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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><STRONG><U>THE FIRST, NECESSARILY LONG, EMAIL
COMMUNICATION FROM A NEWISH MEMBER OF THE BELL HISTORIANS
COMMUNITY</U></STRONG></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><STRONG><U><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT></U></STRONG> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>For over a year now, as a retirement
project, I have been researching, both the history of Eastry Old School (where I
live), and the origins & founder of the interesting Old School
bell. After reading some details of these recorded by the Rev. Shaw
(1870) in his book on Eastry, I discovered that the bell still existed and that
it had been examined some 40 years ago by David Cawley & the now-deceased,
bell historian, Ranald Clouston. The local Rector, Frank Kent, gave me
permission to access & record the bell and I employed the services
of both a professional photographer & a professional calligrapher
to record in detail, both the bell & it's inscription. It was, and still is,
my intention to continue my researches into the Old School & it's
bell, until I finish both to my satisfaction, and then to publish a book
(probably entitled, 'The Histories of Eastry Old School and it's 14th. Century
Bell').</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>A couple of weeks ago, after a few email contacts
with him, I met The Rev. David Cawley for the first time, during one of his
infrequent visits to Kent, and found him to be a most interesting
& affable person and an expert bell historian. In friendship and in
deference to his & Ranald Clouston's earlier examinations of the bell, I
thought that he might like to have a personal copy of some of the recent
photographs and my calligrapher's recent rendition of the bell's
inscription, in advance of the publication of my research, the date of
which, probably, is at least one year away.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Perhaps I was naive, but I didn't think
to warn him that the material I gave him should not be pre-published
prematurely by anyone, other than by me!</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Imagine my feelings when I found that he had put
the image on the Bell-Historians web-site and had even suggested to Dickon Love,
that he might like to have it for his web-site! </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Next, I consulted a more commercially saavy friend
of mine, as to how I should respond to this problem, to be advised that I should
waste no time at all in reminding David Cawley of his infringements of my
commercial copyright and insist that he should attempt to reverse his actions.
When I say 'attempt', I appreciate that an attempted retrieval
exercise on the Web is a futile, 'shutting the stable door after the horse has
bolted' exercise,because, once something is out there 'on the Web', it is out
there irretrievably. Despite, some List members views, perhapsI am a cynic, but
how many copies of this image have now been made surreptitiously by those with
access to the Bell Historians' Web-site, contrary to David Cawley's
requests?</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>While I have accepted David Cawley's prompt apology
and his explanation that he was only seeking to aid my researches,
nevertheless, at the very least, he has decreased the number of potential
customers of my intended book amongst the Bell Historian fraternity, the very
people most likely to have bought it! When I wrote to him, I asked him how
he would have felt, if someone had acquired important details from his
manuscript of his book on the Church Bells of the Channel Islands and had
published it prematurely <U>without his permission</U>. Although David has
returned the physical material I gave to him (which he need not have
done), up to now, he has failed to respond to this foregoing question.
At the very least he is culpable for not asking my permission, before putting
the material on the Bell Historians' web-site.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Following David's praiseworthy & prompt
retraction message to Bell Historians, <STRONG>including his request that
the matter should not be discussed further by members</STRONG>, it was
interesting for me to watch the 'Moderator' of the Web-site, & two
others List members, ignoring David Cawley's request for silence,
and airing their half-baked 'opinions'. One of these List members (he
knows who he is) volunteered the 'information' that some Members were happy to
put their lifetimes' work on bells on the Web! <STRONG>What rot!</STRONG>
You can see George Dawson, David Cawley, John Eisel, Dr. Ketteringham, and other
authors of 'Church Bells of County X ' books putting all their lifetimes' work
on the Web for free, can't you ? <STRONG>I don't think so!</STRONG></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I wish to thank Richard Offen personally, & in
'public' for reminding List Members of David Cawley's request for List email
silence, on the matter of the Eastry 'Sanctus' (School) Bell. I felt sorry for
him, when David Bryant reminded him in a petulant, 'prima donna', manner,
just who was the Moderator and who had the right to say what is and isn't
allowed!</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>We will now all see just how fair your Moderator is
and I challenge him to publish my email, in full, on the Bell Historians'
Web-Site.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Yours truly</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Dr. Mike Baron.</FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>