YOUR LETTERS YOURletters
REBUTTING THE LIE OF THE LAND Alan Cochrane [Licence to Cull, February 2014] displays more urban ignorance of the countryside than the MSPs he accuses. Unlike Westminster, the number of non-city MSPs is greater with additional members and constituency members. That gives the Highlands and Islands 15 MSPs compared to seven MPs. Do MSPs ‘know it all’ as Mr Cochrane alleges? Hardly, but my
committee does contain two farmers, the son of a Hebridean farmer and most of the rest live in small towns or in my case a village. Mr Cochrane hails from Dundee and lives in Edinburgh’s New Town. Scottish non-urban land has a wider range of owners than
traditional shooting estates. While 420 lairds may own the bulk of rural land, community land owners, conservation estates and public forests are big players whose voices need to be heard. Yes, the countryside’s ‘ancient traditions’ are under the spotlight in modern Scotland. Mr Cochrane goes on the say that ‘traditional land managers have
cause to worry about where this committee is going’ – only if they conduct deer management in secret and resist reasonable change. If he thinks that deer are sacrosanct for sport then consider the
7,000 to 10,000 road accidents annually involving the bloated deer population. Drivers, be they resident or visitors, often ask ‘why would Scotland not want a licence to cull?’ Rob Gibson SNP MSP Caithness, Sutherland & Ross, Also Convener, Rural Affairs, Climate Change and Environment Committee, The Scottish Parliament
THE GO-BETWEEN The photograph of Beatrix Potter [The Tale of Peter McRabbit, December 2013] was taken by my great uncle, Andrew Finlay Mackenzie. Moving south from his native Aberdeen to Birnam, he quickly became a society photographer known for his innovative work. His clients included Prime Minister Gladstone, Sir John Millais and, of course, Beatrix Potter. A study he made of her was used as the model for her portrait by Dalmer Banner. He was the intermediary between Beatrix and the intensely shy postman and amateur naturalist, Charles Macintosh. This led to a collaboration that culminated in Potter being the fi rst woman to present a paper, ‘The Germination of Spores of Agaricineae’, to the Linnean Society in London. J. Marie Bassett, Austin, Texas, USA
TROON’S ALREADY ON THE MAP! I have read Scottish Field for 40 years and have never read such rubbish as the review of the Two Fat Ladies [Putting Troon on the Map, February 2014]. Troon has been well known for its excellent restaurants for years. The Marine is making a desperate effort to compete with long-standing favourites such as The Lido, Scotts, Lochgreen, Highgrove, The Oyster Bar, and Piersland, to name but a few. Has Cate Devine ever been to Troon? She fi nishes with an absolute clanger: ‘It won’t be long before Troon throws off its reputation as a culinary backwater once and for all’. I would suggest that you give her a day off to sample some of the culinary delights that have existed in Troon for many years and the cost will not be as much as £78.35 for two without drinks! Kirsty Letton, Troon, Ayrshire
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