I ALWAYS enjoy reading Eric Leaver's essays. His article on Whit Walks (LET, May 12) took my mind back many years to the days when we walked in procession with brass band playing and banners waving in celebration of the Festival of Pentecost.

There followed, on a Saturday, the 'field day,' with a brass band and races, in all of which the children competed enthusiastically.

Sadly, today, these traditions seem to be disappearing. I wonder how many of today's children regularly attend a Sunday school?

This is surely the bedrock upon which future church congregations depend, and the demise of the Sunday schools of many churches has much to do with the empty seats at church services today.

C A BAKEWELL, St James Road, Blackburn.

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