Tilling and the delights of Mapp-baiting! As before, some street signs are being removed to oblige the filmmakers, but they will certainly be put back when it is all over.
Yet another of our local photographers now has work on public view. Ralph Wood, of Le Fevre, Wood & Royle, was asked in the autumn if he would provide some of the pictures for a paperback on Sussex churches, to be published in aid of the Sussex Historic Churches Trust. The book is just out, and in the event nearly half the 84 black-and-white photographs are Ralph's work, including a lovely view of the sun streaming in through the west window of St. Mary's, draining all the colour from the Benson glass - though we take offence at the caption (not Ralph's) which refers to the "rather makeshift tower"!
With a preface by the Duke of Norfolk about the work of the Trust, the book is written by John Allen, who also took some of the photographs, other contributors being Paul Broomhall, Geoffrey Claridge and John Spiller. Churches illustrated are of all denominations, and the book has a list of other interesting churches which it was not possible to include.
The Trust is a voluntary organisation based in Chichester, which helps with finance for restoration work; over the years, it has been able to support about 200 Sussex churches, of all denominations. East Guldeford Church, with its tiny parish, has had three grants from the Trust which have greatly helped the progress of the restoration work there.
"Sussex Churches" costs £2.75 and would make a very acceptable present for Sussex exiles. Adams and Martello both stock it, and it is also available from the book-shop at St. Mary's; there are special discount arrangements for PCCs to buy in bulk and resell with some profit to the Trust as well as nearly £1 a copy for local church funds - which must mean that someone negotiated a very useful deal on the original production costs, since there is nothing skimpy about this admirable book.
4.
A birthday party to which everyone is invited takes place at St. Mary's on Sunday - outdoors if fine, but there is plenty of room inside if not. Non-churchgoers thoroughly bemused by shifting Bank Holidays may not have realised that Sunday is Whit Sunday - Pentecost, one of the great festivals of Christianity - and the party is, quite simply, a birthday party for the Church. The organisers stress that they mean the Church in the widest sense, all denominations; and those who don't worship at any of our churches will be none the less welcome to join in the fun.
Starting at 3 and finishing about 5, the Pentecost Party includes games and activities for younger children, music and singing for the rest of us (bring your guitar, etc., if you have one) and a generally pleasant get-together. Each household is asked to bring some party food to share, but things to drink are provided. The party ends with a short service of celebration and thanks in St. Mary's - and that sounds rather out of the ordinary too, to judge from what has been leaked to us about it!
It will be very unfair of the Almighty to let it rain on such a happy occasion, and we trust He will not; but wet or fine, the invitation stands - do come, it should be a real treat.
Some weeks ago now, the Chamber of Trade invited the police to send a speaker to enlighten traders about the type of fraud which small businesses can encounter. Unfortunately, the date chosen clashed with other events the same evening, so it was not a large group which ended the evening wiser than it had begun; but we don't doubt that word got round afterwards.
Detective Chief Inspector Fallon of the Sussex Police Fraud Squad came all the way from Lancing to talk to the group. He pointed out that although some people express admiration for the large-scale fraudster, it is really just another form of stealing. It is, for instance, a criminal offence to order goods which the buyer knows he (or she) cannot pay for - this is called "fraudulent trading" when the buyer is a company (sometimes struggling to stay afloat and hoping it will all come out right). But it applies equally to someone who issues cheques which are certain to bounce and bounce again; though the speaker did add that the odd cheque returned marked "Refer to drawer" could simply mean a hiccup in the writer's banking arrangements and is not in itself a criminal offence!
One common type of fraud is the use of stolen chequebooks, which even without their attendant credit cards are still worth money in the right quarters. Not all shops, he said, insist on a credit card to cover a cheque, and there is a problem when the bill is for more than the usual £50 guarantee. The commonly used system of paying by two cheques, each guaranteed for under £50, is in fact illegal and the bank may refuse to pay out if the chequebook turns out to be a stolen one. Cheque frauds are often the work of teams, who sometimes use a pretty girl as a "front", though, he said, ten years ago such frauds were almost invariably perpetrated by men. The same team-work applies to shop-lifting, with a gang arriving in a town deliberately intending to steal.
Mr. Fallon referred to firms who send out false invoices for small sums to businesses which they hope will not bother to check them before paying; a similar type of offence is connected with directory entries which have not been ordered.
There are also, he said, frauds by a firm's staff - an accountant who refused ever to take a holiday might give rise to some suspicion!
The message throughout the talk was simple: however small the amount involved, however faint the trader's suspicions of a cheque, tell the police. They cannot act without the information which only the public can supply. Something which seems hardly worth bothering about to one trader can begin to look like villainy when it is reported by six on the same day.
5.
Most of the Union Jacks fluttering at mastheads at Strand Quay over the weekend were flown for courtesy purposes; fourteen French yachts were visiting Rye from across the Channel at the invitation of the Rye Harbour Sailing Club (plus four from further along the coast who were here by coincidence). The guests came from sailing clubs at Le Crotoy and St. Valery-sur-Somme - the third visit of Le Crotoy's Club Nautique Baie de Somme, who are now proposing official twinning between their own club and ours.
The fleet came over on Thursday. On Friday the French group visited Canterbury, and in the evening there was a party at the Sailing Club. 110 people (including Rye's Mayor and Mayoress) sat down to dinner; the meal was cooked by Liz Royle and dedicated helpers and required among other ingredients 30 chickens! Both English and French wines were drunk - the former from the Carr Taylor vineyard at Westfield, whose proprietor is a Sailing Club member, and the latter brought back from the Boulogne supermarket by the Rye yachts which had raced there the previous weekend despite the horrible Bank Holiday weather. Bob Deacon much impressed his English friends by making an admirable speech in French full of subtle plays upon words which were much appreciated by the visitors.
On Saturday the Rye boats challenged the French to "une petite regate" in Rye Bay though lack of wind meant a short course. The Mayor gave a reception at the Town Hall afterwards, the Mayoress presenting Rye Pottery mugs to the first six French boats on handicap.
The fleet was due to leave very early on Sunday morning; the crossing takes more than 12 hours, and it is too dangerous to enter the Somme estuary after dark because of the shifting sandbanks. But readers who sleep sound will be as surprised as the Editor was to learn that there was, at 1 am on Sunday, a gale warning, thunder and lightning and a deluge! Eight boats crewed by bleary-eyed mariners in oilskins did set off (and, as far as we know, arrived safely on the other side); but the rest decided to wait and have breakfast with the Bayntuns at the Old Forge, leaving on the mid-day tide and steering a course for Boulogne for an overnight stop before going on home next day.
John Royle tells us that the weekend was much enjoyed by hosts and guests; RH Sailing Club members are looking forward to returning the visit over the August Bank Holiday.
Dr. Alec Vidler and Mr. John Bilsby of East Street have both been kind enough to add to last week's account, given us by Mr. Ray Balcomb of Oxford, of the St. Mary's church choir in 1923.
Dr. Vidler points out that Mr. Franks was not a solicitor's clerk. Far from it, he was senior partner in the firm of William Dawes & Co, brother-in-law to both William and Walter Dawes, a keen antiquarian and bowls player; he lived at Gardenside in Watchbell Street. (We assume that this is Henry Firth Franks, who was a sidesman at St. Mary's as well as singing in the choir - or were there two?) The cleric to whom we inadequately referred as Rev Kenwood - Canon Fowler's curate - had as initials J D.
Mr. Bilsby says that in 1923 there were only three Wrights in the town - two of them connected with Wright & Pankhurst, the third a carpenter (rather than a shipwright); he thinks that the latter was the chorister. And, he says, in 1923 the verger was not Albert Price but his father Charles Price, who lived at the now vanished Battery House which housed the Museum before the war.
Among ex-Ryers to whom the GAZETTE is passed on is Mr. Reginald Baker, who was brought up in Wish Street but now lives in Wales; his sister tells us that at 84 he much enjoys searching the paper for names which he recalls from his youth. We do hope that our older readers will continue to put us right over the kind of errors which can so easily creep into people's reminiscences after half a century!
6.
There were plenty of Rye planning applications on the agenda for last week's Planning Committee at Bexhill. James Kimber was refused permission for a hanging sign, and Jempsons Social Club was refused permission to transfer to the Farnborough canteen. Approval with conditions went to 41 The Mint for change of use to a tea-room, and to Alsfords for a canopy roof at the Harbour wharf. Skinners' Garage's amended plan for roofing over the car storage area was approved; so were plans for a flat on the upper floor of The Kettle o' Fish, a porch in King's Avenue, a porch and garage extension on Cadborough Cliff, the conversion of Whitefriars into two dwellings (internal alterations only except for a small garage at the back), and conversion of 55 Winchelsea Road into three self-contained flats. The two most controversial applications were both, we are told, deferred: the Merton Properties development (GAZETTE nos. 78 and 79) along Rye Harbour Road, and the established use application for Nook Beach (GAZETTE no. 80) which the Planning Officer had recommended should be refused.
This week's list has two Rye applications: alterations to include the formation of a bathroom in Fishmarket Road, and a proposal for change of use in principle for the former Colebrooke's Works beside Strand Quay (though technically, as Mr. McEntee pointed out to us some time ago, in South Undercliff). The plan is for conversion of the building into two houses, with an adjoining extension to include garaging for three cars with a flat above. The rear wing of the building would be demolished and alterations made to the access. The drawing shows only minor alterations to the facade, with the garage addition on the Green Steps side blending into the main building and a garden on the far side towards South Undercliff.
Some readers will have noticed a letter from a Camber man in last week's East Sussex News, expressing his views on aspects of housing in Rye. We thought we should put the record straight (those who didn't see the letter anyway can skip this bit!). First, permission for the Regent Cinema site development was given by Rother - not by Rye Town Council, who were anxious to buy it for public use. Secondly, the Osbornes' development on that site has recently been put forward by ESCC for a Civic Trust award, so not everyone shares the letter-writer's views on it. Thirdly, no-one is anxious to drive the local young people out of Rye; the difficulty is that houses suitable for young couples are also suitable for old ones, and they tend to be bought for cash by those moving from larger homes both in and out of our area.
We understand that Rye Town Council are not even going to apply for planning permission for housing on the Freda Gardham field at present, since to do so costs a lot of money and they are well aware that until the bypass route is decided the D o T will block any application for development of the land (whether caravans, houses or anything else). Since the entrance is (just) within a built-up area along a trunk road, the D o T has the final say. If the A259 ceases to be a trunk road when the bypass comes, things might be different.
Leasam House Farm, bought by the County Council along with Leasam House itself in the 1950s as an agricultural adjunct to the Grammar School, is on the market. The agricultural course vanished with the Grammar School, and the farm buildings around the house are now used for Rural Studies classes; under Head of Department Colin Green, several conservation areas have been set up around the farm, and these are not included in the sale - among them, the heronry wood. The house is, as readers will be aware, now used as boarding accommodation for both sexes for Thomas Peacocke School. However, 90 acres of farmland are now considered surplus to County Council requirements, and are on the open market; but the land has for many years been farmed by Bertie and Jean Bull, and it is only the freehold and not the occupancy which will actually be changing hands.
We hear of a new business moving from London to the Farnborough premises; more details, we hope, next week...
7.
• A public meeting to discuss the formation of a Rye and District Society for mentally handicapped children and adults (perhaps to be affiliated to Mencap, once they get started), is to be held at the FE Centre at 7.30 on Friday, 22 June. Baby-sitting need not be a problem; if you are interested but can't leave your children, bring them along. The meeting is not, of course, intended only for those who have children or other dependents who are mentally handicapped, but for anyone concerned with the problem. For further information phone Mrs. Piper; she would much appreciate it if readers would pass on news of the meeting to friends or neighbours who might find it helpful.
• The name "Spar" with its nautical connotations seems particularly appropriate to the Rye branch of this grocery co-operative! Two young people associated with the shop - Jo, daughter of John and Pat Ciccone of Love Lane, and David Payne of Eagle Road, whose mother is one of the regular assistants - joined the Navy last winter, and we hear good news of both. Jo's departure from Rye will be much lamented this summer by parents whose children enjoyed the holiday school last year, but the Navy is making good use of her - she has been selected to play hockey for the WRNS against the WRAF and other teams including the South Saxons, her own team when she lived at home. David has just joined his first ship - HMS Walkerton, a minesweeper on fishery protection duties.
• The New Road swimming pool opened for the season on Monday, as usual under the auspices of the Further Education Centre. The Swimming Club will meet there on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday evenings. Anne Swaine tells us that the ESCC's campsite beside the pool is booked right up until the end of August, and such bookings include the use of the pool (and are, incidentally, paid for like any other school facility, with the money contributing towards the pool's upkeep). Mrs. Swaine adds regretfully that even before the pool opened there had been vandalism there, with a door broken down; perhaps the presence of the campers, with their adult supervisors, may prove a deterrent in this respect?
• The Press Book at Rye Police Station contains reports of several traffic accidents involving injuries (the people concerned coming from outside the Rye area), 3 or 4 thefts from unattended cars, a Calor gas cylinder taken from a caravan at Winchelsea Beach, an outboard engine (Evinrude Big Twin, cream and metallic blue) stolen from the boat park at Rye Harbour; and also a case of criminal damage which will cost ratepayers £200 to repair, when the coin slot of the ticket machine at the Lucknow Place car park was vandalised on the night of 28/29 May.
• Mr. Bill Paige of Udimore Road, investigating the back of Wright & Pankhurst's former yard in Wish Street, has come across an odd-looking tool and wonders how old it is. About 18" long, made of brass with a wooden plunger, it is a "Royalty Grease Plunger" (with a patent number), presumably used for greasing the axles of the W & P wagons. Does anyone know anything about this gadget? If so, do please ring Mr. Paige at Rye 223181.
• The helicopter which bobbed up and down round the town on Tuesday morning had no connection at all with NATO! It was connected with a TVS team who are working on a series to go out later in the year called "Putting on the South". Joan Parkes rushed across to the Salts to make enquiries on behalf of the GAZETTE, and it seems that they are filming local artists, potters, etc. The whirlybird, noisy brute, was taking aerial photographs for the programme.
• Almost a year to the day from the start of the Goods Shed demolition, British Rail has at last repaired the footpath which runs alongside the railway line from Ferry Road to the station. The defective stretch of path, which included the old weighbridge (or rather, the hole whence it was removed last summer) has been levelled, tarmac'd and given a curb, so no-one now need risk life and limb dodging coaches in the main part of the car park. Thank you, Mr. Holt - much appreciated!
British Rail workmen are also attending to the gates of the pedestrian crossings by the Mill and - we hope - Gibbet Marsh, where the remaining kissing gate presents problems to wheelchair users and pram-pushers leaving the car park for Strand 'Quay.
8.
Bulletin Board
Friday, 8th Civil Service Retirement Fellowship coffee morning, FEC, 11 NSPCC Centenary Concert, St. Mary's, 7.45 (GAZETTE no. 85)
Saturday, 9th Vidler & Co's Boat Auction, Cattle Market, 10
Rye and District Guides Summer Fair, FEC, 2.30
Sunday, 10th Attic Sale, Community Centre, 10 to 1
Pentecost Party, St. Mary's, 3 (see page 4)
Tuesday, 12th St. Mary's Tuesday Club, "The Red Triangle" (Mrs. Rosalind MacNiven on the work of the YMCA), 2 East Street, 7.30
Rye Town Council Annual Meeting, TH, 7.30 (see below)
New Parents evening, Thomas Peacocke Lower School
Wednesday, 13th Over-60s Club, Red Cross, 1.45
Rye WI, "Sparkling Promotion Ideas", FEC, 7
Conservative Association public meeting, with Sir Jack Stewart- Clark (see page 2), George Hotel, 7
• Extra-special congratulations to Colin and Maureen Page of Udimore Road on the birth of twins, Stuart John (5 lbs 12 ozs) and Gemma Ann (5 lbs 6 ozs). Mother and babies are now back home, and Mrs. Joan Page of Eagle Road is a doubly proud grandmother.
• The new caretaker - already at work - at the Further Education Centre is Mr. John Kingham of Lea Avenue; it would be impertinent of us to welcome him, since he is no stranger to many of the Centre's users, but everyone will be glad that Mrs. Swaine now has help again.
• A reminder about the Sailing Club/RNLI jumble sale at the Harbour, Saturday at 2.
• Rye Town Council's meeting on Tuesday is the one held each year when members of the public can not only attend (they can always do that) but also state their views on Council matters. Reports will be received from Chairmen of Committees and Rother and ESCC councillors; then we all have a chance. It is no good complaining about the Town Council if you don't bother to turn up and say it openly when members are there to hear you! As an extra inducement this year, we have heard that the Tourist Committee's promotion slides of the town will be shown on the Council's new projector.
• Mrs. Barton laments that the supply of paperbacks for the WRVS, so much appreciated by the troops in Northern Ireland, has dwindled to a trickle. It seems probably that local people have now cleared out all their surplus, but we wonder if guest-house proprietors could perhaps mention to their visitors that paperbacks brought to read on holiday might suitably be left behind? The big box outside the library welcomes contributions if the WRVS office is shut.
• Stallholders at the Old Dairy Market (opposite Walter Stocks) were very pleased to see that they and Pocket Full of Rye were mentioned in warm terms in last week's issue of "Woman", in the course of an article on small-scale antiques shopping.
• Last week, carried away by enthusiasm for the Conservation Society's annual report, we unwittingly embarrassed the Society's Secretary by implying that it was all his own work. This is not so; the report is that of the whole committee, and the section relating to the Harbour of Rye is the work of John Collard, whom the Society is fortunate to have as its maritime consultant.
THE RYE GAZETTE is registered as a newspaper with the Post Office, and published by Mrs. Mary Owen, 94 Udimore Road, Rye (Rye 222303). News items for inclusion are always welcome - deadline Monday afternoon, Tuesday 9 am for emergencies. The GAZETTE costs 25p weekly, and is delivered to subscribers and pick-up points on Wednesday; extra copies and back numbers can be ordered from 94 Udimore Road, while a few spares are available from Squirrels, 9-13 Cinque Ports Street, Rye. (Copyright Mary Owen 1984)