Letters to the Editor - August 2009

Oh how I bless the day when I took out my subscription to The Countryman. Humphrey Phelps will never fully realise what a joy it was to read his feature on the subject of moles. I could not believe my eyes when I read that another name for a mole is ‘oont’.

Why such joy? Well, when I was at school in the 1940s we used to sing a song which was a great favourite of mine entitled ‘The Elephant Battery’, in the chorus of which ‘oonts’ were on parade amongst other animals including buffalo. At the time ‘oont’ was translated for the ‘uninitiated’ as ‘elephant’ — reasonable enough when in the company of buffalo, but moles, on parade? Enough to make any drill sergeant or RSM even more incandescent than usual, to say nothing of the reaction of the inspecting officer.

Think about it: if they were regularly on parade, soft-footed as they are, they would need to be shod and possibly ridden like the other participating animals. Unlike a regimental goat, antelope or ram who, having hooves, would present no problems. Furthermore, who on earth would be qualified or even able to shoe them? The far-reaching possibilities of the bizarre situation make the mind boggle.

Can somebody, perhaps even Humphrey Phelps himself, please clarify this mystery: ‘oont’ — elephants (which I favour) or moles? I suppose it does not matter either way, except of course to another elephant or mole.
Sylvia J Gurney, Milton Keynes

Looking through the June issue, immediately my attention is drawn to the small photo at the bottom of page 19; and I’m transported and suddenly — yes suddenly — relaxed, calm, and absorbed.
Why? The photograph is of a nondescript stream, bordered by a cheap and hastily constructed post and barbed wire fence with a few abandoned willows; abandoned because in the past they would have been regularly pollarded. A church is on the brow of a small hill in the middle distance with some hardly defined grey clouds filling the sky.

In fact, a photo of no particular consequence; and yet why does it affect me so?
I can only conclude that it reflects and reminds me of times spent just looking and being in similar landscapes which repeat themselves all over Britain; where one just looks and out of that ‘boring’ landscape one notices small things which suddenly absorb one’s thoughts so completely that time passes without one realising.

You become aware of the plants and birds and domestic stock; how they all fit in together, and how the church and village also seem to belong and become part of the landscape. And then one realises that you also belong; not as ‘you’ as a particular personality but as just one more part — an essential part nonetheless — an observer of the English landscape.

It reminds me of the drawing of the man leaning over a gate contemplating the countryside which used to appear over the comment page of The Countryman. Go on. Show me it again. Each time I saw it I started daydreaming.
John Timbrell, by email

Woodman’s Notebook (June) bemoans the problem of Japanese knotweed.
There is a slow but sure way of getting rid of it from a normal garden. When we moved to a very neglected garden, we found what appeared to be a cultivated bed of healthy knotweed invading the nearby paths and garage. I soon donned rubber gloves and on the left one added a thick cotton one. This I soaked in Tumbleweed and then I lovingly fondled the growing tips
and young leaves each day (personal attention, no spraying). In a very short time the area was clear, just the remaining roots to dig out.

The same treatment controlled the yards of convolvulus which we initially dug up by spadefulls of thick roots. I hope this will be of help.
Dorothy Cox, New Earswick, York

Thank you for the excellent article ‘Rural parish is the right road’ by Liz Needham (June). I read the article with interest. I was impressed by the Rev Ann Slater’s commitment and evident skill; she clearly is in the right place, and her rural parishes and deanery are lucky to have her.

Liz Needham writes: “Due to the dwindling number of priests, the countryside receives less ministry these days.” I know from my work as rural officer in the Diocese of Oxford that there are indeed fewer stipendiary clergy in rural parishes these days and all are experiencing the issues that the Rev Ann Slater points out in the article. However, there is, in many rural benefices, an increasing number of ordained priests who do not receive a stipend; they also work very hard to maintain the life of the Church, and to develop appropriate strategies for ministry alongside their stipendiary colleagues. In the Oxford Diocese the proportion of associate (unpaid) clergy to stipendiary clergy has gone up from eighteen per cent in 2000 to forty-two per cent in 2007.

Neither is ministry confined to ordained people. Up and down the country’s rural churches there are many lay people committed to ministry: churchwardens, leaders of study and prayer groups, ‘movers and shakers’ within communities who work to increase capacity and develop responses to the needs of individuals and the community.

It is sometimes said that if you scratch the surface of many rural organisations you will find a church member in a position of responsibility. At a recent exhibition in Oxfordshire as part of the Village of the Year competition, the judges were surprised at how many of the community initiatives originated in, or were supported by, the village church.

I also work as a regional director for the Farm Crisis Network (www.fcn.org.uk). FCN is a multi-denominational Christian voluntary organisation which provides pastoral and practical support for people in the farming community and also runs a national helpline (0845 367 9990). Volunteers come from churches and the farming community, and we help people of any faith and none.

The ordained stipendiary rural minister, of which the Rev Ann Slater is clearly an exemplar, shares ministry with many people. The most effective contemporary rural priest is the one who takes that sharing of ministry seriously. The primary activity in contemporary rural ministry involves working collaboratively with others, sharing, developing, facilitating, and empowering others in their ministry.
H Woolridge, Bewdley

With such lovely weather, I thought it ideal for a nostalgic outing to Mill Hill in London. One feels out in the country away from the hustle and bustle, and it is peaceful too.

As a child with my parents, I came across a pond and I was drawn to it. Something strange caught my eye. Just lying by the reed there was a large tortoise with a huge shell. Can they swim?, I thought; are there such creatures as 'water tortoises' in ponds or was it a turtle? I understand they prefer the land. Very mysterious indeed. If it was a turtle how did it get there?

Perhaps someone knows the answer of this strange sighting of nature in my childhood pond.
Sue Martin, Hampstead, London

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Countryman, The Water Mill, Broughton Hall, Skipton, North Yorkshire BD23 3AG
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