Produced and Sponsored by St. Vincent’s Church, Caythorpe,

Parochial Parish Council Supported by the Parish Council

Editor. Roger Welby-Everard 01400 273459 Email: roger@welby-everard.com

Summer is really upon us, and by now we will know if the long range weather forecast was right! In any case most parents will be thinking of school holidays, going away or at least some days out together, which all need organising or in many respects for busy families reorganising the regular things of life, and Grandparents become even more precious. The jam makers of this world will be busy gathering the soft fruits that abound through our summers, to be enjoyed for the rest of the year from a jar taken from the store cupboard. So just when the temperature rises and days are long, there seems even more to do I haven’t even mentioned the gardens.........! So we get a bit frazzled when we try to find free time to just sit and stare at all the beauty around us. Jesus was very good at spotting the moment when it was a good time for himself and his friends to get away. Nothing complicated, just a boat trip on the lake or a walk out of the crowds to a quieter place. After all kinds of people had been with them for healing and teaching, just enjoying being listened to, he would say to them, ‘Come on its time for a break, we haven’t even had time to eat yet’, ( eg. Mark 6;31) and after a short while they would return, refreshed and ready again for the crowds of people who eagerly sought them out. The pressures might be a bit different for us, but as real then as now, we need fun times together, we need breaks from our work place and to benefit from the good things around us in gardens and elsewhere, but most of all we need times to our-selves, to be ourselves or even to consider what our true self is. God is usually quite helpful there.................and in quiet is a good place to find Jesus. The excited children who return from a school outing can’t talk fast enough to tell all that they have done and seen, and its a wise parent who sits them down with a cool drink to calm down and take stock before they tell us all about the day, and we need that time occasionally too, to sit down, calm down and take stock. Unless we do we find as Jesus knew, that there would soon be nothing left of himself to give. What modernity calls ’burnout’. He had much to give us and so many good things to share with his friends in a relatively short space of time, but he recognised also the value of being apart, that to pray and to wonder was not

CHURCH CLEANING Mr & Mrs Bavin

Flower Rota Mrs J Baxter

BRASS CLEANING Mrs J Scott

Mrs J Russell

PHOTOCOPYING We do welcome people who wish to do some photocopying at the Rectory. This is offered as a facility to all people who live in the Benefice, and the “contributions” made (5p per copy) help to keep the cost of maintenance of the machine down.

St. Vincent’s Church, Caythorpe Parochial Church Council

PARISH PRIEST: The Revd June Freshney 279199 LAY CHAIRMAN: Mrs Janet Avison 272158 CHURCHWARDENS: Mrs Jo Russell 273551 Mr John Scott 272974 SECRETARY: Mrs Carol Ridler 273267 TREASURER: Mr Roger Welby-Everard 273459

wasted time but a good way of recharging batteries and being ready for life in all the fullness that he promised.

Yours in love and prayer, June

Church Floodlighting To have the Church Floodlit for your celebration or remembrance contact Mary Siddans 01400 272371

Contributions for Caythorpe News Please send by email to roger@welby-everard.com or on paper (preferably typed) to:-

Owl’s House, 3 Frieston Road, Caythorpe NG32 3BX. Please note that the closing date for copy is normally around the 20th of the month.

Friends of St. Vincent 200 Club

May draw

£15 Muriel Henderson £10 Pete Endley £5 Helen Lucas June draw

£15 Roy Markham £10 Roy Markham £5 Joy Lucas

SERVICES IN JULY Wednesday 1st July 9.00 am Caythorpe Holy Communion Friday 3rd July Thomas the Apostle 8.45 am Fulbeck Morning Prayer Sunday 5th July TRINITY 4 9.00 am Caythorpe Holy Communion 10.00 pm Fulbeck Sung Eucharist Wednesday 8th July 9.00 am Caythorpe Holy Communion Friday 10th July 8.45 am Fulbeck Morning Prayer Sunday 12th July TRINITY 5 10.00 am Caythorpe Sung Eucharist (Mr & Mrs Scott) 6.00 pm Carlton Scroop Evensong Wednesday 15th July Bonaventure, friar, bishop 9.00 am Caythorpe Holy Communion Friday 17th July 8.45 am Fulbeck Morning Prayer Sunday 19th July TRINITY 6 10.00 am Fulbeck Sung Eucharist 6.00 pm Caythorpe Celtic Prayer Wednesday 22nd July Mary Magdalene 9.00 am Caythorpe Holy Communion Friday 24th July 8.45 am Fulbeck Morning Prayer 3.45 pm Caythorpe Friday Club Sunday 26th July TRINITY 7 James the Apostle (25th) 9.00 am Carlton Scroop Holy Communion (BCP) 9.30 am Caythorpe Breakfast 10.15 am Caythorpe Joint Family Service Wednesday 29th July Mary, Martha and Lazarus 9.00 am Caythorpe Holy Communion Friday 31st July Ignatius of Loyola, William Wilberforce(30th) 8.45 am Fulbeck Morning Prayer Sunday 2nd August TRINITY 8 9.00 am Caythorpe Holy Communion 10.00 pm Fulbeck Sung Eucharist

St Mary’s Catholic Church Grantham 1, North Parade (Tel. 01476 563935)

Masses Saturday 6.00 pm Sunday 8.00 am, 10.00 am Most weekdays 9.00 am

CHRISTCHURCH (Methodist & United Reformed Church) GRANTHAM Sunday Services held at 10.30am and 6.00pm at Finkin St./Castlegate

Sarah McQuaid in Concert Caythorpe Church Sat 11th July

With Support artist Neil O’Grady Madrid-born Sarah McQuaid was raised in Chicago, studied philosophy in Stras-bourg and spent many years in Ireland before pitching up in Penzance, Cornwall, in 2007. Drawing on the traditions of Ireland, America and the UK, her music is sublime and compelling, characterised by warm, velvety vocals and a distinctive acoustic guitar style. Sarah is also the author of a highly-regarded guitar tutor, The Irish DADGAD Guitar Book www.sarahmcquaid.com. The evening will commence with Neil O’Grady highly talented classical guitarist,

Tickets £7 will include light refreshments Door open 7pm, concert to start at 7.30pm

Tickets available from Micky & Cathy McNulty 01400 273549, the village post office, or church wardens Jo Russell and John Scott. Subject to demand tickets may also be available on the door on the evening itself, be sure and get yours early to avoid disappointment.

CHRISTIAN AID COLLECTION Thank you to all who collected the Christian Aid envelopes and thanks to those who generously donated again this year. The total raised was £562.00 which is slightly down on last year but with more and more charities feeling the pinch as well as the general public we are pleased with this amount. St. Vincent’s Church held a quiz which raised £71.05 and also a coffee morning raising £69.10.

Thanks again Val Panter

Salute the Brave Teddies! Many thanks to all who organised and attended the Teddy Parachute Drop on Saturday 20th June. Over a hundred Teddies took part in this epic adventure and I am pleased to say there were no serious casualties!

Red Cross Open Gardens 21st July 2009 A fine sunny Midsummer day smiled on both those who had opened their gardens and the visitors who came to see them. Many thanks to all concerned with the organisation of this event, not for-getting the team who provided much needed cups of tea and cake to those suffering from a ‘Thirst after Horticulture’. Roger Welby-Everard

CARLTON ELECTRICAL

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JP MAINTENANCE SERVICES

PROPERTY MAINTENANCE

MANY TYPES OF WORK UNDER TAKEN.

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GUTTERS CLEARED DECKING LAID

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MATERIALS SUPPLIED OR USE YOURS

CALL JOHN PADLEY ON. PHONE 01636 626510 MOBILE 07757 086003

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GARY BOWEN

Roofing Contractor

For all your roofing requirements

CALGARY HIGH STREET CAYTHORPE GRANTHAM

LINCOLNSHIRE

Tel: Loveden (01400) 273261 after 6.00pm

Mobile 07903 351822

GRAFFOE PLUMBERS, GENERAL BUILDERS AND PROPERTY MAINTENANCE

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Gas, Oil, Solid Fuel, and LPG Installations. Bathrooms and Kitchens - Property and Roof Repairs.

Underpinning and Foundation Repairs. Drainage, Plastering, Wall and Floor Tiling.

Insurance Work Undertaken

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CAR CARE CENTRE OVER 15 YEARS EXPERIENCE

ALL VEHICLE REPAIRS UNDERTAKEN

FREE QUOTATIONS FREE COLLECTION SERVICE

Belmont Garage, Lincoln Rd, Caythorpe, Lincs, NG32 3DD

Goulash Childminders Marie Welby-Everard

Edale, 33 Hough Road

Frieston

Experienced childminder regis-tered with OFSTED and NCMA. I can offer quality care, structured activities and play to enable your child to develop social, physical and creative skills in the environ-ment of my friendly safe home.

For further information please call

01400 279088

Mobile Butcher’s Van visiting Caythorpe

& Frieston

twice weekly Tuesdays

& Fridays

Telephone 01400 272497

The Boiler Man

Boiler & Tank Replacements Basic Plumbing Jobs

Have your boiler regularly serviced and save money

Evening Tel: 01522 789840 Mobile Tel: 07946 114955

Registered

SHARON MAGAN DRIVING INSTRUCTOR

RELIABLE, PATIENT, FEMALE INSTRUCTOR COVERS GRANTHAM

& SURROUNDING VILLAGES INTRODUCTORY OFFER -

FIRST 3 HRS FOR £50

Tel. 01400 272359

or 07931 454930

SPECIALISTS IN 4 WHEEL DRIVE VEHICLES

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INSECTS, RODENTS, MOLES, RAB-BITS, SQUIRRELS, PIGEONS

DOMESTIC, AGRICULTURAL & BUSINESS PREMISES

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Prompt and discreet service Tel. 01400 272296

Mob. 07837 057693

Environmentally Friendly Gardener

Advice on Water Saving & Composting Friendly & Reliable Service Guaranteed

ANDY FOOTE

Tel: 01476 560079 / 07853 245591 www.greenandy.co.uk

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Hedge Trimming Garden Tidy-Ups

Odd Jobs

Grass Cutting Pruning Lopping

PLUMBING SOLUTIONS

Tap into Tony for prompt and Friendly

Service Small jobs or repairs

welcome Drains unblocked and

cleared Bathrooms remodelled,

Repaired or replaced Small Domestic Jobs &

Repairs undertaken

All Work Guaranteed Call Tony on:

Tel: 01400 272976 Or Mobile: 07973 252268

Ian MacLean Interior and Exterior

Paintwork Over 25 years

experience Fully Insured

References Available

Telephone

01400 272071

FRIDAY JULY 17TH 7PM - 9PM CAYTHORPE VILLAGE HALL

THERES A NEW PARTY IN TOWN! Jamie Oliver's new party plan business has only just been launched. Combine a good time with the opportunity to stock your kitchen with some gorgeous hand-picked products for the house and garden from the JME Collection. I'm Gayle, your local consultant and I will be hosting a party evening in Caythorpe Village Hall. So why not come along and have yourself a free glass of wine or orange juice and have a look at all the products I have to offer. I will be running a lucky square chart, the win-ner will get half of the money raised to spend on products from the JME collection and the other half will be donated to pre-school. Custom- cards- beautiful hand made cards by Sarah and Usborne Books will also be there For more information contact

Gayle Johnson 07588573880 email gaylejohnson@ntlworld.com

Caythorpe Mother & Toddlers Group We meet each Friday in the Village Hall at 1.45 pm to 3.15 pm. Cost for Mother and one child £1.50, additional adults/children 50p, babies under 9 months no charge. Drinks and biscuits included .

. For further information contact: Chris Stevens 275046

CAYTHORPE PRE-SCHOOL Caythorpe Pre-School runs morning sessions from 9.15 am to 12 noon on Tuesday to Friday each week in Caythorpe Village Hall. (Term time Only).

Children must be 2 years or over. Funded places are available for 3 and 4 year olds.

For more details and an application form please call 07952 990710 (during session time)

CAYTHORPE BADMINTON CLUB We meet every Monday evening in the Village Hall from 6.30-9.00 pm

Junior Session (11+) 6.30-7.30 pm (adults most welcome to assist) Adult Session (18+) 7.30-9.00 pm

Rackets and Shuttlecocks provided. Last Session before Summer Break 20th July - Restart 7th Sept

Contacts: Cheryl 01400 273357 Mary 01400 273069

BRIDGE GROUP - meets Mondays 7.30pm Contact 01400 272535

Caythorpe & Frieston Village Hall Great for clubs, parties, dances or meetings.

Village Events every couple of months Friday evenings are now available. If you wish to set up a club, or

have ideas for using this regular booking slot, please contact: e: pwoodways@aol.com t: 01400 272724

Village website:- http://www.caythorpe.org

Caythorpe Surgery Reception Opening Hours

Mon 8.30am - 8.30pm Tue 8.30am - 6.00pm Wed 8.30am - 6.30pm Thu 8.30am - 6.00pm Fri 8.30am - 6.00pm

Surgery Hours Monday 9.00am - 12.00 noon 3.30pm - 8.30pm Tuesday 9.00am - 12.00 noon 3.30pm - 5.00pm Wednesday 9.00am - 12.00 noon 4.00pm - 5.30pm Thursday 9.00am - 12.00 noon 2.00pm - 3.30pm (Child Clinic only) Friday 9.00am - 12.00 noon 3.30pm - 5.00pm

For Appointments Telephone 272215 MEDICATION QUERIES AND REPEAT PRESCRIPTIONS ONLY

Telephone 272770 Dispensary Opening Times

Monday 8.30am - 8.30pm Tuesday 8.30am - 6.00pm Wednesday 8.30am - 6.00pm Thursday 8.30am - 6.00pm

Friday 8.30am - 6.00pm When the surgery is closed the emergency service is obtained by dialling

01400 272215 or 999

USEFUL NUMBERS Electrical emergencies/power cuts ..................0800 056 8090 For Electrical faults .........................................0800 363363 (Powergen) Anglian Water (Emergencies).........................0845 714 5145 Street Lights not Working...............................01522 782070 Highway Problems..........................................01522 553170 Environment Agency Incident Line (24hr) .....0800 80 70 60 Caythorpe Beat Officer ..................................01400 281852 /07939 312821 Caythorpe School............................................01400 272600 Grantham Police..............................................01476 402222 Grantham Fire Station.....................................01476 565441 Grantham Hospital ..........................................01476 565232 South Kesteven District Council .....................01476 406080 SKDC Environmental Health 24 hr Helpline..01476 406375 SKDC Contract Monitoring (commercial waste) .01476 406276 (Garry Knighton) Lincolnshire County Council ..........................01522 552222 LCC Waste Disposal Services ........................o1522 782070 Trading Standards ...........................................01476 561061 NHS Direct......................................................0845 46 47 Samaritans.......................................................08457 90 90 90 Childline..........................................................0800 1111 NSPCC Child Protection Helpline ..................0808 800 5000 William Robertson School Welbourn .............0140 272422 Lorry Litter .....................................................01522 554817 (Tim Collis LCC Env) Or ................................................01522 785043 (John Giles Env Agency)

CAYTHORPE – A PERSONAL VIEW THE DOWER THAT HELPED CHANGE ENGLISH HISTORY

Janet Norman © Even today, in some parts of the world, a girl’s wealth is measured by the size of her dower, the more she has to offer a prospective groom, the better her chances of securing a good marriage. We might smile at the idea of an ‘arranged mar-riage’ as something archaic, belonging to cultures far removed from our own, but during the middle ages it was seen as necessary, if a girl, or boy was to secure financial stability, as well as improving their social standing and this had to have been the driving force behind King Edward III in seeking an heiress for his third son, Prince Lionel of Antwerp, to Lady Elizabeth de Burge, sole heiress to the vast estates Irish estates of the de Burge clan. However, while I am always fascinated by the intrigues that follow such mar-riages, in this instant, my interest concentrates on the implications of not only Caythorpe, but how this marriage actually played a pivotal role in determining the lineage of the Houses of York and Lancaster because it was this marriage that was a forerunner to the Wars of the Roses, when two dynastic families fought for the right to occupy the Throne of England, and Elizabeth de Burge’s wealth and social standing was a contributing factor. Elizabeth held the Honour* of Clare (Suffolk), together with many other ti-tles, but it is this Honour which interests us because it would appear that it was through this that Caythorpe was to benefit from her generosity when she became one of the patrons of St Vincent’s Church. It seems the nuptials between Lionel and Elizabeth were celebrated sometime in 1355 when he was created Earl of Ulster, which seems a logical thing to do because it not only gave Lionel a profitable title but recognised his wife’s inheri-tance. There is, however, one tiny weenie fly in this particular ointment because Philippa’s birthday is given as 16th August 1355, at Eltham Palace, Kent and this seems to indicate a hastily arranged nuptial, in order to cover certain indiscre-tions that we shall now overlook! One thing is certain at the successful birth of a royal child the father was cre-ated 1st Duke of Clarence, while the girl’s name, being Philippa was a signal of respect for the Queen Consort, Philippa of Hainault. Sadly, we know very little of Philippa’s upbringing, save to say she survived childhood, and as custom dic-tated, as soon as she was old enough to be betrothed a suitable person was pro-posed, a certain Edmund Mortimer, 3rd Earl of March, and that was the match that was ultimately to cause the Wars of the Roses. It seems incredible that Caythorpe, far removed from the seat of power, had a direct connection to the struggles that turned England on its head as two of the great families of the land, squared up for supremacy, but that is fact, and because of this we became involved in the fight for the Throne of England, and it began

with an Irish heiress who bestowed her favours on St Vincent’s church. Incredi-ble, isn’t it? This period in our history holds a special place in my heart and as I am ex-ploring the heritage of Caythorpe it seems illogical to overlook the consequences of being obliged to fight under the battle pennon of your local lord, whose alle-giance was to a specific person. As Philippa had married a Mortimer, it follows that her allegiance went to his family, in this case which indirectly caused a rum-pus for decades to come as the rivalry between Lancaster and York boiled over. You’ll have to pardon me as I unravel this most fascinating aspect of our history and all because an Irish lady, sole heir to a vast fortune that caught the eye of King Edward III, who had a son that required a lady of sufficient financial and social standing to provide him with a lavish lifestyle, and our Elizabeth de Burge happened to fit the bill. Elizabeth died in 1382, whilst living at Clare Priory in Suffolk but her daughter did not, and it was through her that Caythorpe was forced to follow the dictates of a Lancastrian Mortimer, who tried to usurp the throne. Sounds fascinating, doesn’t it? It is, believe me, it truly is mind boggling.

*a group of manors held by one person.

Caythorpe and District W.I. - June

Members were given an informative talk on Herbs and their uses by Jane and John Stafford-Allen of Candlesby Herbs. Pots of herbs were passed around the members so they could have a good smell and decide which they would most like in their own gardens Vote of thanks was given by Ann Russell. The competition for a herbal remedy was won by Pauline Dorey. Linda Stevens won the flower of the month competi-tion, Kath Metheringham was second and third was Sue Dix. The committee will apply for a bursary to help with the purchase of spring bulbs. Sue Deavin is organising members to have a planting spree in the Autumn around the area of the telephone box on the High street. The Institute and the Craft club are joining forces for the Gala on Saturday 5th September. The stall will be for Ladies accessories i.e handbags, gloves, scarves, jewellery etc. The July meeting is about Cocktail Party Food and the competition is for a deco-rated spoon. We meet every second Thursday in Caythorpe Village Hall at 7.30p.m.. Come along and join us, you might learn something new!

We did it again – and still none of us fell overboard! (continued) Now we were back in Lock country, and finding the lock-keepers rather unhelp-ful we decided to adopt the procedure recommended in the Guide Fluvial ‘one of the crew should go ahead and help the lock-keeper with the gates etc’. Putting a crew member ashore on the jetty that is conveniently provided before each lock may sound simple. There were, however, problems. As you ap-proached the lock, usually just round a blind corner, you had no idea which side the jetty is, and according to Murphy’s Law it was always on the opposite side to that which you expected. So at the last minute the entire approach plan had to be changed – CCBW and 1st Lt moved round to the other side of the boat and re-muddled their ropes, Captain lined up for the jetty with the intention of putting the boat briefly alongside for the crew member (CCBW) to step ashore with a nimble skip. 1st Lt made hand signals from the bow indicating distance off the jetty. Captain could not determine whether 1st Lt’s finger signal means “two yards to go” or “you are making a total hash of it”. The crew member (CCBW) prepared for their duty, Plan perfect – execution imperfect. A few scenarios:-

1. Boat ends up totally stationary and parallel to the jetty, but as the boat is about five yards away from the jetty the crew member (CCBW), under-standably, declines to jump.

2. Boat ends up at right angles to the jetty, stopped and about one inch from it. As the jump from the bow to jetty is about 5 feet downwards the crew member (CCBW), understandably, declines to jump.

3. Boat passes jetty parallel and within two inches but as it is travelling at high speed and because the crew member (CCBW) is chatting to 1st Lt the opportunity to get off is missed.

4. The IDEAL:- Boat ends up totally stationary and parallel to the jetty, and as it is about two inches offshore, the crew member (CCBW) grace-fully steps off.

5. Boat hits jetty head-on at speed and the crew member is catapulted onto the canal side without further discussion – not recommended for ongo-ing good inter-crew relations and we never tried it - quite!

6. Boat approaches jetty at high speed and shortly before impact Captain realises his error and goes full astern. The crew member (CCBW) and 1st Lt who are standing at the bow, and not holding on, are gently toppled off the bow – with luck one of them may be holding onto the rope. This requires careful timing, go astern too early and they drop into the water. Again not entirely recommended.

We adopted this procedure and happily nearly always, well almost nearly al-ways, adopted method 4. above. After our accident with the second parasol we passed another rather unattractive place. According to the Guide Fluvial there is a large basin on the south side of

the canal. As we approached we heard loud-speakers blaring out. Though the language was French it was obvious that this was Hi-De-Hi Français or perhaps Butlins-sur-Midi. When we got closer we could see chalets and happy campers being bossed around by the commands issuing from the public address. The ba-sin is one of the bases of Crown Blue Line Cruisers, another firm whose boats are very numerous on the canals. As well as chalets there were some rather weary looking ponies which were available for overweight holiday makers to ride. We hurried on past – not exceeding 8 kph of course. It took a long time for the sound of Hi-De-Hi to fade as we moved on. Actually it was not very easy to hurry as in this part of the canal there were nu-merous small electrically powered boats available for hire. We got stuck behind a covey of them. They move at a breakneck 1 kph, are totally silent and gener-ally driven bang in the middle of the waterway by people who are incapable of looking behind them and deaf! As there was usually another covey coming the other way it was almost impossible to overtake. Covey is an appropriate term as they tend to mill around on the canal like the baby partridges one sometimes en-counters in the spring on the back roads at home. Patience, Captain, patience but we longed for a small torpedo or even a punt gun! In the early afternoon we reached our planned stopping place at Villeneuve-lès-Béziers . Here we were due to meet the Locaboat engineer to fix our blocked loo. We got a good mooring in the middle of the town. According to a prominent sign opposite our mooring there was a Spar supermarket nearby so CCBW and Captain set off to do some shopping – only to discover that Wednesday was early closing. Now this was a bit of a problem as we had very little to eat on board, though no lack of wine! So we went back to the boat to await the loo-unblocker. Our mooring was right alongside the jetty in the centre of the town. Ahead of us was a low bridge, beyond which was a lock. On the other side of the canal there was restaurant which had that ‘definitely closed’ look about it – so no food there. On the jetty beside us were a number of wooden benches on which the locals sat and gossiped and watched us as we watched them. I have mentioned before the French’s predilection for dogs and many of the locals were exercising their dogs. We had heard noises of a canine altercation up one of the streets leading to the jetty when a large gentleman walked down to the jetty leading, or rather being led by, a Chihuahua sized animal that appeared to have the attitude of a Rott-weiler. He was followed by another man with a very large and frightened Alsa-tian, it had obviously been the loser in the preceding encounter. Great aggres-sion by the Chihuaweiler now caused the Alsatian to slink off and hide behind its owner’s legs. The aggressor was hastily gathered up by its owner and held under his arm. From this vantage point it continued to hurl abuse at the now thor-oughly cowed Alsatian. No one among the humans on the jetty seemed to turn a

hair as the falsetto barks almost drowned the sound of passing traffic. One of the benches on the jetty was occupied by a group of young lads. Every now and then one of their number would depart, very noisily, on a moped. One heard the noise of the vélomoteur echoing around the town as its rider tried to impress the local mademoiselles with ‘wheelies’ and other testosterone inspired manoeuvres before, with a screech of brakes, he returned to join his fellows. Astern of us was moored a beautifully restored Dutch Barge. We had already learnt that its owner was a rather elderly Englishman. For some reason the lads on the bench had got it in for this boat and kept on dashing down to touch or even get on board it. When they tried this the owner would shoo them away with understandable bad grace. Eventually Mr Locaboat Loo-engineer arrived in the form of the delightful André. André was the same man who had given us our introduction and test drive at Lattes on Saturday. With great aplomb he disappeared into the forward bathroom and started to tackle the problem. I will spare you, gentle readers, from the gory details of this operation. Suffice to say it took some two hours of pumping, disconnecting, flushing with water, poking through with a long flexible auger, reconnecting, coming up for air, coffee and a Gitane, diving back in again for more pumping, up again for another Gitane, going back to his van for another tool and other generally unpleasant work in the sweltering heat before André finally admitted defeat. He had tried his best but whatever it was that had got stuck was not going to give in gracefully. Having consoled André with a beer, he declined our English cigarettes, we agreed that we would stop in the next Locaboat base which we were due to pass in a couple of days. Captain recalled some similar unpleasant toilet related inci-dents from his submarine days – but that is another story. As we had had no luck with the shopping we set off into the town to look for food. There was not much on offer for a restaurant meal. Eventually we settled on freshly made Pizza which we bought from a take-away near the church and bore them back on board to eat with relish. Roger Welby-Everard

CCBW and 1st Lt relax in Marseillan Approaching a Lock

Dog Poo! What is wrong with the mind set of some of the dog owners of Caythorpe. I am talking about the way they quite happily let their dog/dogs foul the footpaths, bye-ways and bridle paths to the North of the village past Gorse Hill Lane, with-out making any attempt to clear up after their animals. These paths are enjoyed by a lot of people, not just dog walkers, but pensioners, families and children, and one has to ask what the dog owner’s mental attitude is, when they allow their dog/dogs to foul the path! Ask yourself “Why should peo-ple have to ‘tippy toe’ around my dog’s faeces, because I am too lazy or stupid to pick it up?” I know that unlike the pavements of the village, where people, have to by law, clear up after their dogs, they are not required to do this once they are in the country, but what they are doing is very unsociable, if there is such a word ‘un-neighbourly’, and extremely unpleasant, and they should be ashamed of them-selves for being so thoughtless, selfish and un-caring! Plastic bags of course are the answer! This is not ‘rocket science’ a box of nappy sacks from the supermarket is as cheap as chips, and you do not even have to bring the faeces home, toss it into the hedge, ditch, nettles, long grass, or any-where off the path, even the fields. Dog faeces are bio-degradable, it will fertil-ise the plants and if you don’t mind this next statement, be food for foxes, rats and insects! But at times even that does not help! Some people clear up the mess and then stupidly toss the full bag into the hedge! Can I remind you that doing such a thing is against the law, it is litter! If I have to spell it out, once you have got rid of the mess, just knot the bag and bring it home to put in your dustbin. Some of you will disagree with this article, and some one is obviously cross enough to keep continually kicking over what I think is a polite sign, I have erected by the gate to Urnsfield House, asking dog walkers to clear up after their animals! So perhaps they might have the decency and the courage to write an article to the Caythorpe News explaining their views, so at least we can all have a discussion about this. Finally a vote of thanks to all those caring dog walkers who do religiously clear up after their animals, and keep our paths pleasant places to walk.

Jeremy Clark

One of Caythorpe New’s hardy annuals next - perhaps an appropriate follow up to the foregoing. I would say that generally speaking the towns and villages we visited in France were remarkably Poo-Free.

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SEEN IN THE GARDEN We have a little shady place at the top of the garden where we have a cou-

ple of chairs and a table. It is a pleasant place to sit and look out on the garden. We have been able to admire the rich blue of the Ceanothus against the deep red of an Acer and behind it the brilliant white of ‘Sundance’ Choisya with its lovely honeyed scent. In the middle of all this is a birdbath which I am for ever cleaning and refilling. A Pied Wagtail appeared and settled in for a good bath and then stood on the edge its head bobbing and tail wagging all the time. Just watching it was a joy in itself.

I said last time that there was not much to report on the bird front but what a different story now. The Blackbirds, Wrens, Robins and Great Tits have all hatched young not forgetting the doves and the pigeons. Again it is a great de-light just watching them. The Robins and Wrens love perching on our old white rose just outside the window as they poke around for insects. It is noticeable how the feeders need replenishing more frequently. One noticeably infrequent visitor is the Blue Tit and I rather miss them. I have not seen any Birdwatch figures but suspect the hard winter has reduced their numbers as usually happens. One pa-rishioner told me last week during the earlier wet windy weather she noticed the Blue Tits were not going into the nest box and sadly she found the whole clutch had died possibly because the parent birds had not been able to gather enough caterpillars and other food just when it was most needed. A clutch of Great Tits had also died. Be patient, they will come back. Another parishioner has reported a successful hatching of Blue Tit and a Green Woodpecker has been seen. An interesting observation was made on Springwatch, that however much we de-plore the predations of the Sparrowhawk (we saw one catch a Wren chick) it is a sign of a healthy bird population that can support these raptors

It is a relief to see Swallows, Swifts and House Martins have returned from their incredible migration from South Africa though not in great numbers. There must always be a feeling of anxiety about whether they will be able to re-turn in future years. I am glad to hear that the Maltese Government have now, at last banned the indiscriminate shooting of migratory birds, though how that will be enforced is another matter. Conservationists have been attacked and harassed in Malta. Mathew Parris writing in ‘The Times’, records climbing a hill in Leba-non to find the top covered with cartridge cases, not from internecine warfare but the left overs by those who call themselves ‘hunters’ when they shoot down little birds! Will man ever learn to respect his fellow creatures?

Alasdair F-D

In a short break from putting this issue together on Midsummer’s Day I was delighted to see a Woodpecker (Green, and young I think) on our lawn feasting on ants which seem to be popping up all over in the warm weather.

Roger W-E

Arnhem weekend is the 4th to 6th September. Veterans and members of the regiment will gather in the village for a series of events on the playing field, in the church and at the village hall. A VIP eye-witness & resident of Arnhem will recount the story of the battle. Afternoon tea, BBQ and brunch will be ar-ranged for all the visitors. It would be great to have some volunteers to support this great event, either by helping at the events or in other ways. We need cake bakers to kick into gear and volunteer to use their skills before the event. If you are able to bake a cake for the veterans, or offer help in any other way, please call Doreen Taylor on 272848.

Watch this space for more details next month.

The Playing Field At the Playing Field AGM on the 2nd June it was pleasing to see a number of the sports teams that play at the field represented. A committee of 7 members was formed plus representatives from the village or-ganisations. Officers of the Committee are as follows:-

Chairman Elspeth Fraser Darling Secretary Sue Dix 01400272105 Assistant Secretary Deanna Hammond 01400272217 Treasurer Peter Rushmere Other members are Robert Panter, Darren Leafe and Debbie Pinfold

Representatives from Football, Cricket, W I, PCC and the Parish Council also attend our committee meetings. Representatives from all Village Organisations are welcome to attend all com-mittee meetings. If your organisation is not represented at the moment please contact the Secretary Sue Dix and come and join us. The next meeting is Mon-day 13th July in the Pavilion at 8pm.

Gala The Gala is to be held on Saturday 5th September beginning at 1.30pm and fin-ishing at approximately 4.30pm with the Raffle draw. This year the attraction is the Ice Diamond Xtreme Cheer Leaders from Newark. A house to house collection for contributions to our White Elephant stall, book stall, tombola and raffle will take place in the weeks leading up to the day. Look out for more details next month. If anyone would like to become involved with the Gala please either contact Sue Dix or Deanna Hammond. Help is always welcomed. Sue Dix

The full Parish Council Meeting will follow at 7.30pm prompt. All are welcome to at-tend. There is an open session prior to the start when any Parish matter can be raised.

Andy Roberts - Chairman

Andy Roberts (Chairman) 01400 273 320

Richard Dix (Vice-Chairman) 01400 272 105 Simon Barter 01400 273 733

Marie Crawford 01400 272 104

Neil Fritzsche 01400 273 293 Janet Norman 01400 273 878

Mark Ridler 01400 273 267

John Scott 01400 272 974

Andrew Smith 01400 272 625 Peter Taylor

01400 272 848 Mark Woodward 01400 273 942

Clerk to the Council Mr Pat Fleming 01400 275 105 Parish Council News

Following complaints from village residents about the excess smoke, fumes and noise coming from the Bioflame electricity generator the Environment agency were informed. As a result the plant was temporarily closed whilst a superheater was replaced. Repairs were ordered to be made to one of the oil burners which was heat damaged. The Agency state the plant will not restart until a written report from Bioflame adequately states the action they have taken to prevent another failure of the plant. The Environment Agency have a 24 hour Freephone on 0800 80 70 60 were complaints may be made about operating procedures of Bioflame and the adjacent Mid UK Recy-cling. The Agency cover smoke, fumes, dust, smell and wind blown litter from the site (but not from lorries). Dust suppression equipment is now fitted to the plasterboard and waste wood processing equipment. Lincolnshire County Council deal with operating hours, fence insecurities and routing of Mid UK’s own vehicles. Their weekday office number is 01522 554817. Mid UK Recycling Ltd ask that if anyone sees rubbish blowing or falling off their vehi-cles the date, time and vehicle details should be taken where possible so they can take action. The company state that they regularly litter-pick the lorry routes, they are contact-able on 01400 273888. The Mid UK planning application to increase tonnages of materials handled from 120,000 to 200,000 tonnes will be provisionally dealt with on 27th July at LCC Planning Committee. A Parish Council representative will be allowed three minutes to address the County Councillors on our objections. The Highways Department state that, based on the traffic survey they have on objection to the increase in tonnage. The Parish Council did point out that the survey was carried out in January by the applicant when PGL at Caythorpe Court was closed and when, being winter, there was very little composting activity. Also while the survey was being done very little lorry activity was seen and yet the following day it was noted that there was a large increase in lorry movements. The Parish Council Planning Committee will meet in the Village Hall at 6.30pm Wednesday 8th July to discuss the issues relating to the recent Bioflame generator com-plaints. Bioflame and Environment Agency representatives will attend. Village Resi-dents are welcome to come along and express their views. Environment concerns relating to Mid UK are dealt with by a separate office of the EA so any comments raised will be noted and passed to them.

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