Previous letters pages can be found here. This post was previously letters from volume 4 issue 2, but I uploaded the wrong letters page! The letters page has stayed but I have updated the title, dates and cover to match the letters now.

Letters page from Volume 4, issue 3.
February 1st –  14th, 1956.

OUR

LETTER PAGE

TWO PRIZES THIS TIME !

A letter from Margaret Sharp, Batley, Yorks.
Dear Enid Blyton,
My four friends and I have a club which we call “The Famous Five Club.” We have a meeting every week. We each took sixpences to the meetings and then when we had a fair amount we went shopping, and bought material to make things, and to embroider. We held a sale of all these things and had two stalls, a confectionery stall and a needlework stall. The needlework stall raised £7 10s. od., and the confectionery stall £3. Altogether this came to ten guineas, and a kind gentleman gave us ten shillings, and also we received another pound. So we are sending you eleven pounds, and we hope the Famous Five Children’s Home will benefit by it.
Yours sincerely,
Margaret Sharp,
Florence Ellis,
Anne Whitaker,
Christine Henderson,
Christine Cooper.

(Thank you for your wonderful cheque, Margaret, and your excellent letter. It was interesting to hear how you had held meetings, collected money, bought material, made things -and sold them! I am sending a prize between you-a box of choco- lates to eat at your next meeting! Well done.)

A letter from Lois Tiddy, Solihull.
Dear Enid Blyton,
Three months ago I went to the post for Daddy, and on the way back I found a purse with 3s. 6d. in it. I took it to the Police Station and the Officer said that if the purse had not been claimed in three months’ time, I could have it, and the 3s. 6d. Today I had a letter, and no one had claimed the purse, so I thought I would give the money, with some of my pocket- money, to make 5s. for your Children’s Home.
With much love from
Lois Tiddy.

(What an interesting little letter, Lois-and how kind of you to send me the money! I am sending you a prize too, because yours is just as good a letter as the first one is.)

Only two letters again, but also two prizes! I’ve always wondered what the prizes for letters were, thinking perhaps the latest book or a bit of merchandise. This time it’s a box of chocolates – but that’s perhaps because it’s easier to share than a book or toy.

Margaret’s Famous Five group does seem very industrious – they must have sold a lot of needlecrafts and sweets to raise ten guineas. Had to do some looking up again, as I couldn’t remember that a guinea is one pound and one shilling (21 shillings) , so their total could also have been expressed as £10 10s. Either way, that plus another 10 shillings makes 11 pounds. Or ten guineas and ten shillings…

Lois’ letter got me thinking about all the usual and unusual ways money has been raised and then donated to Blyton’s various causes. And also just how much of it! Perhaps when I have finished with the letters pages (only 87 more to go) I will make a list of all the money’s sources and the total. Of course, it’ll only be a tiny fraction of the true information but I think it will be interesting nonetheless.