Rats and overgrown gardens

SIR - What wonderful weather we had for Easter. A dear old lady was sitting on the seat at Landivisiau Walk in Bideford enjoying a famous Hocking's ice cream when, suddenly, two rats were running around her feet. Up she jumped and another one was in the b

SIR - What wonderful weather we had for Easter. A dear old lady was sitting on the seat at Landivisiau Walk in Bideford enjoying a famous Hocking's ice cream when, suddenly, two rats were running around her feet.Up she jumped and another one was in the bushes behind her.She saw me in the town and told me her story of the rats. I took a walk and what did I see? A lovely seat that had not been cleaned or painted for years. The same all along our lovely Walk.What a disgrace the gardens were, overgrown bushes all out over the walls, bushes by the pumping station, all the length of Landivisiau Walk there were brambles - well, you will be able to pick blackberries later in the year!To think that in a couple of weeks we shall have a visit from our friends from Landivisiau.Perhaps it's time to bring back our local men who used to look after our parks etc. But that was in the good old days before everything was contracted out.Mervyn Sweet, Bideford.