IT is ironic that as the Queen was speaking about tolerance and moderation being the strengths of the British, David Quarrie was sitting down to write another intolerant, divisive letter to the Evening Press.

As the proverbial person who sees the cup as always being half empty, he bemoans the fact that the English are not jingoistic enough. The Queen, on the other hand, delights in the subtly understated virtues of the British, which makes this country a haven for persecuted people.

If David Quarrie had been in York on April 21 he would have seen the Minster disgorge hundreds of scouts, guides, cubs, beavers and assorted cadets and leaders, who proceeded to march round to the Eye of York, to mark St George's Day.

If he had watched with an open heart and mind, he would have noticed many un-English faces, including our three children's, who were quietly celebrating the virtues of this country and all its people.

Jane and Seggy Segaran,

Holgate Road,

York.

...IT'S hard to know where to start a response to Mr Osborne's views on immigrants (April 29). It might help if he could decide whether he is a British or English nationalist.

We could then be clear whether the "aboriginal" British are the Picts, Scots and Welsh, or whether such recent immigrants as Angles, Saxons, Danes and suchlike also qualify.

Britain, to its great benefit in my opinion, has long been a dumping ground for all these, not to mention Huguenots tossed out of France and Jews out of Spain.

It largely missed the boat when the Einsteins, Fermis, Szilards and others came available without transfer fees; also, more recently, when there were significant outflows of talented people from Hong Kong, Russia and Vietnam.

Fortunately the US got most of them, and it shows, especially in the Nobel Prize lists.

Mr Osborne laments a town council's decision not to fly the Cross of St George. Doesn't this simply reflect that the soccer hooligans and other yahoos have turned it into a symbol of bigotry?

Finally, if aboriginal Brits send all the lesser breeds home, will they be willing to take back a big slice of the population of the US, Canada etc?

Xenophobia cuts both ways.

Brian A Jones,

Clinton Street,

Brooklyn, New York.

Updated: 11:12 Friday, May 03, 2002