AS a born and bred countryman, I wish to disassociate myself from the pompous remarks of J H Ling (Your Letters, October 1).

Such silly comments about the problems of living in a town serve to divide communities. The faults of a tiny minority of 'townies' cannot justify the faults of the rural dwellers. No longer can we claim an 'us and them', town and country split.

J H Ling wants the privilege of living within the peace and beauty of the countryside while no doubt engaging in matters of the town, with its vital connections to commerce etc. I can only associate this sort of hypocrisy with the hunting fraternity who are similarly divorced from the reality of living in the 21st Century. Half of them have their heads in the clouds while the other half keep their heads in the sand.

ARTHUR MOLTON, Mundsley, Hereford.