Newsletter September 2021

After an enforced “retirement” for the last two years, we can all look forward to our next meeting at Hornsbury Mill on the 17^th October when we have lined up for your entertainment David Eastman who will show us [for the first time] his selection of, I believe, mainly pre-stamp postal history from both Somerset and Dorset. We also have a brand new, written up display of Railway Letter Stamps, some of which you will see in the next Journal. As usual, we congregate at 10.00 for a 10.30 start with the famous Hornsbury cookies available with fresh coffee which will put a bit of lead in our pencils and set us up for the day.

As far as Covid-19 is concerned, I would like members and guests to have taken a Covid Flow-Test a couple of days before the meeting, just to be on the safe side. Flow-Test kits are available free of charge from your local pharmacist in packs of seven and are very easy to use. For those with an over-active gag reflex, a tip I learned from a nurse friend of mine is to swab both the nose and the throat at the same time by inserting the swab into the nose and allowing it to slip into the throat, waggle it about a bit and then pull out slightly to do the nose. It certainly helped me with my gag reflex.

Our very long serving member, Roger Martin is looking for a lift to Chard for our next meeting. Roger has, in the past relied on John Forbes-Nixon to bring him to Chard, but I believe that John is now unable to travel himself. If there is anyone amongst us who could offer Roger a lift from Easton-in-Gordano, he and many others amongst us would be very grateful. Please contact Roger on 01275 374738 if you can help.

Myself and the officers of the society hope that you have all managed OK in the Covid period and have not suffered unduly, and that your families, too have been able to cope during what has been a very unpleasant period in our history.

We have booked John Cowlin for our March 2022 meeting who will show a fantastic display [I an reliable informed] of Military & Political Satirical postcards from pre-Boer War through to and after WWI. We look forward to meeting John at our October meeting as he is coming along with Graham Mark as a guest to see what we do and how we do it.

Looking forward to seeing you all on the 17^th October-bring your diaries in order that we are able to set the two dates for our 2022 meetings.

Bill Pipe,

Secretary to the Somerset & Dorset Postal History Group

9th September 2021