SIR - I see that various local NHS Trusts, in particular Airedale General, are considering the imposition of a 100 per cent smoking ban.

In my view, as a lifelong health service worker, and as a lifelong total non-smoker this would be a mistake.

For patients and visitors alike, an admission to hospital is a very stressful experience, and to expect long-term smokers to cope with the loss of their cigarettes on top of dealing with such stress is, I believe, quite unreasonable.

On the matter of staff smoking, I do not feel it is unreasonable to expect them to refrain for the short duration of a shift, but that is a matter for them and their managers.

The same reasoning applies to pubs, hotels and guest houses etc, where smoking bans would produce little real hardship.

But from a purely practical point of view, what a great pity that the managers at Airedale seem unprepared to learn from the errors of their counterparts at my own Leeds General Infirmary. Over ten years ago, they imposed a universal 100 per cent ban, not just in the buildings, but anywhere within their boundaries. (Yes, staff parking their cars were expected not to smoke inside said cars).

The inevitable and wholly predicted consequence occurred. Patients and staff alike found the most convenient spot outside the LGI boundary which happened to be on the pavement outside the Calverley Street entrance, just opposite the imposing front entrance to the Leeds Civic Hall, and everyone else had to push their way through the permanent crowds of smokers in order to gain access. This is still the practice over a decade later.

I well remember one particular occasion when some dignitary was arriving to be greeted on the Civic Hall steps. She was also greeted with the sight of an elderly male patient, clad only in carpet slippers and a very badly fastened theatre gown, clutching his fag in one hand and his mobile drip stand in the other. Most edifying!

For myself, 1 think that anyone who sticks a cigarette in their mouth must be mad. Smoking causes cancer and many other nasty things besides, and I would be delighted if the entire world stopped tomorrow. But I also recognise that kicking addictions is terribly difficult, and the time of being admitted to hospital is not the time to try it.

I can only surmise that Paul Johnstone (director of public health for Yorkshire and the Humber) who is pursuing the idea, is a reformed ex-smoker; only they have such evangelical zeal.

Bryan Glover,

The Corncrake, Cracoe.

SIR - The caption to the photograph of Middletown, Skipton, in last week's Craven Herald says "it is not known how much the first owners paid for their homes".

This prompted me to look through my family papers where I found that in June 1916 my grandparents, John and Emily Drake, paid £150 for their house in Rowland Street.

The property had actually been owned by the family since it first came into existence, for I believe John's father had bought a plot before the houses were built.

I have a schedule of deeds for the house and the first is dated March 1879 and is a conveyance to Thomas Drake from the trustees of the will of the Right Hon the Earl of Thanet. Unfortunately I do not have the actual deed, just its title, but my mother has written alongside the sum of £15 12/- (12 shillings) with a question mark, which seems to indicate that he could not believe so small a sum was paid. Even if the sum was for a building plot rather than a house, it still seems a small amount.

Thomas Drake lived there until his death in 1905, succeeded by his wife, who died in 1909. The house was left to their six children so it was bought by Marmaduke and Dorothy for £150 in 1910, the purchase money to be shared among their siblings. It was sold for the same price in 1916 to their brother, John Drake.

The house remained in our family until my mother's death in 2001. Amongst the collection of relevant papers there are maintenance bills from local tradesmen dating back to 1918. The prices make some entertaining reading today.

In 1921 the house was painted outside and this cost £4 and thirteen shillings. In 1927 a smart new fireplace with oak overmantle was installed for £17 one shilling and seven pence halfpenny (mark the halfpenny!).

In 1935 GH Mason charged £9 seven shillings and seven pence halfpenny for decorating two bedrooms and a living room, employing three painters at one shilling and ten pence halfpenny per hour. Yes indeed, the previous owners would get a shock at today's prices.

Sheila Coe,

Otley Street, Skipton.

SIR - Having grown weary of making complaints of one sort or another (wearier still of the need to make complaints) I hope this will be my last, though I can't guarantee it.

Also the victim on this occasion is deceased, but there are others still alive who need protection if they are to survive.

This time it is not the lorries, or recalcitrant councillors who have stirred me to action, it is a 20-year-old tree.

It is located (or was) on the corner of Watery Lane and Ingfield Lane in Settle, and I have, in passing, admired its shape in the ten years I have lived close by. It was nicely sited on a small mound beside a seat which is used by visitors and locals alike, pausing to admire the hills above Settle when they start or finish the lovely walks which are accessible from Watery Lane.

I have also admired the way this grassy mound is kept in superb condition, with flowers in season set against the background of the dry stone wall.

Indeed, I had intended to compliment the council on this, until I discovered it was maintained at his own cost and effort by a nearby resident. He would be a hero indeed if he continued to do so after the current desecration of the site.

Only a tree you may say, and only 20 years of age at that, but Settle needs all the trees it has and more. I am told it was removed to provide easier access to where some new, rather expensive looking houses are being erected. I have looked long and hard but cannot see the need for this.

I am not aware as to whether this particular piece of land is in public ownership, but regardless of this I was under the impression that a tree protection order is in force in regard to Settle.

The tree came down without any notification I am aware of.

Is this the shape of the future?

John Finch,

Settle.

SIR - Councillor Welch thinks people are content rather than apathetic. It's a dangerously fine distinction!

There is a story about a frog, which, being a cold-blooded creature, adapts its temperature to its surroundings. A frog dropped into a pan of even moderately warm water would quickly jump out, as it would feel the difference. However (and don't try this at home) if placed in a pan of cold water and very gently heated, it will quietly adjust itself until it gets boiled alive.

This is often how we are as human beings, unaware we are adapting to imperceptible changes in our surroundings, until it is too late to act. Other people see what is happening and try to warn us - but still some of us persist in thinking all is well and that change can be avoided.

There is huge potential in Settle area but perhaps nil unemployment and shortage of labour are not signs of wealth but of impoverishment (Where have all the young ones gone? - Where can I find a plumber? - How can I grow my business?)

The numerous banks, building societies and estate agents, which have replaced local shops, are not in themselves wealth creators. Boarded shops and declining services are genuine threats.

The councillor imagines that the people he calls activists are pursuing their own ideals whereas they are, in fact, voices urging us all towards self-help. People would do well not to listen to anyone behaving like a contented frog.

John Varney

Chief Executive

High Trenhouse,Malham Moor

SIR - Coun Welch raises a few interesting points in his letter, he seems to think that Settle can continue as it is by standing still.

Within the next 10-15 years mineral extractions, agriculture as we know it and associated business support services will be almost irrelevant.

People moving to the district tend to be well-heeled early retirees or higher earning 'execs' from West Yorkshire and Lancashire with jobs still in those areas.

The people that are missing are the returning 20-somethings coming back to their home area after further education because the higher-paid jobs are not to be found in Settle.

There is indeed almost full employment around Settle in mostly minimum wage or just above. How many £25,000 per annum jobs are there for 20-somethings?

To stop Settle becoming a ghetto of early retirees, commuting executives and minimum wage earners, it's necessary to start planning for the future now and ensure that Settle remains economically active and supporting the local sporting and cultural organisations.

Jon Blythe,

Raines Court, Settle.

SIR - After reading your letters column last Friday, and the letters concerning Gargrave, all I can say is thank goodness. I spent my first 49 years from the 1930s to the 1970s there when we had a pretty little village where, as children we could play, on the village green and in the river and roam as we chose.

Now as we visit the village we find nothing except a housing estate.

Gone are the little tea shops, bakery and fish and chip restaurant.

I served my time as a 14-year-old as an apprentice mechanic in the Penning garage. Now as we walk around I agree with your writer last week that the housing built there is a disgrace.

In my day everyone was involved in the village hall with family dances, pantomimes and various other activities and now there are very few newcomers interested in village life.

And talk of a skating rink on the village green fills me with horror and I hope the plans are scrapped.

Joseph Crook,

Park Road, Barnoldswick.

SIR - As a frequent visitor to Kettlewell and the Dales, where I have friends and relatives, I have noted the correspondence in your paper about an apparent lack of planning application for a car park at the entrance to the village.

I well remember those healthy sycamores being felled and really could not understand the action at the time with all the conservation regulations which exist, particularly in a national park.

Does no answer from either the national park or Kettlewell Parish Council mean no defence? Or are they all using the same village urinal?

D Edwards,

Oakworth Road, Keighley.

SIR - It takes a bit of time for the Craven Herald to reach these parts, so this Skipton "ex-pat" has only just read the report on the lady who ended up with fines and costs of £500 just because she had no change for a parking ticket machine.

Your editorial questioning whether this pursuit of a law-abiding citizen was in the public interest was spot on, except that it was perhaps more polite than my views.

As a born and bred Skiptonian I used to be proud of my home town but the anti-motorist attitude of Craven District Council, of which this latest incident is only part, leaves me embarrassed and angry.

My family used to regularly return to Skipton for a day shopping at the market and shops, sampling local eating houses and spending a not inconsiderable sum of money. However, this attitude means that we now rarely visit Skipton, and then only to see relatives. We spend our money elsewhere.

Now Craven council will probably not care two hoots about the loss of one carload of regular spenders but it should ponder the following. Amongst my local friends, neighbours and acquaintances are many who used to spend a day out shopping in Skipton but now rarely do so.

Can the town and its traders afford to have a council that is driving away trade in this manner?

John James,

Willow Lane, Accrington.

SIR - I note that there is much talk about "Thunderbirds" still being "go". Well it certainly was for me!

One of the most interesting postings that I had during my 37 years of army service was to the rocket range in Woomera, South Australia. In the late 1950s the trials unit to which I had been posted was given the task of evaluating a missile system for the army called Red Shoes which was eventually called Thunderbird One followed by an improved version which naturally became Thunderbird 2.

As the officer commanding the special trials unit formed to evaluate these systems, I was the first to fire the in-service version - and I do not recall any of my officers being feminine (and I most certainly would have remembered a gorgeous platinum blonde with a pink Rolls Royce!) I wonder if Lady Penelope remembers me.

John Wright,

Wharfe View, Grassington.

SIR - I write on behalf of Embsay and Eastby Parish Council to object to your continued assertion that the council gave £15,000 to the local school, which appears to have been ultra vires (ie without lawful authority) and illegal (your editorial last week's Craven Herald).

The plain fact is that the council did not give the money to the school. There was no resolution passed in respect of it and no minute of any discussion.

This was not a decision of the council and the exact circumstances behind the money being given are still being investigated. It is extremely important for local democracy that the wording is clear.

Would you please ensure that you make this point clear in your columns and do not repeat the wrong wording.

Jean Robinson

Clerk to Embsay Parish Council.

Editor's note: Finding the right verb to describe how £15,000 of parish council money ended up with Embsay school is clearly contentious. After objecting to the Herald using the verb "to give" the parish council uses the very same verb two sentences later.

SIR - Shame on your correspondent Monica Sutcliffe. I fail to see how she cannot understand a word penned by the Curmudgeon or has she no sense of Dales life? There is absolutely no need for the Herald to retire him and "replace him with a lively and lucid commentary on local affairs". His column is just that!

He gives us all an amusing and harmless (if satirical) insight into all that is pompous and pretentious in modern life in our Dales communities (and occasionally those further afield) that surely strikes a chord with us.

Can we not all recognise the colourful Dales characters he describes so well and those "temporary" residents and newcomers to the local scene who nevertheless have all the ready answers to all our problems.

The modern media - newspapers, television and radio - purport to give us lively and serious views on current affairs both local and national ad nauseum; how boring it is compared to the Curmudgeon. Keep writing, Curmudgeon, and keep publishing, Herald!

Ken Coote,

South Parade, Settle.

SIR - Monica Sutcliffe "has yet to understand a word penned by the old Curmudgeon" What is there to understand I ask myself. It states that it is a satirical column which in my books means sarcastic. It is a light-hearted look at a mythical village which I, and I am also sure many others, look forward to every week.

Living in a village myself I can almost identify with the characters in the Curmudgeon. It's the first column I turn to in the Craven Herald and I am really disappointed if it isn't in.

Karen Knowles,

Fold Lane, Cowling.

SIR - A footnote at the end of The Curmudgeon column states that it is a satirical feature. Satire is frequently based on political activities, so it is highly likely to be "politically incorrect". If someone who is inclined to be "politically correct" takes umbrage about the column, they can do as I do when faced with too much coverage of football in newspapers - just don't read it.

Editor - drop The Curmudgeon at your peril.

Kathleen Robinson,

Midland Terrace, Hellifield.

SIR - For years my only reason for buying the Craven Herald is to read the Curmudgeon - it's the most sensible thing in the paper.

Malcolm Turnbull,

Regent Road, Skipton.

SIR - I usually read the Craven Herald thoroughly but if I do overlook The Curmudgeon, on putting the paper down I realise I have missed something so I then go back and find him.

I find his tongue in cheek articles very appropriate to today's happenings. Please don't sack the man, or we might have to supplement his benefit payment to pay for his Ram's Blood!

Pat Pettit,

Manse Way, Sutton-in-Craven.