Two months ago an American woman on her travels around England stepped into our quaint old pub in Downs Village and had the locals completely under her spell with her beauty and charm.

She told us she was on a scholarship from the US Government at Cambridge University and she was intrigued by the history of the village.

Only recently I found a letter she obviously wrote that evening which she put away in a drawer for someone to find.

I would like to share this with readers. The sincere and heartfelt words brought a tear to our eyes. Maybe she'll return we'll keep you posted.

"To the reader who may one day find this: Please know here I felt alive for the first time in many years. Loved, admired, befriended. To have these feelings ignored for so long wears down upon one's spirit.

"Like Jane Eyre, who lived to please, what joy is mine to come across a place where my presence is neither taken advantage of, nor totally ignored.

"To the residents of Downe, to the good people who drank here at the George & Dragon this evening, I thank you for giving me an evening of pleasure which will not soon be forgotten. You will all be remembered in words."

We have put her original letter in a frame.

Julie Newman The George & Dragon High Street Downe