BARRY VAUGHAN, of Higher Street, Dartmouth, writes:

I was walking up the main street in Newton Abbot on my way to the train station, when I called in a local newsagent only to become very aware of a brand new, imposing chromium-plated tubular stand in front of the till, on which a fresh Perspex container set up at nearly eye level was supporting latest copies of the Mid Devon Advertiser – Newton Abbot's local newspaper.

When I thought of what happens to our Chronicle, by the time I had reached the station, my head was active with the most wounding thoughts.

Why in all Dartmouth's shops is our very own Chronicle, our dedicated journal, displayed on or at floor level, being kicked about; covered in bits of dirt; obscured by junk advertising from national papers above; often stacked upside down to shoppers; and generally in the darkest place of the display.

Is this all that Dartmouth people care about their weekly paper? I grieve quietly to myself, with clouded eyes, for Dartmouth.

But this is our paper, about us, our plans, thoughts about our livelihoods, our prosperity or not, our destiny – a paper that strives for unity, to tell us about policies affecting the town – maybe for good or bad – a paper very aware about justice and fair play, accuracy of what is written, always trying to avoid taking sides or be abused into such a corner.

In three decades it has never shone so brightly as a campaigning 'reader-friendly' paper, as now.

I trust, eventually, our special paper will once more be given dignified pride of place in Dartmouth – be taken into the pubs, clubs, hotels and cafes, where the merry-go-round of small talk will, at last, be sidelined by discussions about the more important issues which it has ferreted out for us.