There must have been some anxious moments at the start of this school term, when the children from Playden School were bussed into Rye to spend the rest of the school year at Freda Gardham while extensive improvements went ahead at Houghton Green. But there has been no need for anxiety, Freda Gardham's headmaster Norman Le Lacheur tells us at the end of the first ten days.
With school rolls dropping everywhere before the next birth-rate bulge turns five, there was spare classroom space at New Road. Playden infants have a large room of their own, though they sometimes work with Freda Gardham infants in small groups for particular projects; Playden juniors have a further two classrooms to themselves. The hall and playing-field serve both schools, and playtimes and meals are communal. Indeed, asked what they liked most about the arrangement, Playden children pinpointed the bus journeys into Rye, and the dinners - Freda Gardham's cafeteria service seems to be very popular.
Mr. Le Lacheur stressed that it is very important for Playden to retain its own identity as a school (with luck the new work there will be complete by the start of the September term). Despite the influx of more than 60 children to add to the 300 Freda Gardham pupils, everyone has settled down extremely well, he said, with no major problems and hardly any minor ones; and he had a good word for County, who made a real effort to get Playden's "territory" adapted in time - as well as the separate classrooms, Playden has its own office and phone number, and the school records are kept quite independently.
Once again the Community Centre is organising the annual Pancake Race on Shrove Tuesday (16 February). Noel Varley toured the town's pubs, hotels and restaurants, and found that there was plenty of enthusiasm; other groups are not eligible, so this is really only a reminder that entry forms should be in as soon as possible to Yvonne Metcalf at the Centre, so that she can arrange the various heats.
Patrons of the competing establishments are usually generous sponsors, and there will also be a street collection in the town that day, Rother permitting; barring really dreadful weather, the races are run in the middle section of the High Street from 3.30. If the weather is dreadful, the whole thing takes place in the Community Centre - where pancakes and cups of tea are served afterwards anyway. All proceeds go to the sorely-pressed Centre, still with a big patch on its roof.
An unidentified Andrew at Thomas Peacocke Lower School never would have expected to be quoted in the first line of an article in the Times Educational Supplement! His words "It's teaching in your head, teaching about how you feel" are used to describe the Arts in Schools Project which TPS has been pioneering for the past four terms (and which was responsible for the "Mary Stanford" evening at the end of July - GAZETTE no. 234). There is a full-page account of the Project nation- ally, and interviews with Chris Rose and Margaret Marshall, in charge of the scheme at TPS. Mr. Rose tells us that the subjects this year are "Smuggling" for the first-years and "Leisure" for the second-year pupils.
If you live near the railway, and hear an unusual noise on Saturday night, 23 January, it is worth pulling back the curtains to have a look. You may well see what BR calls its Sparks Special - the rail-grinding train. The name speaks for itself: travelling at 4mph, its 48 grindstones sand down the rails to make a more comfortable ride for passengers and also to reduce maintenance costs. In the process it gives off a most spectacular shower of sparks - a free firework display, which has been mistaken for a train on fire. The noise is also rather unexpected; but even at 4mph, it doesn't last for ever.
2.
Mr. David Bowen, of Pottingfield Road, died very suddenly in his sleep on 9 January at Walsall, where he and his wife were spending the weekend. The funeral has taken place. Mr. Bowen, who was 44, was well known and liked in the town, both for his cheerful outlook on life and for the efficiency of his carrier's business, and he will be very much missed; there is great sympathy for his widow Margaret, and for his son Jason.
Mr. Alfred Richard Hobbs, of Cooper Road, died suddenly but peacefully in RESH on 9 January. He was 90. Mr. Hobbs spent much of his working life at Spun Concrete, but continued to do the garden at the Dormy House long after his official retirement, and rode his bike in the town when he was well into his 80s. He and his wife had been married for 67 years last Christmas Day, and it seems likely that they were Rye's longest-married couple. Mr. Hobbs leaves his widow Dorothy, their children Eileen, Bob, Michael and Rita, twelve grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren, all of whom loved him very much. The funeral took place at Playden Church on Friday, and was followed by burial in Rye Cemetery.
Mrs. Margaret Carter (nee Pope), of King's Avenue, died in hospital after a very brief illness; she is survived by her husband Henry, and her sons Bernard and Steven. Mrs. Carter had worked at Presto in the High Street for the past three years, and the manager tells us that his staff - very much a "family unit" - are deeply saddened by her death; customers and friends in the town will also miss her. The funeral service takes place at St. Mary's at 12.30 on Tuesday (26th), followed by private cremation; family flowers only, but donations may be sent in her memory to the Multiple Sclerosis Society at 3 Market Road, Rye.
New owner of the Rope Walk fish-shop, Inshore Fisheries, is Samantha Edwards. Four local boats backing her up mean that the shop will continue to sell fish straight from the sea. Phone number is Rye 222731, and the shop is open from 9 to 1, Tuesday to Saturday mornings.
Ex-owners Paul and Jocelyn Kennard were briefly back in Rye last week before driving back to Portugal with a van-load of necessities for "Mascotte"; the Plymouth-Santander ferry trip will allow Jocelyn to get her sea-legs... Weather permitting, they hope to bring "Mascotte" back to Rye for six weeks or so from the Easter weekend, and from time to time during the summer, after what should be a very pleasant voyage home via the Azores.
Joan Parkes is intending to take a sabbatical year in 1988, letting her Ockman Lane house and going back to her roots at Llangollen in the spring. The RNLI branch will therefore need a new secretary. Joan, who has done this job for 15 years, will be very glad to hand over the files and the Lifeboat Week boxes to a successor; Lifeboat Week is usually in early July, and it involves a considerable amount of work for some time before that, but if someone doesn't offer to take over, there might not be a Lifeboat Week here this year - and it does raise a huge amount of money for the RNLI, even by Rye standards. Volunteers should contact the Branch Chairman, Roger Breeds, at St. Margaret's Terrace.
For several years now the Unemployment Benefit Service has been coming over to Rye once in three months, so that people registered for benefit can check in with them here rather than having to go over to Hastings. From February onwards they are coming monthly. Still at the Community Centre, they will be here from 9 to 1 on the first Thursday of every month (4 February, 5 March, etc.) and as before will notify those they want to see. People with a one-off query can also be seen here; but they need to write first, stating their business, since with all the records on computer the staff only bring with them those they expect to need that day.
3 - THE RYE GAZETTE, 20 January 1988
The BR press office statement that local stations would have the new rail fares by early December was, as we suspected, wildly over-optimistic! However, they are now in operation, and travellers will be glad to find that the increase on 10 January has not made a dramatic difference for Rye (we didn't ask about season ,tickets). A day return from Rye to Hastings has gone up by 10p to £1.90; from Rye to Brighton by 40p, to £6.40; and from Rye to London by 20p to £9.40. How about ordinary returns to London? They seem to be rather complicated; with a Network card, you only pay £9.90 but can't leave here before the 10.35; with a Saver, you pay £15.00 but can't leave before the 9.35; and the full return fare (travel when you like) is £18.20, formerly £17.40. It is sometimes possible to dodge round the starting-time restrictions by starting again from Ashford (and Baldwins can book both tickets for you in advance).
After last week's query about our Euro-MP, a reader was able to give us his name and a contact through which we eventually discovered his address. Sir Jack Stewart-Clark lives at Cowden, Kent, (somewhere near East Grinstead). So anyone wanting to object to the West German proposals which might jeopardise our rabies regulations (back page, last week) should write to Sir Jack there.
His secretary, when we asked if we were likely to see Sir Jack here, said that his European commitments mean he can only spare a couple of days every six months to go round the whole of his vast constituency. As far as we remember, he has never appeared publicly in Rye; a booking several years ago had to be cancelled at the last moment. Perhaps before he is due for re-election...?
Love Lane residents have been concerned recently about use of the small field between the school and the allotments. This belongs to Rother, and for some years has been used - about once a fortnight, with the wind in the right direction - by Colin Hudson's staff for burning up prunings, etc. However, after the storm in October the amount of combustible rubbish increased hugely; although the Rother staff did use the bonfire site on the Salts to get rid of the fallen trees there, its proximity to the main road (and the children's playground) made it unsuitable for any but emergency use.
So what is Rother to do? There is not room at the Cemetery for a permanent major bonfire site. (The big tree which came down there, by the way, was a cypress, not the cedar as we had heard.) The former tip at the back of Freda Gardham is now grassed over and let for grazing. The problem in Love Lane is not helped by the wet weather, which means that some of the ground is flooded anyway. If they don't burn the rubbish locally, it all has to go over to the Mountsfield tip a long and expensive journey for something which is not strictly "refuse".
Part of the difficulty is that people are also using the Love Lane site to dump household rubbish. This, of course, is illegal, and as Mr. Hudson says "The public are our best allies". If Love Lane residents, or anyone else, can give Mr. Hudson a car number for anyone seen dumping rubbish on the Rother land, he will be glad to take action. He doesn't want his staff wasting their time shifting old mowers, thank you!
Tree clearing is one thing - and, apart from the Salts, Rother have now nearly finished the job in Rye. Tree planting is something else again, and is always best done in the autumn. Mr. Hudson's department is desperately trying to make use of a grant which has to be spent before the end of March, and it is not going to be easy for them to get the work done is time.
So, if anyone is wanting to pay for a tree to be planted, perhaps in memory of a friend or relative or to replace a particular casualty, he would be glad to know - but he would very much appreciate it if the actual planting could be left until October; the tree would appreciate it, too.
4.
Top brass from County Hall came over to Rye last Tuesday evening, when the Town Council held a special meeting to discuss future action about the threatened road. On the platform were county planning officer Malcolm Reece, county engineer Brian Kermode, and Dr. John Rose, principal engineer in the transportation department at Lewes. Rother was represented by the planning officer, Leslie Robinson. Town Councillors Bromley, Breeds and Camier sent their apologies; County Councillor Joan Yates was among the audience which filled the chairs and overflowed onto the side benches. Most of them were Action Group members; but also present were the members of the Town Council's A259 sub-committee, who were allowed to join in the discussion.
At first there was a marked reluctance on the part of Councillors to ask questions of the platform party - "Not at this stage" was the frequent excuse. However, George Shackleton is well used to public speaking at Bexhill, and he started the ball rolling; others joined in later.
It was a long meeting, and not easy to summarise. One point which emerged was that ESCC is proposing to carry out, in April or May, a traffic survey concerned primarily with parking - finding out where motorists want to park, as opposed to where they actually have to (it wasn't stated what would result from 99% saying "In the High Street"!). The survey will, however, also produce other traffic figures, which will be made available to the Town Council and could be used in a Public Enquiry. The survey will take place over five days, including a weekend.
County made clear that if the proposed route (which they favour with their "qualified support") does go ahead, they will insist on a very high standard of design and landscaping - "normative design standards" would not be enough. (Mr. Kermode referred in passing to the tunnel which forms part of the Lewes bypass - was this, we wondered, purely a casual remark, or was he thinking about the possibility of a tunnel here?)
Mr. Reece dodged a question from Cllr. Shackleton about why County is not prepared to fight for a proper bypass for Rye when everyone else is getting one - merely saying that ESCC's view was that the proposed route's eastern end was "not environmentally satisfactory"; he was presumably referring to the knitting-mistake at the bottom of Rye Hill rather than the final stretch out on the Marsh. Later he implied that County could be going to push for the retention of a bridge at the foot of a hill, though it would be much higher than the present one and the problem would be how to incorporate Military Road. The County is also objecting to the Strand Quay diversion.
Mr. Kermode said that the DoT decision to regard the Rye and Winchelsea routes as two separate projects was taken some 7 years ago, in the hope that they could get started on the Winchelsea one without having to wait for "that cranky and difficult lot at Rye" (his quotation marks, amid laughter in the hall). He also confirmed Rye's view that the Department's outlook is blinkered, confined to the question of getting the traffic moving without looking at the "disbenefits". But Lewes, he said, takes a view of the whole community, and is very concerned about the severance of the town. Earlier that day he and his staff had sat down with the DoT men to talk about the detailed problems of the through route; he was not prepared to say what had been discussed, but the Department had gone away to think about it. Both Mr. Kermode and Mr. Reece stressed that County were prepared to be very difficult over the details of the proposed route, although they approved of it in principle; indeed, at one point we think one of them said that if County are difficult enough the DoT could very well pack up and go away and get on with something else instead...
The Action Group's survey was mentioned several times; but its figures really only confirm what the Department found, that about two-thirds of the present traffic entering and leaving Rye wants to go into the town anyway. But we did feel that no-one on Tuesday stressed the point that this figure relates to all traffic; what the survey also found was that almost half the commercial traffic appears to go straight through, and this of course includes the dreadful gravel trucks, and enormous delivery lorries for shops which don't exist here anyway.
(continued...)
5.
(continued)
Cllr. Shackleton referred to the "dog's dinner" of the proposed route. He was convinced that the Strand Quay diversion was only inserted at all in order that it could be removed later as a concession to local opinion; but this left the Ferry Road T-junction, the changes to the railway, and the junction with the main London road unresolved.
Mr. Kermode said it would cost some £50,000 to investigate fully a northern route. This could be done (in theory!) by local objectors, or by the Department - or by the County Council, but only if the railway route does not achieve an adequate design quality. He felt that the Department should do a more detailed survey of a northern route, including the costs, so that judgments could be made about the merits of the two alternatives. Mr. Robinson said that the Rye public consultation had been unique in his 28 years' experience of planning matters - never before had he known one where only one route was offered.
It was suggested from the platform that it would be perfectly proper for the Town Council to write to the Department expressing surprise that the northern route had been dismissed so summarily, and asking on what grounds. But it was also clear from the platform that Rye Town Council can expect no financial help from County in fighting the town's case at a Rye public enquiry, though technical help might be offered. However, since all three Councils are objecting to the Winchelsea route, Mr. Kermode suggested that the Town Council could come under ESCC's umbrella when that public enquiry comes up (in six to nine months' time, he thought) leaving us with just our own to deal with. He said the Winchelsea enquiry could well take five to six weeks (the Brighton one took nine months!). The Rye enquiry, he said, was still some time off; the next stage is the "preferred route" announcement, and of course we haven't yet had that.
At this point, questions (we have not attempted to record them all) were more or less exhausted. The Mayor thanked the platform party, and convened a normal Council meeting to discuss what should be done next. Agnes Bennett and John Ciccone (who could perhaps be fairly described as the commercial lobby on the Council) tried to persuade members that the Department should be asked to look in detail at a southern route as well as a northern one, but they got no support. The Council decided to keep its options open until after the ESCC traffic survey in the spring, but in the meantime to press the DoT for more information and for costing details on a northern route.
Perhaps this is the place to recommend a book. "Playing the Public Enquiry Game - an objector's guide", by Wendy Le-Las, gives a very full account of why and how public enquiries are held and how objectors can approach them. Dr. Le-Las is a consultant on environmental law and policy, but has also written articles on planning law, intended for the general public - as this book is. It is obtainable, post free, for £5.50 from the publishers, Osmosis Publishing Services, Ledgard Bridge Mills, Mirfield, West Yorkshire, WF14 8NJ. Anyone who would like to look at our copy before ordering is very welcome.
Jo Kirkham tells us that the TPS local history group does indeed have plans to mark the various school anniversaries which fall this year. Readers will mostly be aware that the group is largely interested in the first 40 years of this century, since it depends for information very much on memories from older people. So Thomas Peacocke's original foundation in 1638 is not likely to provide them with much material; but they would like to hear from those who were concerned in its tercentenary celebrations just before the war, for instance.
The group had planned to leave its publication about Rye's schools until a later date, but it now intends to produce it this year. Mrs. Kirkham would be most grateful if those who would like to pass on their memories of any of the Rye schools up to and including the 1968 changes, and who have not already given the information on one of the questionnaires, would get in touch with her at TPS.
(What a really splendid job this tiny group is doing for the town!)
Tonight Rother's senior committee, Policy & Resources, considers a report from the Planning Officer about the Rye Harbour Marina Feasibility Study generally. Mr. Robinson reminds members that the County Council accepted the findings of the Study as the basis for discussion between developers, landowners and relevant local authorities; that it preferred site 5 (New Road) to site 1, of the two recommended by the consultants; and that it wished any marina development to meet Structure Plan policies, to achieve a high standard of design, and to be phased "to ensure the achievement of all elements in the scheme" (ie. to make sure the marina really does accompany the housing!). ESCC also wanted further support to be given to the possibility of providing floating moorings.
Then Mr. Robinson sets out the views of his Planning Committee. These, as readers will be aware, differ from those of ESCC (GAZETTE no. 254, page 4, sets out the Planning recommendations in detail), and they state that neither site 5 nor site one is suitable for marina development, with or without associated housing.
The consultants had considered, he continues, that site 3 (Montrose) "would not be developed successfully"; they felt that the Sailing Club should be able to implement its scheme, but that the North Point site would be best kept for angling and small-boat sailing and not joined up with the Rother at all. All three of these sites already have planning permission for moorings; Montrose, of course, has it for housing as well (though the new application, for 97 houses etc., is still under discussion - the only Rye application still outstanding more than 17 weeks from receipt).
Like most people here, the Planning Officer would like to see off-river moorings as such in the Harbour, since he considers they would bring economic benefits to the area. He therefore recommends to Policy & Resources that the committee should note Planning's view as regards sites 1 and 5; that no action should be taken as regards site 5 (of which Rother is the landowner) and its future use should be further considered in the context of a local plan for Rye; and that discussions should continue with interested parties with a view to securing the provision of off-river moorings.
Some time ago we reported a plan put forward by John Collard - the Conservation Society's maritime consultant and the author of "A Maritime History of Rye" - to set lock gates across the Rother, creating a vast area upstream with permanently near-high water to allow for floating moorings; this is something much done, he said, in river estuaries across the Channel. We hadn't appreciated that he also made a secondary proposal, as an alternative to set lock gates across the entrance to Rock Channel only, bringing permanent near-high tide to the Channel and of course Strand Quay. It would mean the provision of a conduit to take away excess water when the Tillingham was full, but would be perfectly possible and less dramatic than his original proposal. Although the Harbour of Rye Advisory Committee supported his ideas, Southern Water are stalling: in view of the possibility of privatisation, they say, they are unwilling to embark on any major project of that type. However, as Mr. Collard says, if they did do it they would be vastly increasing the value when/if it comes to be sold off. Anyway, it does seem reasonable to bear in mind this scheme along with the other three, as a way of providing much-needed wet moorings here?
It is being noticed with regret that cars parked on the grassy patch just as the road bends round Strand Quay past the sluice are making a horrible mess of it; one of the two young trees also needs attention before it falls over entirely. There used to be a chain to keep cars off, but it is missing. George Roberts at Scots Float says the land doesn't belong to Southern Water (whose rights stop at the footpath), but to ESCC as highway authority.
Would it be possible, Mr. Olesen, to have the chain put back so that the grass can recover - and also to prop up the tree?
7.
Both planning applications for our area this week are of general interest. One is a readvertisement of plans for the Tollgate Garage site, deferred at the December planning meeting. The new plans show 28 dwellings built in traditional style, making up 18 flats and 10 maisonettes, with the height of two of the buildings reduced from the original 14:14 split. The flats have one bedroom, and are arranged in blocks of four; the maisonettes, on the second and third floors of the taller buildings with flats below, have two bedrooms. There is parking space (and a block of garages) for 38 cars, with vehicular access as before from Harbour Road near the bridge. All the ground-floor flats now have either gardens or terraces, with the buildings shielding them from the road and the north wind. (There is, of course, no indication yet about the price of the homes - but it does sound as if this development may be more accessible to first-time buyers than anything else on offer in Rye?)
The second application is also for new houses. The Hastings Health Authority is proposing to demolish the Lodge at Hill House Hospital (on the right of the entrance) and replace it with two houses, each designed to accommodate six mentally-handicapped people. (Readers will be aware that the provision of small homes is an essential part of modern mental-health care, and the Authority opened its first such home in Bexhill in December.) But we wonder if it is really a good idea to site these houses immediately beside the busy A268? Would not the other corner of the road frontage be safer, with at least a warning footpath inside the hedge before the traffic is encountered? Incidentally, the application makes clear that the Authority is definitely intending to seek planning permission for housing on the rest of the site when the Hospital closes next year; it is pointed out that the two proposed houses are designed to blend in with such a scheme.
We asked last week whether there was a 50th anniversary coming up this year for the opening of the New Road school. In fact, it had been open for five years by 1938, and the very first occupants were the girls from Lion Street. Because there was work to be done on their old premises, they moved to New Road at the start of the 1933 summer term, though the builders were still busy on the site. Mrs. Cora Woolley, nee Batcheler, was there for the first year. (Her cousin, Arthur Woodgate, and her brother Colin were among the builders at the time; Colin was a roofer, and everyone knew when he was working on a particular roof because, being left-handed, he always started at the wrong end!)
The school was officially opened in October 1933, when the girls were joined not only by the Mermaid Street boys but by the older children from some of the nearby village schools (including Camber, Rye Harbour, Playden and Iden - was this, we wonder, when Iden School closed, with the remaining pupils going to Playden?). Why October, we asked - surely term begins in September? Ah, said Mrs. Woolley, term didn't begin in September then, except for the Grammar School; for everyone else round here the holiday weeks were during hop-picking in September. The scholarship children had to leave their elementary schools a month early - or they wouldn't have had a holiday at all.
Anyway, the Lion Street girls were far from pleased when the boys arrived at New Road. Thomas Peacocke pupils will be surprised to hear that "being made to sit with the boys" was a standard form of punishment (applied also to the boys, of course, in reverse). The Grammar School had taken girls since 1908; but beyond infant level, co-education was a new idea to the rest of the Rye children, and Mrs. Woolley remembers that there were all sorts of emotional problems at first. Some of the girls had men teachers (she was taught by Mr. Allnutt, widely remembered with affection in the town even now), and of course the boys were often taught by women - and this took a bit of getting used to all round. The headmaster was Mr. Russell, from Mermaid Street - and the girls resented that, too. It must have been all very difficult; Mrs. Woolley wasn't a bit sorry to leave when she turned fourteen!
Thursday, 21st Thrift Shop, Red Cross, 10 to 4 (and Friday and Saturday)
Friday, 22nd Nat.His.Soc., "Around Oxney" (George Delaware), FEC, 7.30
Saturday, 23rd A259 Action Group 50:50 Auction, CC (handing in from 10.30, viewing from noon, sale begins at 2 - see GAZETTE no. 254) Playgroup jumble sale (plus usual stalls), Clinic, 2
Monday, 25th Blood donor sessions (NOTE UNUSUAL DAY), Baptist Hall, 2 to 4,
5 to 7.45
Rye Town Council meeting (see TH board for time)
Wednesday, 27th Arthritis & Rheumatism Council coffee morning, FEC, 10
• Congratulations to Lorraine and David Mann, of Broad Oak, on the birth on 11 January of their daughter Abigail Thirza - their first baby. Abigail is, however, the ninth grandchild and seventh grand-daughter for Hazel and Bert King of Mason Road.
• When the Rye Goldsmiths clock was bashed by a lorry last summer, it took seven months to repair. It was put back on Monday of last week; and on Tuesday, it was bashed by a lorry... (Luckily the damage wasn't so serious this time, and the clock is still in place - touch wood!)
• NSPCC supporters are reminded that the Branch's jumble sale is on Saturday week (30th) at the FE Centre, starting at 2; goods for sale can be brought to the Centre in the morning.
• The Red Cross are increasing their hire charges for the first time in three years. New rates: morning or afternoon £8, evening £6, all day £12 - all including crockery, etc. Book with Mrs. Diana James.
• Rye WI last week presented a cheque for C100 to Friary Gardeners, as a result of the Group carol concert; a large number of members enjoyed Frank Palmer's slide show and talk, "Round and About Rye".
• Rainbow Guides is the name of a new section of the Girl Guide movement, intended for the pre-Brownie 5-to-7 age-group. Mrs. Howard (Rye 224933) will be glad to hear from mothers interested in the group she hopes to start here in April, at the FEC on Saturday mornings from 10 to 11. There will be only 15 girls at most, so that the three leaders can help to teach skills suitable for the age-group as well as playing games, etc.; six girls are needed to start.
• Two one-day schools on 20 and 27 February at the FE Centre sound interesting' they are intended as a pair, but it is not essential to go to both, and the cost is £5.50 a day (10 to 4, with a 12.30 lunch-break). The subject is "Stained Glass" (how to make it, rather than its history); materials, and a trophy to take home, are included in the cost. Leave a message at the Centre (222318) if you would like to join, or see Ann Swaine on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Friday afternoon there.
• Canon Maundrell admits with embarrassment that he can't remember who lent him, some time ago, a very nice copy of Robert Bridges' "Testament of Beauty". He would be glad to return it - but to whom?
• We were sorry to see in the press book that burglars in Leasam Lane on the night of 8/9 January took £15,000 worth of property, mainly silver and jewelry, while the owners were out to dinner. The only other Rye theft recorded is a £15 Exide battery stolen from outside the Quayside Garage during the evening of 12 January. There were no injuries in a traffic accident in Military Road on 15 January - the drivers involved came from Hastings and Clapham.
THE RYE GAZETTE is registered as a newspaper with the Post Office, published by Mrs. Mary Owen, 2 Cyprus Place, Rye, East Sussex, TN31 7DR (0797 222303), and printed through Cinque Ports Stationers of Rye. Deadline is second post on Monday for each Wednesday's issue. Spare copies are obtainable from Young Ideas, 7 Cinque Ports Street, at 45p. (Copyright Mary Owen, 1988)