A sight to gladden the dampest of hearts

I’M delighted to be able to tell Leslie Geddes-brown that the West Country yokel is alive and kicking (Spectator, March 22). A while ago, I was watching the Devon and Somerset Staghounds, with the rain bucketing down in true Exmoor fashion, when I witnessed a sight that would have gladdened her heart. Cantering along a track came an Exmoor pony, the rider’s feet almost touching the ground and the straw in his hair just about hidden beneath a sou’wester. The pony’s legs were encased in old fertiliser bags lashed on with twine and from the man’s mouth hung an upside-down pipe. A cheery greeting and they were on their way, clearly enjoying their day out. Edwina Pugsley, Somerset